A Stitch in a Lifetime

“What? A tailor?”, would be the disapproval-tinged response by the parents of a young girl when told of their prospective son-in-law’s profession. Of course, their daughter’s skill in ‘silaai-shilaai’ bejeweled her resume alright, they believed. The odds would likewise be stacked against a male cook in the face of Engineers, Doctors, CAs or Lawyers in the marriage market. But in the last 30-odd years, the ‘cook’ has given way to the ‘celebrity chef’. And the tailor that Madhav Agasti started out from has grown into a celebrated men’s dress designer who has designed clothes for some of the most well-known public figures including Bollywood actors. In his autobiography Stitching Stardom For Icons, On and Offscreen published by Penguin Enterprise, Madhav Agasti walks his readers through his childhood in Nagpur, his decision to decamp from home at the age of eighteen to pursue his spark in tailoring. His first few peripatetic years of struggle and then dropping anchor at Bombay is narrated in very simple sentences.

Agasti’s transition from an employee in Super Tailors in Bombay to an entrepreneur makes for an interesting anecdote. And then follows the inevitable flight to becoming one of the most trusted cloth designers for the Bombay film industry, and then through word-of-mouth, to politicians and statesmen. If self-confidence in his intrinsic talent was Agasti’s lift-off, credibility earned through hard work sincerity and goodwill were his propellers beyond stratosphere. And yet, the tone and language clearly reflect the humility of the man he is. Clothes, like cuisine represents a very personal choice of the consumer and Agasti’s focus on the importance of remaining that good old street corner tailor in spirit who gives personal attention to every customer, comes through clearly. And without sounding preachy at all. Stitching Stardom is an important management handbook for beginners.

Where the book loses a bit of momentum is that, once Agasti hits the mark in Bollywood high street, the narrative plateaus off to something like a listicle of people that Agasti got introduced to and designed for. The description of the garments and accessories he designed for them look a tad templated. Some deft scissor-work could have helped. Of course, there are interesting anecdotes like the one around Shahenshah (1987) and the missed call from the PMO. But the inflection points, conflicts, surprises and climaxes that make an interesting story are missing and the manuscript tends to meander like pages from a meticulously maintained diary. Also, Agasti could have shared key industry insights, market dynamics, competition etc. – things that few outsiders are aware of. To give it the benefit of doubt, perhaps Agasti and the publishers wanted to make the reading comfortable reading for a wider cross-section of readers, thus staying clear of too much information.

The language is patchy too. The story of Amjad Khan’s labored travel to Dongaon to be the chief-guest at a spectator sport event is very visual and connects strongly. On the other hand, unremarkable phrases like ‘chilled out’ could have been replaced. A couple of structural inconsistencies might confuse the reader too – for example, Agasti and Mishra agree to start a venture in Gwalior. The next sentence says, “Mishra found a location in Morar, Gwalior District while I sought employment with various tailors …”. Why would Agasti seek employment with various tailors if he had already started his venture with Mishra?

But despite all, Stitching Stardom is a useful insight into a game-changer’s journey upstream. The glitches in the narrative should not deter young aspirants from picking up a copy of the book. They will benefit from it.

Balaji Vittal is a National Award-winning author of Bollywood books, a columnist, a public speaker and a Bollywood commentator. He can be reached on X at @vittalbalaji.