Waris Ahluwalia facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Waris Ahluwalia
Waris Ahluwalia in 2023
Born	Waris Singh Ahluwalia 1974 (age 50–51) Amritsar, Punjab, India
Occupation	Designer, actor
Years active	2004–present

Waris Singh Ahluwalia (born in 1974) is a cool Indian-American designer and actor. He lives in New York City. His company, House of Waris, works with many other designers and artists. House of Waris started when people at a store in Los Angeles saw Waris's amazing diamond rings. They ordered some, and they sold out super fast!

Early Life and Background

Waris Singh Ahluwalia was born in Amritsar, Punjab, India, in 1974. His family belongs to the Sikh religion. When he was just five years old, his family moved from India to the United States. He grew up in Brooklyn, New York. Even though he lives in New York City, he has also spent time living in Los Angeles.

Waris Ahluwalia's Career Journey

Waris Ahluwalia is known for two main things: being a designer and an actor.

Designer: House of Waris

Waris founded his company, House of Waris. It gets a lot of its ideas from old kingdoms and their styles.

Even though he's not just a jewelry designer, Waris has created many beautiful jewelry pieces. He travels often to places like Rome and Rajasthan. There, he works with skilled craftspeople, like goldsmiths and diamond setters. These artisans used to make special items for royal families!

In 2009, Waris was a finalist for a big fashion award called the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund. In 2010, he became a member of the CFDA. This is a group for top fashion designers. That same year, Vanity Fair magazine put him on their Best Dressed List. British GQ magazine also named him the second best-dressed man in the world. Vogue magazine even included him in their list of the 10 Most Impactful People. He also used to write a column called "Love & Waris" for Style.com.

In 2011, Waris showed his first collection at New York Fashion Week. He launched a line of scarves made in India. These scarves were block printed, hand-dyed, and silk-screened.

Cool Collaborations and Projects

Waris uses House of Waris to team up with other cool brands and people. He has worked with companies like A.P.C. and Forevermark (which is part of the De Beers diamond group). He also teamed up with actress Tilda Swinton for a brand called Pringle of Scotland.

After a sad event in Mumbai, India, in 2008, Waris helped create a book called "To India, with Love." This book aimed to raise money and help people affected by the event. All the money from the book went to help the victims.

In 2012, Waris was the Creative Director for a special pop-up restaurant in London. It was a famous restaurant from New Delhi called BUKHARA. Part of the money raised went to help elephants through a group called Elephant Family.

Waris was a Global Ambassador for Starwood Hotels and Resorts. For this role, he helped make a short film called "HERE: a Film." Famous people like Tilda Swinton and Jason Schwartzman were part of the film's team.

In 2013, House of Waris launched a special line for Valentine's Day called 'Boo'. To promote it, Waris asked nine artists and filmmakers to make short films. These films were all called You're my Boo. Some of the artists included Casey Neistat and Ben Watts.

Waris also worked with Illesteva Eyewear to create a line of sunglasses. These cool sunglasses were launched in 2013 and are made in France.

In 2013, Waris opened a new chain of boutiques called House of Waris Rare. The first one opened in a beautiful palace in Venice, Italy.

He even modeled for GAP in 2013 because he's one of the most photographed men in New York City!

In 2019, he opened a special tea room called House of Waris Botanicals. It's located under the High Line in Chelsea, New York.

Actor: On the Big Screen

Waris Ahluwalia has also had a successful acting career. His very first movie was The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou in 2004. This film was directed by Wes Anderson. Waris played a character named Vikram Ray and acted alongside stars like Bill Murray and Cate Blanchett.

He also had a small role in another popular Wes Anderson movie, The Grand Budapest Hotel. In 2015, he starred in the film Beeba Boys, which was directed by Deepa Mehta.

Waris has appeared in many other films and TV shows over the years. Some of his movie roles include Inside Man (2006) and Ocean's 8 (2018). On TV, he has been in shows like The Carrie Diaries (2013) and Russian Doll (2019, 2022).

Important Incident in Mexico City

In February 2016, Waris Ahluwalia had a problem at the Mexico City International Airport. He said he was not allowed to get on an Aeroméxico flight because of his turban. Sikhs wear turbans as part of their religious beliefs. This incident made him miss flying home for New York Fashion Week. Waris asked for more understanding and respect for Sikhism and other religious headwear at the airport.

Recognition and Awards

In 2010, Waris Ahluwalia was honored by Vanity Fair magazine. He was included on their International Best-Dressed List.

See also

• Indians in the New York City metropolitan area