Dutch Sri Lankan fashion designer Mevan Kaluarachchi speaks of his desire to create stylish looks for the modern man
Words: Tina Edward Gunawardhana
Photographs: y-fashion photography Netherlands
Making his home in the Netherlands, Rotterdam based Sri Lankan Dutch designer Mevan Kaluarachchi is keeping his head below the parapet and working to achieve his goals. Stylishly turned out whatever the occasion, be it the BBQ in Rotterdam where I first met him almost 15 years ago to a casual meeting at Kess in Colombo to give me a sneak preview of his latest collection, Mevan is the epitome of a fashionable cosmo man. Mevan’s love for fashion saw him take wing to the Willem de Kooning Academy Rotterdam where he won a prestigious Body Fashion Award in 2003 and helped establish himself as one of Rotterdam’s best known names for beautifully crafts timeless menswear. After graduating in 2005 he completed a traineeship with fashion designer Alexander van Slobbe before launching his eponymous label.
Mevan has always treasured fine tailoring and draws his inspiration from exquisite craftsmanship and the attention to detail of haute couture. Highlights of his career including showing his collections at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam in 2014, MQ Vienna Fashion Week 2014 and Colombo Fashion Week 2015. A firm believer that a modern outfit is a mix of style and originality, Mevan includes those aspects as hallmarks of his creations.
Exhibiting an adventurous streak, Mevan has also launched a new label called Maddhu by Mevan. This label brings together core elements of good design, quality material and fine tailoring in harmonious balance. Explaining why he selected the name Maddhu, Mevan says “in Sanskrit madhu means honey or sweetness.. The word in Sri Lanka and Japan also means in the middle or the middle path. As it happens it is also the Sri Lankan nickname for a second child – that was my childhood nickname. I have used the word Madhu in honour of the balance and harmony the word evokes.”
