Tala Raassi is an

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

ian-

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

Fashion Designer born in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, United States and raised in

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...

. When Tala Raassi turned sixteen, she attended her Sweet 16 at a friend's house wearing a

mini skirt A miniskirt (sometimes hyphenated as mini-skirt, separated as mini skirt, or sometimes shortened to simply mini) is a skirt with its hemline well above the knees, generally at mid-thigh level, normally no longer than below the buttocks; and a ...

. It was not long before the party was raided by the religious police and she and her friends faced the punishment of five days in jail and forty lashes. In 2000 right after the punishment, Raassi moved back to the United States where she currently lives. After moving to the States and studying fashion marketing, Raassi opened a high-end boutique in Washington DC where she oversaw all aspects of business from construction, buying, and merchandizing to finance and payroll. While shopping for her boutique in São Paulo, Brazil during fashion week, Raassi became inspired to design her own line of swimsuits, Dar Be Dar. Raassi later left the store and started traveling the world to find the best fabrics, manufacturers, and suppliers, ultimately selecting Medellin, Colombia for production. Since its inception, Raassi's line, Dar Be Dar, has sponsored the Washington Wizards Dance Team and was the official swimwear sponsor for the

Miss Universe 2010 Miss (pronounced ) is an English language honorific typically used for a girl, for an unmarried woman (when not using another title such as "Doctor" or "Dame"), or for a married woman retaining her maiden name. Originating in the 17th century, it ...

pageant. Dar Be Dar means door to door in Raassi's native language,

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

. In slang it means someone who is all over the place. “It represents me as a designer, because I had to go door to door to figure out the process of starting a fashion business.” In 2012, Raassi was called “One of the Most Fearless Women in the World” by Newsweek Magazine. Tala Raassi has stated that she "aims to celebrate the beauty of the woman’s body through her designs and empower women all around the world to follow their dreams." For Tala Raassi, “fashion is freedom.”.

Appearances

Tala Raassi was on the program to appear in 3 events at the 2017 Brisbane Writers Festival in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

, Australia.

References

External links

* Living people American people of Iranian descent Year of birth missing (living people) American fashion designers Iranian fashion designers American women fashion designers Iranian women fashion designers {{Fashion-designer-stub