New Delhi, Mar 14 (IANS): Dubai based designer Shilpi Gupta is making her India debut with her line Surkhab, a poetic ode to the wondrous world of art and design.

The brand will be launching with the "Royal Heritage" collection, with a one of a kind "Fashion Experience" specially curated for the launch.

"We are excited about debuting in India with our 'Royal Heritage' collection. Craftsmanship plays a vital role for us, and every garment has an artisinal touch. We have taken inspiration from the royal ‘Gharanas' of India and have chosen techniques and fabrics which inspire us to create fresh, idealistic garments with a story behind them," Gupta told IANS.

A special dance performance will be held by Birju Maharaj's grand-daughter Shinjini Kulkarni, followed by a musical evening with a Fusion of classical and folk music by Salil Bhatt, a Grammy award winner, during the launch on March 16 at Bikaner House.

Asked why is she making a move now?

"After exploring the international market for 2 years, I felt Indian embroidery and heritage is appreciated so much globally, it would be natural for us to launch in India. My label was highly appreciated in Dubai by both Indian and Middle East people and I felt this was the right time to enter the Indian market," said the designer.

So is Dubai still the focus ?

"Dubai will always be a focus since we are a well established bespoke brand in the Dubai market and have a loyal client base for our customized trunk services," she said.