Anita Dongre is an Indian fashion designer and entrepreneur. She is the founder of the Indian fashion brand “House of Anita Dongre”.
Wiki/Biography
Anita Dongre was born on Thursday, October 3, 1963 (56 years old in 2019) in Bandra, west of Mumbai. Her star sign is Libra. Her family roots are in Jaipur. Anita’s father moved to Mumbai a few months before her birth. She developed an interest in fashion from a very young age. She was inspired by the women in her family, who used to make exquisite things out of raw cloth. She graduated from NM College in Mumbai, majoring in commerce. Thereafter, Dongre joined SNDT University in Mumbai for a degree in fashion. After that, she interned with the former royal family in Dhrangadhra, Gujarat.
appearance
Height (approximate): 5′ 4″
Hair color: dark brown
Eye color: Black
Family and caste
Parents and siblings
Anita Dongre was born into a Sindhi Hindu family. Her father is a businessman. Her mother’s name is Pushpa Sawlani. She has two sisters, Meena Sehra and Priyanka Hira, and a younger brother, Mukesh Sawlani.
Anita Dongre with her mother and sisters
Husband and children
Anita Dongre is married to businessman Pravin Dongre and they have one son, Yash Dongre.
Anita Dongre and her son
Anita Dongre with her husband and son
Anita Dongre’s family photo
Other relationships
Anita and her mother-in-law, Shalini Dongre, a retired teacher, were very close.
Anita Dongre and her mother-in-law
Profession
After graduation, Anita Dongre started designing clothes for local boutiques. She supplied these boutiques for about 12 years. After a few years, Anita started trying western wear and designed a range of clothes for young women, but no store agreed to accept it. So she decided to sell it herself and Anita Dongre Designs was born. She started the company in 1995 with her sister Meena Sehra in a small 300 square feet shop. Her fashion company House of Anita Dongre has four different brands under it, namely AND (western wear), Global Desi (ethnic wear), Anita Dongre (bridal wear, ready-to-wear, menswear) and Anita Dongre Grassroot (organic wear). In addition to the clothing brand, Anita has also launched a jewelry brand called “Pink City” under her fashion company.
Sonakshi Sinha walks the runway for Anita Dongre
Awards
- GR8 Flo Women’s Achievement Award for “Outstanding Achievement in Fashion Design” (2008)
- FICCI Women’s Wing Mumbai Chapter Award for Excellence in Fashion Design (2013)
- Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award (2014)
- Pantene Shining Women Award
- Honorable Mention for “Outstanding Entrepreneur – Fashion and Lifestyle” (2020)
Anita Dongre won the award
Favorite things
- Travel destinations: Paris, New York
Facts/Trivia
- Her hobbies include traveling and listening to music.
- She follows a vegan diet.
- Anita is an animal lover and has five pet dogs, two of which are named Cookie and Buzo.
Anita Dongre and her pets
- Her guru’s name was Ritambhara.
Anita Dongre and Ritambhara
- Dongre has appeared on the cover of Harper Bazaar magazine.
Anita Dongre on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar
- Anita Dongre comes from a traditional Hindu family where women in the family have to do all the housework and are not allowed to work.
- She was the first woman in her family to start her own business. She had 50 cousins in her extended family, none of whom had ever worked anywhere.
- Anita got the idea to create something with the fabric after she saw her mother, a skilled artist, sewing clothes for Dongre and her siblings when they were little.
- As of 2020, her brand “AND” has around 41 exclusive stores and around 200 other well-known multi-brand lifestyle stores such as Shoppers’ Stop, Lifestyle, Central, Kapsons and Pantaloon in India. Her brand “Global Desi” has around 54 exclusive stores and 130 MBOs in India.
- Initially, Anita’s father lent her the start-up capital and charged her interest.
- While her elder brother Mukesh Sawlani and elder sister Meena Sehra look after the operations side of the fashion house, Anita focuses on the designing part.
- Dongre has received international acclaim and has dressed some of the world’s most influential people, including Hillary Clinton and Kim Kardashian.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education