Building Tauhfe: Shamsher Singh’s Journey as an Indian-Australian Designer Blending Heritage & Innovation
Photo: Zane Qureshi
Tell me your name, age and a little bit about yourself.
My name is Shamsher, I am 24 years old, and I am the founder of Tauhfe and Rugsply.
How and when did you first get into fashion?
I think I first entered fashion when I came to Adelaide for university. I attended primary and high school up in the Riverlands and it is quite rural so I wasn’t exposed to a lot of creative events there. For a while, I was quite introverted and just went to uni, studied and then came home and repeated that for a while.
However in 2019, I started having ideas about starting my own clothing brand and it took me a while to find the right name and information but I did my research, found the best suppliers and all of that. In 2021, I met Isaac Achan and the Steelo Flow boys and started going to their events and I realised “Okay now I’ve got to get into it”.
I then thought of the name TAUHFE and attended more events where I would meet more people like Rishab, Zane, and so many other unique and talented people. So to answer the question, in 2021 and 2022 I really got into fashion.
What does the name Tauhfe mean?
Tauhfe means gift in Punjabi. I know in Hindi, Urdu and a few other languages it does as well. One thing I want to correct is a lot of people call or pronounce it “Toffee”, “Toothy”, or “Tooth”, There are a lot of ways people mispronounce it. But the correct way of saying it is “Tore-Faye”.
Anyways the meaning behind the brand is to treat life like a gift whether it’s a negative or a positive everything has something to teach us.
How did your family and friends support your aspirations in pursuing a creative career?
It was difficult when starting it off, but Mum was very understanding. However, it’s always that idea of “What do you mean you are going to start a clothing brand, what about a normal 9-5 job?”
But if you put yourself in their shoes it’s not negative thinking, it’s just they want you to have a secure job. I know from working on Tauhfe for the last two years, that it’s not as secure as I would like it to be at the moment because you never know what’ll happen tomorrow whereas a 9-5 is secure and has a steady income.
With my friends, everyone's been pretty supportive from day one, even though with the first drop, I know I wasn’t as creative as I could have been, but my friends and family still supported me from the beginning, and I honestly could not ask for anything more.
How would you describe Tauhfe’s style of clothing?
It’s very difficult to explain what Tauhfe is, it has worked its way from being very design and graphics-oriented to now being very minimalistic.
We have a few drops in the year where it’s meaningful stuff like first it was the butterfly tees, which were centred around growing and how you need to go through hardship, and dark times and break out of the cocoon yourself. You can’t have anyone there for you, you need to show yourself that you’re strong enough now.
The drop after that was Qatar. The kataar was a weapon used in the old times by the Punjab soldiers throughout South Asia especially in South India.
And now the new drop is about Chandan. Chandan is about sandalwood in India, and on the hoodies, the quote is “Chandan ho jaande ne chandan naal vasde jehre”, and it means when you plant a sandalwood plant, everything around it starts smelling like sandalwood. So the symbolism behind that is the type of people you surround yourself with. If you want to be a positive person, you need to surround yourself with like-minded individuals or those who lift you and support you.
One of your graphics from last year featured the late rapper Sidhu Moose Wala. Could you tell me what influence he has had on you and your brand?
That was a very unplanned drop. His unfortunate death just came out of nowhere. He influenced not only me but the entire Punjabi community, and he put us on the map. I know there have been other rappers like Nav, but I think he was so different. He had an influence on everyone from the elderly to children.
Do you take any influence + elements from your culture and heritage when you approach projects?
Yeah, the Punjabi culture is very enriched with everything. One thing that's always stuck with me that I want to implement into a design is called Phulkari, and it’s just colourful embroidery. But I do take heavy inspiration from my culture. With Tauhfe, I want to create a brand that is an infusion of Australian streetwear with Punjabi Culture.
What is one thing that you would love to contribute back to your culture?
One thing I want to do with Tauhfe is bring the culture back and teach more people about it. When everyone moves out of Punjab to America, Australia, Canada, etc., we kind of lose touch with the culture we have and that’s one reason I did the Kataar collection with the tees because I love bringing back the history connected to Punjab and reminding people about our history and where we came from.
I know that I find myself being able to connect to my Pakistani culture through food.
Do you have a favourite cultural dish that you or perhaps your family makes?
Shahi Paneer. Just because we don’t eat meat at home. So that or samosas would be my favourite. And then on the sweet end, it would have to be Gulab Jamun.
Who inspires Shamsher?
I think everyone around me. It’s hard to pinpoint one particular person. My friends and family. There are a few people in Adelaide who inspire me, like Rishab Harish. I’ve looked up to him for a while and I love what he has done with Scumbag Studios. Rather than looking at big celebrities, I think I take inspiration from people around me with what they do, because I interact with them a lot more. Also, people like Isaac Achan, Bosco Memphis, and you (Zane Qureshi), I love what you’ve done with Frnd Magazine. From an international level, I would say the late Virgil Abloh, Jay from Jaywalking, which is a brand in India and also Represent Clothing. I’m always on the internet looking at the different runway shows, or what’s in at the moment.
What is one thing you would say to younger designers and artists who look up to you and may want to pursue a career similar to yours?
“Consistency is very very important. I have had those weeks or days where I have been in my head like What if this doesn’t work, what if I’m wasting my time? Never feel like that because everything you do no matter how big or small has an impact on you in the end. If you’re a musician, a fashion designer, artist just keep pushing and chasing your dreams. You might not see the rewards now but trust me stay consistent and within a year people will start to recognise what you do. ”
