Sameera Saneesh

Sameera Saneesh (born 27 June 1983) is an Indian costume-cum-fashion designer from Kerala, known for her extensive work in Malayalam-language films.[1] She is a recipient of two Kerala State Film Awards for Best Costume Designer (2014 and 2018).[2] As of March, 2019, she has been part of around 150 feature films.[2][3] She is often described the media as "busiest costume designer in Malayalam film industry".[3]

Sameera holds a diploma in fashion designing from National Institute for Fashion Designing, Cochin.[1] She started her professional career as an in-house designer for Raymond.[1] She had already started freelancing costumes for ad films while studying in Cochin. She started with television ads for Soundarya Silks.[3] Her ad for the Seemas brand, shot in Mysore Palace, was widely appreciated.[3] She went on to design costumes for the television commercials for Bhima, Alukkas, Kalyan Silks, Dhatri, Nirapara and the VKC.[1] Some of these television ads featured major film actors of south India, such as Nithya Menon and Prithviraj Sukumaran.[4]

Sameera's first film as costume designer was The White Elephant, a 2008 low-profile Hindi film, directed by Aijaz Khan.[1] Her first major commercial film, Aashiq Abu's Daddy Cool, was released in 2009.[5] Sameera currently holds to her credit an award by Limca Book of Records for "designing costumes for a large number of films in a very short span of time".[5] She has a supporting team of around 25 people designing and creating clothes for the film characters.[2]

Sameera was born to Ibrahim and Jameela in June, 1983. She completed her undergraduate degree at Bharat Mata College, Cochin.[1] It was her fondness for drawing and fabric painting that saw her join for a diploma in fashion designing.[3] She is married to Saneesh K. J., a Kochi-based engineer.[1] She has cited her late mother Jameela as major influence on her life and career.[1] Sabyasachi Mukherjee, a famous fashion designer from Kolkata, is the "favorite designer" of Sameera Saneesh.[1]