reating fashion is easy, but sticking to an aesthetic, and to ethics of production isn’t always profitable. Founder and designer at Nukti Daana, Madiha Fatima Naqvi, emphasizes that everything at Nukti Daana is, “made with love”.

“Nukti Daana started years ago in my sketchbook, and brought to life after I graduated from university. I always wanted to create my own line, within which I could work in partnerships, teams, and express through the language of fashion,” she says.

The Nukti Daana aesthetic is clearly eastern, earthy, and fluid.

“Our design philosophy is how I interpret South Asian culture,” says Naqvi. “I take inspiration from the femme elements of heritage, art, culture, architecture, and translate them to our designs.

“Over the course of years, the philosophy has evolved too,” Naqvi muses, “it’s about making something meaningful, as with time people began to join in, and added their stories to the construction of every product.”

If you go through the Nukti Daana portfolio, available on their website, there are pieces that you could see yourself wearing immediately, and some that might not be to your taste. Overall, the look is breezy and comfortable, both work-and-play -appropriate, and not really playing to local trends at all. Naqvi says the label is focusing on cropped, comfortable pants and robes for the summer, as well as statement accessories.

“In the very near future we plan on putting out fun, stylish tops, and maybe a capsule collection of laid-back formals, you will also see some quirky stuff too – all of it in the fair trade category,” Naqvi reveals.

While Nukti Daana is definitely a label to explore, most smaller businesses fail to lay concrete business strategy, therefore impeding long-term growth. At the moment, says Naqvi, they are only focused on e-commerce, which should serve them through the current transitionary period well.

“We’re only looking to expand through the virtual platform,” she says. “We paused for a bit, and are kind of relaunching right now, prepping new capsule collections which will soon be seen on our e-commerce and social media platforms. Other then that, some physical presence through pop-ups here and there.”