For over  five years now, one name has come to symbolise the world of luxury men’s custom tailoring in Chennai – Aliph. With a family brand heritage going back well over a 100 years, Aliph was founded by Omar and Heeba Sait, both of whom have a wealth of experience in the world of fine fabrics, bespoke tailoring and fashion and apparel design. Omar brings with him over a decade’s worth of experience in running bespoke ateliers in Oman and Dubai, while Heeba holds a degree in fashion, apparel and textile design from the celebrated Central Saint Martins arts and design college in London.

For Heeba, a great suit begins with a degree of personal interaction with her clients that would be hard to find elsewhere. At every stage of the suitmaking process, be it the design consultation or the trial and fittings stages, she ensures that, with her personal inputs, every client is made to feel special. Building a bond with clients gives her insights into their likes, dislikes and comfort levels, and how open they are to suggestions and ideas; she takes special pleasure in encouraging them to push their sartorial boundaries.

With her technical expertise with garment construction, she is able to immediately identify minute flaws during a trial and set them right. She also offers inventive solutions to clients, such as changing a cut or fine-tuning a pattern for a broad person who desires a slim fit. As far as Heeba is concerned, a suit is all about the details – its silhouette, the fabric, the colour, the cut, the fit. For example, for a classic work suit, she would recommend plaids or stripes; for a night out on the town, perhaps black, or even some colour.

Aliph offers the world’s finest suiting fabrics, to ensure that clients have access to the best possible quality. These include materials by Loro Piana, Ermenegildo Zegna and Vitale Barberis Canonico, in addition to their own in-house brand, Gatsby Select, which is Italian-made. The suits are crafted using a fine blend of cutting-edge production techniques and traditional hand assembly. With the wealth of tradition, fabrics and expertise offered by the Saits, it’s small wonder that the cream of both the Hindi and Tamil film worlds, as well as captains of industry, have made Aliph the sartorial destination of their choice.