Bengaluru, mostly in pastel colours, whimsical flowers adorn pallas, dupattas and jackets lining the arms and length of the body. Painstakingly hand-painted or hand-embroidered, they would have been a family secret of the royal women of the Ghatge family – a mother would lovingly decorate the clothes of her loved ones, but for cricketer Zaheer Khan's astute business sense. Thanks to this, it turned into a homegrown “slow luxury” brand, ‘Akuti’.

“Hand painted embellishments have been a part of my childhood, my mother has been doing it for so long that I took it for granted. But my husband (Zaheer Khan) encouraged me to make it a special collection,” said actor, model and former national-level hockey champion Sagarika Ghatge, who runs the label alone with her mother, Urmila Ghatge.

The mother-daughter duo unveiled their collection at Foo Seasons in Bengaluru.For a one-night only event on May 16, the hotel's exclusive whiskey parlor, The Collection, transformed into a viewing room for a carefully curated collection of sarees, dupattas and blazers.

Ghatge said, when they finally decided to take the step about a year ago, 'Akuti' Princess in Marathi became the natural choice for a brand name.

"Well, she's a princess," Khan shrugged.

Ghatge said the name is not just an indication of her lineage, but also an honor for all the women in her family.

Ghatge said, “Akuti is a step back in time, towards an era marked by impeccable taste and elegance.He said the inspiration for the design comes directly from the gardens of the Roya Ghatge family of Kolhapur.

Ghatge said, "My mother was really interested in gardening and often the flowers blooming in our garden would find their way into our clothes as hand-painted motifs."

Passion was one thing, but business was a completely different game, Ghatge agreed.

“We decided not to rush into it, take it very slow. Ghatge said, “My mother trained a lot of artists in the past, who now helps her recreate the designs that she had been wearing since she was 16 – and adapt them to today's garments.” .Ghatge said things took off much sooner than he thought.

“We have now also created a home collection. We are in the process of launching it,” Ghatge said.

Khan told how he is inspiring her to decorate men's wear as well.

“He made a kurta for me for Eid.Many of my friends and acquaintances were very interested in it and kept asking me about it. So, yes, I think, now the focus should be on menswear,” Khan said, adding that this will happen when the time is right, Ghatge stressed.

“I am very happy with the way we are progressing. All this is happening at the right time. Because we don’t want to compromise on what we are doing, it is about doing things the right way, bringing in the right people, mentoring the right artistes who would like to be a part of Akuti,” Ghatge said.

Although Akuti is currently synonymous with whimsical flowers and butterflies, Ghatge said she is open to other influences as well.“Of course we can do a lot more tomorrow. There are so many different types of art to take inspiration from in India,” Ghatge said.

The one-night showcase in Bengaluru was sponsored by Titan's luxury timepiece brand Nebula in 18k carat gold.

“This is the second edition. Jewelery was displayed first.We're planning about four a year, each one exploring different elements of The Better Side of Life. It can't be just clothes or jewellery, it can be music, it can be art...'' said Shalabh Arora, marketing director, Four Seasons, Bengaluru.