What makes your style stand out?

Being style-wise: Fashionable wisdom with ethics and sustainable style, re-purposing! This pushes me to be innovative, original, and creative. Through style wisdom, I strive to convey vulnerability and authenticity via unconventional garments and innovative body draping. Why follow a trend when you can follow your heart, or better yet, be a trend setter? More generally, I am in love with the earth, so greens, browns, beiges, creams, and blues are colours I absolutely must have on every outfit!

What’s your dream fashion moment?

Curating ethically sourced yet stunning and flavourful pieces of clothing with my own runway. To be the wearer, you must understand the craft. To walk on a runway is to give a canvas its paint, and paired together, create a masterpiece. Being a designer, to me, is about experiencing it all. I hope to infuse more of my style with South Asian cultural heritage, paying homage to the garments, silks and satins that instilled in me my love for fashion.

What would you do with $20,000?

To express my gratitude for this opportunity, I would like to donate a large portion of the proceeds. I would donate more than half of the winnings $11,000, to charity, budgeted as follows: $5,000 to trans and queer youth lifelines, $5,000 to Gaza, and $1,000 to local sustainability initiatives in Canada, such as the Toronto Animal Shelter. The other $9,000 I would put towards funding my university studies in psychology and future longitudinal + experimental research in mindfulness. <3