Top 10 Fashion Designers in India
Over the years, fashion has become a part of our daily routine. Today many people are so much into fashion that they pursue it as a career. Some of the careers in the fashion industry are fashion designing, accessory designing, garment technologist, textile designer, jewellery designer, stylist, and fashion illustrator. You may explore these fields to know more about them, but fashion designer is the most popular among all these fields. This article will greatly help you if you are a fashion enthusiast; whether it be finding a role model or knowing the best in the fashion industry, we have got you covered.
Top 10 Fashion Designers in India
Although we have produced the names of the top fashion designers in India, these are not provided in any particular order which compares them. This is just a random list of the top 10 fashion designers in India:
- Manish Malhotra
- Masaba Gupta
- Sabyasachi Mukherji
- Rohit Bal
- Anita Dongre
- Manish Arora
- Tarun Tahiliani
- Neeta Lulla
- Ritu Kumar
- Ritu Beri
Let us discuss in detail the top 10 fashion designers in India.
1. Manish Malhotra
The popularity of Manish Malhotra can be gauged by the fact that he is well known to almost everyone, irrespective of the fact that the person belongs to the fashion industry. Despite being a popular name in the fashion industry of India, it is a very less known fact that Manish Malhotra never really went to the fashion designing training. He was deeply interested in the cinema, clothes, and sketching, which helped him build his career in fashion designing.
When Malhotra was studying at Elphinstone College in Mumbai, his career began as a model. He has a career of around 27 years in the fashion industry, during which he has greatly influenced the Indian fashion industry. He was a pioneer in bringing the wave of fashion into Bollywood by designing for the actors in Swarg movie, where he worked for the first time. Since then, his brand has been growing by providing newer fashion trends with his creative styling. He won the Filmfare costume award for his designs in the film Rangeela. He has successfully built a brand out of his name and gained popularity in Bollywood as well as in the Indian fashion industry. Manish Malhotra is a great inspiration for young students who wish to pursue a career in any new domain.
2. Masaba Gupta
Known for her skills to perfectly design Indian traditions with a touch of modernity in them, she is also popular for creatively naming her collections. If you are interested in fashion design, then you must follow her. Her unique ethnic designs that perfectly blend with contemporary designs is what makes her brand popular.
One of the most popular fashion designers in India, Masaba, wanted to become a tennis player, then a dancer because of her interest in these fields. “A unique Indianness in a very modern context” is how DNA described her work.
3. Sabyasachi Mukherji
Sabyasachi Mukherji is another popular name that you must have known. He is a designer who brought waves of fashion to India after he started building his brand. He was educated at the National Institute of Fashion Technology, which is located in New Delhi. Soon after completing college, he became popular because of his brand. He won the Femina British Council Award for Most Outstanding Young Designer in India. He was also declared as the Grand Winner at the Mercedes Benz Asia Fashion Week; this was not until 2003. Mukherji has built the brand so strong that it has withstood serious political, social, and economic challenges over the years.
4. Rohit Bal
The year 1990 marked the beginning of the career of Rohit Bal. He was born in Sri Nagar and is highly inspired by the traditional methods of designing. Contemporary designs and drawings inspired by village crafts are some of the specialities that have earned him a lot of popularity. He has keen attention to detail which makes his designs much livelier.
Apart from the major cities of India, Bal has conducted fashion shows in Geneva, Paris, Singapore, and New York. Reid and Taylor, Kirtilal Jewelers, and Zippo lighters are some of the Indian and International brands that have collaborated with Rohit Bal.
5. Anita Dongre
Anita Dongre is a perfect example of a fashion entrepreneur. She is known to have created four successful brands in addition to running successful fashion houses in the country. Her jewellery brand Anita Dongre Pink City is one of the most well-known brands in the industry.
Projects of Dongre range from outfits of Bollywood celebrities to royalties. She has also been awarded the EY Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2014. So, you can research more about her if you wish to be a fashion entrepreneur.
6. Manish Arora
Attention to detail, great knowledge of colours, and depicting the culture of India are some of the prominent features of Manish Arora’s work. He has the talent to present his craftsmanship that includes Indian culture in a contemporary and playful vibe.
Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar are some of the high-profile magazines that have featured the work of Manish Arora. He began his career by launching his brand ‘Manish Arora’, after which his work got huge appreciation at both London Fashion Week and Paris Fashion Week in 2005 and 2007, respectively. After building his brand in 1997 and gaining success after that, the distinguished French Federation of Pret-a-Porter invited him.
7. Tarun Tahiliani
Multi-designer fashion boutiques were first started in India by Tarun Tahiliani and his wife. He didn’t have a degree in fashion designing at the time when he set up the Tahiliani Design studio.
Fashion Institute of Technology is the organization from where he completed his education in fashion designing. Today, he is popular for the bridal collection and the fusion of modern styles in traditional Indian outfits. His aesthetically appealing designs and textile heritage, along with his Indian craftsmanship, make him a popular figure in the fashion industry.
8. Neeta Lulla
A designer that is again focused on the bridal collection, Neeta Lulla has been in this industry for around 3.5 decades. Having designed dresses for around 300 movies, Neeta Lulla has built her brand significantly well. Her dresses worn by Madhuri Dixit and Aishwarya Rai in the song ‘Dola Re Dola’ of the movie Devdas are the most popular outfits that she has designed.
9. Ritu Kumar
Having built one of the most popular brands in India, Ritu Kumar is a top fashion designer in India. Her business began with a humble starting and had only two tables and a printing block.
Now spread across the country, Ritu Kumar’s brand is well known for its perfect amalgamation of contemporary and traditional Indian art forms. Indian aesthetics, colours, fabrics and embroidery are some of the specialities of her brand. Ritu Kumar has utilized her knowledge in traditional Indian designs has brought innovation and revolution in fashion designing.
10. Ritu Beri
The First Indian fashion designer to head a French brand, Ritu Beri, is popular in the industry for her remarkable work in fashion. It is believed that the credit for the Globalisation of the Indian fashion Industry is given to Beri. She launched her label in 1990 when the fashion industry in India was struggling. Inspirational Power Brands Glam Award was awarded to her in 2016.
The above-mentioned list includes the top 10 fashion designers in India. However, the fashion industry is influenced by many other designers that brought different designs, outfits, trends, and art into the industry. These designers have not only enhanced the style of celebrities in India but have also impacted the style of common people by setting trends. Some of the other designers who have greatly impacted the Indian fashion industry are:
- Payal Singhal
- Priyanka Ella Lorena Lama
- Kanika Goyal
- Bibhu Mohpatra
- Anamika Khanna
- Sandeep Khosla
- Surily Goyal
- Asmita Marwa
- Anad Kabra
- Raghavendra Rathore