Mhalesinuo Tepa: Designer with a Voice

Although her love for designing can be traced back to childhood, Mhalesinuo Tepa really started pursuing it more seriously during her break from B.A final examinations, which also gave her ample time to put her thoughts together and fix her mind on designing beautiful outfits.

It was the year 2011 when she graduated in English Literature from Sazolie College under Nagaland University, that her gift for designing also took a better turn. Because it was then, she truly set her heart to creating outfits that ladies can flaunt about. Mhalesinuo draws inspiration from daily life,  but her biggest influence is unmistakably her mom, even as she recalls how her mother has played an integral role in her life as far as designing is concerned.

She fondly recollects the first design she made of a dress when she was only 10 or 12 years old. “I didn’t know how to stitch but mom sewed it for me”, she expresses, with the memory still fresh in her mind. Interestingly, she never attended any design school but her passion coupled with hard-work and persistence has definitely reaped good results.

A year on after she took up designing more professionally, models wore her creations to walk the ramp at a festival, organized to mark the culmination of the Artefacting’s Global Village 2012 project at Kohima. Artefacting is a New York based, Non Profit organization that consists of artists, photographers, teachers, activists and people who are passionate about social justice with a hope to produce some art works that reflects their personal artistic interests with possibly finding a connection and the influence of their roots, Christianity and western culture.

Simultaneously, she ventured into an online shopping page on facebook under the banner, “Colour Burst” (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Colour-Burst/372610202778276?fref=ts)  during April 2012. With inspiration drawn from daily life, by now, she has designed numerous outfits that are suitable for several occasions. Her latest works include that of garments for flower girls and a ring boy. Her clients would best put it individually, but they all echo a similar sentiment when they say, ‘her designs are simple but very classy’. That, she is often complimented for her good colour combination is also noteworthy.

So, does she have a favourite colour? To this, she is quick to say, “I love everything and anything that is colourful.” Efficient also in her work, it takes only about an hour for her to create a work with simple design while the more complicated ones take about a day.

Born to a family of artists, Mhalesinuo also started sketching as a little girl, but that’s not all as the young girl is moreover gifted with a beautiful voice. She began singing at Sunday School, when it eventually progressed to greater platforms and bigger audiences. Only this year in January, she was part of the group singing in the famed, “We Will Rock You” Musicial, directed by Ate Kevichusa, even as they gear up to stage the much complimented musical at Jotsoma from 1-3, December, 2013 coinciding with the Hornbill Festival.

Singing, Designing or Sketching? She professes she would settle for the former two if she were given a choice. But that doesn’t necessarily mean she would forego sketching.

The young lady who did her schooling from Minister’s Higher Secondary School and finished her 12^th from Mezhür Higher Secondary, prior to graduating from Sazolie College, is currently pursuing M.A English from IGNOU. Apart from singing, designing and sketching, Mhalesinuo loves to cook and is often carried away by shoes and accessories.