Famous Indian fashion designers and how they made it big

Famous Indian fashion designers and how they
made it big - Part 1
      Shiksha Internal
      Authors
Updated on Dec 29, 2016 16:36 IST

Famous Indian f ashion designers and how they made it big - Part 1
The Indian f ashion industry has witnessed a sudden boom and massive
takers all across the globe in recent years. From a time where Indian f ashion
was not acknowledged anywhere in the world to a time when the Indian
national dress – Saree is increasingly been credited to be the sexiest and
most regal attire a woman can don, our very own f ashion industry has come a
long way. And we can easily credit this to our stylish, creative and very
talented f ashion designers.
So, f or all f ashion design aspirants or people like you and me who love to
dress-up and look good, Shiksha spills the beans on how some f amous
f ashion designers became the celebs they are today, on Indian as well as

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                     available o n Shiksha as o n 0 2-Sep-20 21.

international platf orms.
Manish Arora
                                          Born in the ‘City of Dreams’, Mumbai,
                                          Manish Arora was pursuing a
                                          graduation degree in commerce when
                                          the f ashion bug bit him and he went on
                                          to join the National Institute of Fashion
                                          Technology (NIFT) at New Delhi. He is
                                          known to have graduated f rom NIFT
                                          with the ‘Best Student Award’ in 1994.
Image courtesy:
@im_manisharora on Twitter.com The world f or the f irst time saw the
                                       works of Manish Arora in 1997 when he
started his own label called – Manish Arora. Of ten termed to be the ‘John
Galliano of India’, Manish Arora is known f or his unique play of colours along
with his trademark palette of pinks and golds.
He has collaborated with various popular brands such as Swarovski, Walt
Disney, Barbie, Reebok, Swatch, Nespresso, Mono Prix, MAC Cosmetics,
Nivea, Amrapali, and Pommery etc. Popular international celebrities such as
Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Katty Perry and M.I.A have worn and appreciated Arora’s
creations time and again.
He is also one of the f ew Indian f ashion designers who was been appointed
at the helm of an international f ashion label, the French f ashion house – Paco
Rabanne in 2011, wherein he was appointed as the creative director.
Rohit Bal
A New Delhi based designer, Rohit Bal, was born in Kashmir. He completed
his schooling f rom Srinagar’s Burn Hall School and then pursued his
graduation in History f rom St. Stephens College. Af ter which, he pursued a
course f rom NIFT.
This f amous Indian f ashion designer started his career in 1986 with his

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                      available o n Shiksha as o n 0 2-Sep-20 21.

brother Rajiv Bal under the company Orchid Overseas Pvt. Ltd. However, he
started designing independently in
1990. He is also known to have
designed f or the f amous show – Kaun
Banega Crorepati.
Apart f rom Bollywood celebrities, Bal's
clientele includes the likes of Uma
Thurman, Pamela Anderson, Cindy
                                             Image Courtesy: Community page
Crawf ord Anna Kournikova and Naomi
                                             of Rohit Bal on Facebook.com
Campbell.
Rina Dhaka
                                         Growing up between Chandigarh and
                                         Shimla, Rina Dhaka came f rom a
                                         conservative f amily. Having graduated
                                         f rom Government College f or Girls,
                                         Chandigarh, Rina did a training project
                                         with Intercraf t, one of the biggest
                                         garment exporters of India and is also
                                         known to have trained under Evan
Image Courtesy: Of f icial page of       Grandhal.
Rina Dhaka on Facebook.com
                                    Rina entered the f ashion industry by
taking up modeling assignments and she got into f ashion designing when she
set up a boutique f or a f riend.
She is known the world over f or her design themes which include crochet,
sheer trousers, stretch jersey and spider web motif s.
Her clientele includes popular national as well as international celebrities such
as Susan Fales Hill, Uma Thruman, Naomi Campbell, Tara Palmen Tomkison,
Molly Simns, Diana Hayden and Lara Dutta.
JJ Valaya

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                     available o n Shiksha as o n 0 2-Sep-20 21.

Born in Jodhpur in an army f amily, JJ Valaya as we know him today is actually
– Jagsharan Jit Singh Ahluwalia. Known
to have been the best artist as well as
calligraphist at his school, Valaya went
on to graduate in commerce f rom a
Chandigarh college. Af ter which he
went on to work as a chartered
accountant. However, his desire to
work in the designing industry made him Image Courtesy: @JJValaya6 on
enroll f or a course at NIFT, Delhi in     Twitter.com
1989. He graduated in 1991 with awards such as Prix de Incitation in Paris,
The Thapar-Dupont Medal, The Elyxa award and the KLM-NIFT Trophy.
Af ter graduation he went on to train under the veteran Indian f ashion
designer, Rohit Khosla, af ter which he started his own label with his brother
TJ (Tribhavan Jit) Singh.
He is also the man behind labels such as House of Valaya, JJ Valaya Muse,
JJ Valaya, Valaya Quantum, Valaya Base, Valaya Home, The Home of the
Traveler.
Founding member of Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI), JJ Valaya is
also the f irst global brand ambassador of Swarovski, the Crystal giant.
An amazing photographer, Valaya released his f irst book in 2011 called
Decoded Paradox.
His clothes are worn by celebrities such as Cate Blanchett, Joseph Fiennes,
Kareena Kapoor and Hrithik Roshan.
Sabyasachi Mukherjee
This popular Indian designer hailing f rom the city of Kolkata always wanted to
make a career in designing and f or that he wanted to pursue a course at
NIFT. However, his f amily did not see a bright f uture f or him in this prof ession
and ref used to f und his education. Sabyasachi then went out to sell his

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                      available o n Shiksha as o n 0 2-Sep-20 21.

books so as to gather money to purchase and f ill the admission f orm f or
                                    NIFT, Kolkata. As luck would have it, he
                                    got through and completed his
                                    graduation in 1999. Af ter just f our
                                    months of graduating, he set up his
                                    workshop with a workf orce of just three
                                    people.
                                     Selling his merchandise under the label
Image Courtesy:
                                     – Sabyasachi, he is one of the
@sabya_mukherjee on
                                     Associate Designer Members of
Twitter.com
                                     Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI)
and is also National Museum of Indian Cinema’s youngest board member.
You must have of ten seen his amazing works but never known that
Sabyasachi’s petname is ‘Pepsi’ and he aspires to be a f ood writer and even
wants to host/conduct a f ood show.
Mukherjee is known to have designed clothes f or many Bollywood f ilms
including English Vinglish, Raavan, Black, Paa, Guzaarish, Babul, No One
Killed Jessica, Laaga Chunari Mein Daag etc.
He is also known to have designed the wedding trousseau f or actress, Vidya
Balan. His clientele includes Rene Zelleweger, Reese Witherspoon, Sridevi,
Kareena Kapoor, Rani Mukerji, Sushmita Sen, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Tabu
and Shabana Azmi.
Ritu Kumar
Born in Amritsar, Ritu Kumar completed her graduation in 1964 f rom Lady
Irwin College af ter which she pursued her higher education f rom New York’s
Briarclif f College (1966).
Known to have introduced the boutique culture in India, Ritu Kumar, started
designing in 1969 f rom a small village near Kolkata with just two tables and
f our hand block printers and today she has more than 35 stores spread
across the country. She makes clothes under the label – Ritu.

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                     available o n Shiksha as o n 0 2-Sep-20 21.

In 2013 she was awarded the Padma
Shri f or her contribution to the f ield of
f ashion, textile and craf tsmanship.
Ritu Kumar is also known to be one of
the designers who design clothes worn
by Miss India contestants in Indian as
well as at the Miss Universe, Miss
World and Miss Asia Pacif ic pageants. Image Courtesy: Of f icial page of
                                        Ritu Kumar f an page on
Her designed outf its have been worn
                                        Facebook.com
time and again by celebrities such as
Mischa Barton, Anna Ivanovic, Anoushka Shankar, Aishwarya Rai, Vidya
Balan, Lara Dutta, Priyanka Chopra and Dia Mirza. Even Late Lady Diana is
known to have worn and adored Ritu Kumar’s ensembles.
Famous all over the world, our very own f ashion designers have not only
made a mark f or themselves in the world but have taken India to newer
heights in the global f ashion arena. However, do not think our list has ended
here. We have more Indian f ashion designers who have caught our attention
and applause all at the same time. Click here to read Part-2 of this story.

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