Born to an Iranian mother and Arab father, Shahab Durazi grew up in Mumbai, India. He has been a part of a large family and along with his siblings, schooled at the Cathedral & John Connon High School, Mumbai. One of a pair of fraternal twins, Shahab's penchant for perfection stems from his early days as a child where he was catapulted into all the daily trappings of early adolescence and later adulthood. Creating anything from everything was his mantra and he expended his childhood dabbling in every conceivable form of art and craft that was accessible to him. His early adventures in creativity honed the very skills that later defined his design and living style. It was this early exercise in excellence that prompted him to pursue an education that he believed would only further sharpen the latent talent he sensed within.
Having graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce degree from The Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics, Shahab knew he was destined to pursue a career in design. His passion for the aesthetics spurred him to enrol at The Fashion Institute of Technology (a division of the State University of New York) where he completed a two year Associates Degree, with a major in Fashion Design. Although his specialisation was tailored wear, he followed his path to create a niche segment of eveningwear that was formed yet free flowing, something quite novel to the discerning Indian woman in the late eighties. The culmination of his tour-de-force resulted in a clean, crisp brainchild of western chic riddled with the ethnic nuances of modern Indian.
On graduating summa-cum-laude, he was bestowed the Bill Blass Commencement Award for his designing excellence and The Benard Holtzman for Harve Benard Critics Awards for technical excellence in garment construction.
On his return to India in September 1988, he launched his own label and debuted with a small collection of tailored separates from Glitterati, an upscale niche outlet in Mumbai. Since, the Shahab Durazi label has grown in diversity and caters to a wide range of discerning clients and stores, both national and international. His philosophy of understated elegance and subtle glamour came to hold a special meaning in the world of ethic Indian fashion. Even today the brand defines a sophisticated aura that is unmistakably distinctive of his work.