Synopsis
Indian fashion designers have debuted at major global fashion weeks, such as London and Milan, this September. These participation opportunities help enhance their international visibility and establish a global presence. Designers like Gursi Singh and Amrita Khanna showcase contemporary labels that attract attention from international buyers and press. The cost and logistics of participating in these fashion weeks can be quite challenging for designers.
New Delhi: In fashion calendars, September is unofficially the fashion month. And this September, Indian fashion clocked up some serious air miles.
On September 21, Gursi Singh and Amrita Khanna debuted their contemporary label Lovebirds at London Fashion Week with chintz and 'Adarsh Balak' graphics leading the design. Two days later, Dhruv Kapoor returned to Milan Fashion Week, where among his usual repertoire of streetwear was a beaded Madras-check lungi. Just last week, Sabyasachi Mukherjee returned to New York Fashion Week after nearly 18 years, joining the official calendar with his 72-look Spring/Summer 2027 collection. While Manish Malhotra made his Paris Haute Couture Week debut this year in July, Rahul Mishra and Gaurav Gupta have been part of its official calendars for years.
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Kapoor, fresh off the success of his show, was invited to Milan years ago and started with smaller presentations. He moved into the runway format post-Covid. "It gives the brand an opportunity to be part of a much larger global dialogue. It allows us to project our vision to key industry leaders, buyers, press and tastemakers from around the world," he says.
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An international week usually comes with an invite. It is very different from showing in India, where the structure around fashion week is mostly centralised. Internationally, the brand has to build the entire show ecosystem. This includes location, production team for light and sound, stylist and casting director, and, of course, strong PR, both Singh and Kapoor share.
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For Singh of Lovebirds, London Fashion Week was a natural progression as the label has retail and wholesale relationships across Europe and the US. After its show in Sri Lanka earlier this year attracted international coverage, including from British Vogue and Wallpaper, it came to the attention of the British Fashion Council, which invited them.
"If we were going to take Lovebirds more decisively into the international market, London felt like the right springboard," he says. Being on the official calendar brings "a different level of international visibility and credibility" and access to buyers, press and potential partners.
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Getting there, however, is neither quick nor cheap. For its official schedule, the British Fashion Council requires designers to apply each season, with limited slots and selection based on creative merit. Kapoor agrees, "It is a significant investment. The cost is not only the runway show itself, but everything required around it," he says.
Sunil Sethi, chairman of the Fashion Design Council of India, says that showing in Paris, Milan or London is both "draining on the pocket and a logistical nightmare." Yet he believes what Indian designers bring is increasingly suited to a global luxury market looking again at craft.
India, he says, was once primarily the sourcing ground for executing embroideries for international houses; today, Indian designers are putting that expertise under their own names, mixing traditional techniques with a contemporary language. Even the FDCI has upped its international showcases like the one they did recently in New Zealand in August, as well as appearances at Jakarta and Moscow fashion weeks.
"Fashion is borderless now and the customer isn't domestic but global," he says. While there's no standard price tag for going global, a few industry figures and speculations suggest that an independent runway production at any of the Big Four Weeks can run into six figures in pounds, not including production costs.
It's important to show up though. Jaspreet Chandok, group vice-president, Reliance Brands Ltd, and head, Lakme Fashion Week, confirms that in his interactions with the major fashion bodies and international department stores, the one key aspect they are looking at is consistency of showcase on international fashion week calendars. "Usually it takes a couple of seasons for buzz to translate to genuine sales."
Dubai-based fashion editor Sujata Assomull, who tracks Indian fashion's global impact, is convinced that one of the next big global luxury brands could come out of India.
The shift is visible not just on runways but at retail: Pero and Kartik Research sell through international stores, while AK|OK by Anamika Khanna recently entered Selfridges in London.
