Fashion Designing is a billion-dollar industry that has made the careers and reputations of numerous designers across the globe. A designer’s touch and careful effort has gone into everything from the neck-ties that we wear to the shoes that you wore to work.
The fashion Industry in India, too has expanding globally over the years. Some of the biggest names in Indian fashion are also major international players, leaving a desi touch to royal and global venues. It is thus no surprise that every Indian designer looks up to the most famous names in the industry that own businesses worth hundreds of crores.
While the country has produced numerous prodigies in the fashion industry, each one of them is unique in their own different ways and have something that they’re the best at.
Everyone has their own top 10 designers that they look up to. We’d love to include all of these since it’s so difficult to pick out a handful out of such talent. Space and time constraints have forced us to choose ten, in no particular order of their achievements.
Here are ten interesting and diverse journeys from the Indian world of fashion, that would make you believe that carving a name in this industry is not just about the glitz and glamour. It’s about grit and persistence! Do you find your role-models in this list?
1. Manish Malhotra
Pic Credit: Manish Malhotra
Would you believe that India’s richest fashion designer first started off as a model? Manish Malhotra is a self-taught designer who learnt solely through work experience and today his revenues go up to 230 crores. This shows how unique and sought-after his design line is.
He has been the harbinger of many firsts in the fashion industry. He started the concept of an on-set costume designer in Bollywood at the young age of 23! He has even had the honour of designing for the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, being the first Indian to do so!
2. Sabyasachi Mukherjee
Pic Credit: India Today
He is that icon who showed the fashion world that dark shades, mismatching and dull golden hues have great value. He is a NIFT graduate, but very few know that he had to sell his books to pay for his admission form since his parents disagreed with his career choice!
Known as the “King of Indian Bridal Market” he has many feathers in his crown. He is the youngest board member of the National Museum of Indian Cinema. He is also credited for bringing Indian ‘khaadi’ to the International market. Besides his famous self-titled cloth brand label, he has a jewelry as well as a kids’ collection. Aren’t we all glad he stood up for his dreams to influence Indian and world fashion industry to such an extent?
3. Anita Dongre
Pic Credit: Anita Dongre
Anita Dongre is walking proof for the fact that a small-time designer starting off with two sewing machines can also make clothes for the Duchess of Cambridge one day!
Her clothing line House of Anita Dongre is a major player in westers, traditional and fusion wear. She owns the jewelry brand Anita Dongre Pink City, owing to her roots in Jaipur. A vegan activist and a member of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), she shows that one can involve in multiple arenas of life.
It’s no wonder she said “You have to dream big. Your dreams should frighten you – that’s how your dreams should be! And I’ve always been a dreamer”.
4. Manish Arora
Pic Credit: Manish Arora
Another NIFT graduate, he is often called the “John Galliano of India”, the famous French fashion designer. He is also one of the major Indian design labels to be self-titled. But here’s a fun fact: his second brand which featured sportswear in partnership with Reebok was called “Fish Fry”.
He was also creative director for the French fashion house Paco Rabanne for a brief period. He too, eventually expanded his fashion line to jewelry, now owning the label ‘Amrapali’. He is known for a psychedelic choice of colours in his designs, which shows his distinct personality. It’s apt that he’s said “Fashion, for me, is not just clothing; – it’s the whole character.”
5. Ritu Kumar
Pic Credit: Ritu Kumar
The forerunner of boutique culture in India, she started the entire trend of starting small-scale designing for fine couture. She started her simple ‘Label’ line of clothes in 2002 but it all started with two small tables in her house using hand-block printing methods in her designs.
In the 1970s, she was the first of any Indian fashion outlet to have a turnover of 10 billion rupees. It was only a matter of time before she hit department stores and fashion houses in Paris and New York! Princess Diana has worn her outfits, and celebrities like Kalki Koechlin, Priyanka Chopra and Deepika Padukone rock her styles.
Now she has several awards in her name including a Padma Shri and the “The Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters” by the French Government.
6. Tarun Tahiliani
Pic Credit: Tarun Tahiliani
One of the leading fashion designers in India, he has his hands in dual roles as fashion designer and interior designer. His education has nothing to do with fashion – he studied Economics at Vassar College, US and later took a degree in business management from Wharton Business School, Pennsylvania.
After immense monetary struggles and his wife’s stint in modelling, he was introduced to the fashion world. Later co-founding his fashion line ‘Ensemble’ with her, it was the first multi-designer boutique in 1987. When Jemima Khan, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan’s wife, wore his design, that was the push he needed. Today, he has worked on the interiors in famous hotels like The Sofala, Goa and The Aish at the Park, Hyderabad.
7. Masaba Gupta
Pic Credit: Wikimedia
When you have celebrity parents wouldn’t the pressure be extreme to follow in their footsteps? For Masaba Gupta, it wasn’t like that.
As the daughter of actress Neena Gupta & cricketer Sir Viv Richards, she always wanted to become a tennis player and later showed a passion for dance. Today, she has carved a reputation far greater than her parents in a completely different field – Fashion.
She participated in Lakme Fashion Week at the young age of 19, earning ‘The Most Promising Designer’ title. She represents the millennial voice with geometric and bold designs in her own collection titled “House of Masaba”. Young designers look up to her, since she’s proven that age is not a barrier in the industry!
8. Neeta Lulla
Pic Credit: Neeta Lulla
Perhaps the most inspiring because of her origin story, Neeta Lulla is today, a well-known name in Bollywood. But how many people knew that she used to be a fashion designing student and took it seriously only after flunking college? She has inspired the costumes in over 300 films in seven different languages, which speaks volumes about her sheer talent.
Didn’t we fall in love with Aishwarya Rai’s costumes in Jodhaa Akbar? It was all Neeta Lulla’s handiwork portrayed on screen. Costume designing for blockbuster films has been her forte with a number of films like Devdas, Kochadaiiyaan.
A fusion of contemporary and ethnic fashion is her specialty which makes her work stand out in period dramas.
9. Bibhu Mohapatra
Pic Credit: Odisha News Insight
A small-town man from Rourkela, Odisha, he knew he wanted to work in fashion at the young age of 12. A classic tale of shifting educational tracks, he moved from a Masters in Economics to the Fashion Institute in New York.
He was the recipient of the “Young Innovator Award” for New York Fashion Week. But he didn’t stop there. Now he designs fine jewellery for major brands like Forevermark and De Beers, also having been behind several of Michelle Obama’s outfits!
10. Saisha Shinde
Pic Credit: Pinkvilla
India’s first openly transgender fashion designer, Saisha Shinde has created a name for herself with one major work that took the universe by storm. Yes, she was the person behind Miss Universe Harnaaz Sandhu’s stunning evening gown that she wore for the final round of the beauty pageant.
Despite being active in the Indian fashion industry since 2005, she has struggled a lot due to the stigma of not having a heterosexual identity before her transition. Today, Shinde has worked with many popular Bollywood celebrities and is a role model for all trans folks in the designing industry.
Fashion Designing in India
It is a major career choice to take, but the fashion industry in India is vast and alive. While today’s up and coming designers find themselves stuck trying to create a niche on social media, creating connections within the field, these success stories prove time and again that true talent never goes unrecognized.
While a great alma mater helps achieve your dreams, when combined with your unique skills and superior training, you too can achieve your dreams of becoming one of the major names in the Fashion Industry in India.
Aditya Centre of Excellence holds the tickets to your dreams in fashion designing with three unique courses in Clothing Merchandising, Fashion Embroidery and Crafts Extensive Fashion Design.
