Three years ago, investment banker Rish Oberoi left the United States and moved to India with no intention of starting a clothing brand. But that is exactly what he did when a random thought motivated Rish to start Paani Puri Clothing (PPC). With humorous and funky designs, PPC currently specialises in t-shirts and bags, but they will soon expand their collection to include many other exciting products. Rish Oberoi tells us more about this quirky brand.
Paani Puri is a unique name for a clothing brand. What’s the story behind this name?
All this kind of happened with out a plan. To be honest, I was watching The Dark Knight and when I saw the Joker walking out of the hospital (which he had just exploded), it struck me that he would look pretty awesome eating Paani Puri. Indian stars eating American food is a common sight, but we’ve never really seen someone like Brad Pitt eat biryani or George Clooney enjoy a jalebi. So I thought the visual of Western characters eating desi foods would be awesome! That’s how Paani Puri Clothing came into existance.
Where do you find the inspiration for these creative t-shirt designs?
I have grown up around amazing artists such as DJs, Bollywood actors, hip-hop artists, etc. I learnt two important things from them: freedom of thought and creating things using what is available around you. At PPC, everything is created with a completely open mind but the ideas come from things around us. For example, one of our designs ‘I Spilt a Guitar’ was conceptualised when we saw the amazing shapes made by a spilt glass of water!
How would you describe someone who sports a Paani Puri t-shirt?
Someone who wears a Paani Puri t-shirt is intelligent. They understand and appreciate the wittiness behind each design. Secondly, he or she is a great shopper since our fits, fabric and print quality is what we are known for. And finally, they fit into a different bracket of awesome because they support the stupidity and madness behind this brand.
Do you have any advice for young entrepreneurs who would like to start their own clothing brand?
Clothing isn’t just about making a design, slapping it on a cloth and selling it. A clothing brand requires a lot of detailed work; you have to be 100 per cent confident that this product is going to work before you release it because otherwise you are throwing yourself under a bus. And that’s not fun.
Which celebrity would you like to see wearing a Paani Puri t-shirt?
We made a design called ‘I Love My Music’, which I would want my favourite hip-hop artist Lil Wayne to wear because he really loves the LA Lakers basketball team. Besides, the t-shirt has a purple base and yellow typography, which matches the colours of the team. Also, because he has the admirable quality of listening only to his own music to help better his art.
Volume 2 Issue 1
