Nalini Sriram

Nalini Sriram is an Indian fashion costume designer and entrepreneur. She is considered one of the early pioneers of fashion designing for South Indian films.^[1]

Nalini graduated with a degree in English literature and worked as a freelance writer during her early career. After marrying film producer S. Sriram, she opted to pursue a career in fashion designing and made her debut with Mani Ratnam's Roja (1992).^[2] She continued to work for Mani Ratnam's productions, and the success of her work in Bombay (1995) attracted offers from other studios.^[3] In 2000, a particular paavadai dhavani she had made for Aishwarya Rai in Kandukondain Kandukondain (2000) triggered demand for similar products in Chennai.^[4]

Nalini has regularly collaborated in films directed by Gautham Vasudev Menon since Kaakha Kaakha (2003). Notably, she won acclaim for her work in Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa (2010).^[5][6][7][8]

She has also worked in the Telugu film industry, notably designing the costumes for the cast in Gautham Menon's Ye Maaya Chesave (2010) and Vikram Kumar's Manam (2014).^[2]

Away from the film industry, Nalini co-owns the Shilpi boutique, an independent brand.^[9] She also conducts workshops and curates new collections.^[10]

Nalini was married to film producer S. Sriram, who had headed Aalayam Productions. He died of cardiac arrest in September 2019.^[11][12]