Celebrity stylist Sanam Ratansi is known for turning around a celebrity’s style aesthetic for good. With a long list of Bollywood celebrity clientele which includes the likes of talent like Saif Ali Khan, Alaya F, Zaheer Iqbal, and Aditi Rao Hydari, Sanam Ratansi works in a way to highlight their individual personalities while styling their outfits. We caught up with her recently to learn more about her journey as a stylist.
1. When did you first know that you wanted to pursue a career in fashion styling?
I always knew that I wanted to do something related to fashion. I remember even back in school when asked what I would like to be when I grow up I would always say, fashion designer. At the time, I didn’t know that styling was a career option. I didn’t know it for a while until film and celebrity styling became a big thing. Eventually when I realized that this was something I wanted to explore I didn’t really know how it worked. I was briefly introduced to Anaita by a friend and then there was no looking back!
2. During college, were you torn between other related fields that you could have taken up?
As I said, my interests were always in fashion and doing something around it. Honestly, I was always strongly inclined towards styling.
3. Can you talk about the first internship? What was your first job like?
Assisting Anaita was my very first job opportunity and I continue to be part of the style cell family even today!
4. How is editorial styling different from celebrity styling? Which one do you prefer?
I think I enjoy both; however, there are a few differences between the two of them. With editorial styling, timelines are a little better, and the brief is quite outlined. While celebrity styling can be stressful in terms of timelines, there are last-minute events and hence sourcing the best option can be complicated sometimes.
5. When did you decide that it was time for you to start freelancing?
I started my career working with Anaita Shroff Adjania and I’m still very much part of her company Style Cell. I was very keen to get into styling, didn’t know how it worked, or any stylists from the industry.
It was one of my friends who introduced me to Anaita when she was styling Deepika Padukone for a brand’s ad, I remember speaking with her very briefly and she then asked me to stick around the shoot to understand how all of this worked. And since then there has been no looking back.
