Abu Jani & Sandeep Khosla

Place of Birth: Mumbai (Abu Jani), Kapurthala (Sandeep Khosla)
Label: Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla, Jashan

Contemporary styles and the revival of bygone works of art molded neatly into modern fashion brocade! This is what Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla are all about. The duo has made it to the fashion circuit with their sheer talent and inventive potentials of a designer. "The boys", as the duo are famously known, have made ethnic apparels with a fresh flavor of trends that comes on year after year. To bring in a resurgence of traditional works of art, the duo has traveled to the remotest area, grasped the art and beautifully executed it in their finest of collections. Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla are among the few people who have made it big globally. The duo was the first to bring out its collection at Harrods.

Early Life
Abu Jani was born in the metropolitan city of Mumbai in an affluent Muslim family. In his initial years, he had realized his potential as an artistic person and his zest for creations were refined in his adulthood. Abu worked with designer Xerxes Bhartena for five years and assisted him in designing costumes for a number of films. After this, he started freelancing and designed for the musical Grease Lighting and also for ad whiz Alyque Padamsee's musical Evita. This was followed by a job in an export house, where he learnt the traits of designing and embroidery. It was then that he started designing for ladies who specialized in exhibitions of ready made clothes.

Sandeep Khosla hails from Kapurthala. Though he was educated in one of the best school, his interest in extra curricular activities was more than that in the regular course of studies. It was this interest which drew him to the fashion scenario. Sandeep, in his initial years, worked in the family business of leathers and specialized in a number of traits. Shifting base to Delhi, he worked for an export house, where he learnt the variety of fabrics and garment manufacturing. He then moved to Mumbai, where, by sheer coincidence, he too joined Xerxes Bhartena to grope in the art of designing. He was the same designer who gave Abu his first break in the world of designing.

Career and Success
Fearless in taking risks, Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla started with a humble beginning and launched their creative line 'Mata Hari'. Soon, the magic of traditional and modern art captivated the interest of all and they launched themselves into the international forum. Their launch into the global forum was with a range of shawls, under the brand name of 'Shakira Caine' mark at Harvey Nichols, Neiman Marcus and Harrods in London, along with Bergdof Goodman in New York and Knightsbridge in UK. The twosome is also the most sought after in charitable functions such as 'Art of Giving' Charity and the British Council's 'Enduring Image Exhibition'

Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla's designer label "Jashan", launched in 1989, was previewed at the 'Save the Children' Charity fundraising ball in London. In December 2003, they won the national award for designing some of the fabulous attires for the movie Devdas, which they had designed for Madhuri Dixit, Shahrukh Khan and Jackie Shroff. In India, they are surrounded by the Indian Bollywood stars. In a span of nine years, Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla have established their first London store, while their British profits have doubled. In 2007, they appeared in Business Week's list of the 50 most powerful Indians.

Brand and Clientele
Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla's have created a rage for their designs both nationally and internationally, equipping the authentic and ethnic materials in a contemporary and modern style. Their clientele list includes the who's who of the film fraternity, of both Bollywood and Hollywood. Besides British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's wife, the designer duo also has dressed celebrities like Dame Judi Dench, Dame Maggie Smith, Darcey Bussell, and Sophie Marceau, as its international clients.

Apart from creating apparels, Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla have also ventured into the platform of interior designing, making a mark in this aspect as well. They have designed homes of celebrities like Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan, Dimple Kapadia and Nikhil and Shewta Nanda. The duo has its retail flagship stores at Mumbai, Bangalore and Delhi. The beautiful and stunning designs of Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla bring in a feel of traditionalism, within the realms of modernity.

Filmography
Some of the movies Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla are associated with are: