I started my career as a fashion stylist for ad shoots. After I got married I wore sarees regularly, because I love them and I respect the attire handed down by our grandmothers and mothers. Random shoot timings and a young family meant I took a career break.
As a housewife I used to get many compliments for the way I wore sarees. I started helping people drape, they began recommending me to others, and that is how I realised I could turn this passion into a profession.
My greatest inspiration is my clients, who push me to innovate. Every draping is a learning experience, because every woman has a different body and a different taste. My husband has been my biggest strength and support. They say behind every successful man is a woman. I proudly say behind every successful woman is a man who supported and encouraged her.
Mayuri Biyani
The timeline
- 2004Fashion design
Mayuri completes her fashion design course at the India International Trade Centre.
- Ad filmsCostume stylist
She styles costumes for advertisements for Videocon, Tata Tea, Cello, Nerolac and Fair & Lovely.
- FamilyA career break
Marriage and a baby daughter, and unpredictable shoot timings, lead to a break from styling.
- Compliments“Drape me too”
As a homemaker who wore sarees every day, she kept getting compliments. Friends and relatives started asking her to drape them, and to teach them.
- WorkshopsMayuri Saree Draping
The passion becomes a profession: workshops from one day to one week, for women from 21 to 55.
- Big breakThe Ambani wedding
Draping Deepti and Isheta Salgaonkar for Akash Ambani's wedding.
- Stage & screenCelebrities and fashion weeks
Lara Dutta at Lakmé Fashion Week, Tabu, Shamita Shetty, Ira Trivedi, and shoots for Anita Dongre and Kalki.
- TodayThe Academy
Courses online and in Mumbai and Pune, with students from 15 countries, and features in The Indian Express, Vanita and Mid-Day.
The team behind the drape
Mayuri works with a small team of trained drape artists, including Ruta Biyani, so every bride, client and student gets personal attention.
