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India is indeed experiencing a cultural renaissance. Homegrown labels, particularly in streetwear are growing in number. The vibrant new street culture that is brewing as a result of this is not just proliferating various mediums such as art, music, and fashion but is also crafting a modern Indian identity that is bespoke and adapts to the cultural melting pot that the consumers of today are a part of.
Drawing its inspiration from its striking native art, textiles, and handicrafts, India’s street culture melds these elements into modern silhouettes striving to make a cultural imprint on the larger, global streetwear culture. It wasn’t up until even a few years ago that streetwear labels India built on this culture offline.
While the internet influenced the styles and presence of these stores for far too long, a trend is emerging amongst the newer labels that are expanding on their vision to build their business offline and on the ground. Streetwear retail stores are increasingly drawing the collaborative expertise of designers, artists, and of course, a thriving community of art, design, and fashion aficionados.
Amongst this swelling wave of emerging streetwear brands creating a ripple is Almost Gods, the brainchild of Delhi-based designer Dhruv Khurana. A whimsical yet edgy take on palaeolithic emotions, medieval institutions, and godlike technology, AG’s design language on its own is bold, disruptive and powerful. Keeping these themes in mind, they’ve collaborated with Kashmiri musician turned artist and spatial designer, Aaquib Wani to create a flagship store that is sure to create a furore.
Aaquib who was primarily an experiential designer forayed into spatial design only recently. Having created a mark for himself through his eclectic work for NH7 weekender, Levi’s, Adidas, and more in the past, Aaquib takes his passion for shape-shifting into newer territories with his latest work for Almost Gods.
The flagship store which was unveiled in Delhi earlier this month is a brazen, out-worldly experience store that brings together the extravagance that the brand itself offers. Inspired by the Nabatean Palaeolithic style of architecture, the store is a giant carving of a griffin, with its wings outreached right at its centre.
“Taking from the core of ‘Almost Gods’ – paleolithic emotions, medieval institutions, and godlike technology – we came up with concepts and ideas which work with their notion combining Aaquib’s design sensibilities. Major touch points were – old world, paleo science, something old, carved out of a rock, naturally occurring – the reference was Petra in Israel.”
— Andrita Khanna from Aaquib Wani Design
The store design right from its conception to research, design, execution and handover took an entirety of five months to complete. Keeping the intent of bringing together a community and fostering a future for conversations and collaborations around streetwear, AG’s store represents a promising future for brand curation in Delhi and subsequently, India. Created entirely out of styrofoam and the carvings made on it, AG’s physical store offers a shopping experience like no other.
Follow Almost God’s work here.
Follow Aaquib Wani Design’s work here.
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