Four of London's hottest Indian designers who should be on your radar (2024)

With a rich history of supporting creatives, London has long attracted fashion designers from around the world seeking inspiration, recognition or just a new creative cradle for their artistry. Call it the vestiges of colonialism, or some kind of London calling that magnetises our talent pool, but Indians have numbered many among those emigrés. Here, four of the city's brightest sparks, from the consummate to the emerging, consider the meaning of success — and when, if ever, they felt like they had finally ‘made it’.

Namita Khade

Though she was born near Manchester, Namita Khade’s Maharashtrian heritage is suffused into her work. Knitwear is the young designer’s focus: in her hands, fibres transform into lis - some dresses, almost fluid in their movements. They’re punctured with cut-outs and fastened with upcycled safety pins or discarded carabiners (a reference to the vividly decorated trucks that she remembers seeing on trips to India). Sari prints are evoked in their patterns and their drapes are reminiscent of dhotis and salwar kameez. It became apparent to Khade once she started her own brand that working in fashion wasn’t the place for isolated, creative genius. It was about pragmatism, multi-tasking and business nous. “As a designer or owner of the brand, you have to do a bit of everything,” she says. “I learned quickly that things aren’t how they initially seem. Success is ultimately staying above water in this industry.” So what are the barriers she has found—for herself and for other young designers—in the cut-throat world of London fashion? “Sustainable financing is the biggest factor,” she says. “There are so many clothes out there now that it’s really hard for young designers to build a design identity.” And to be able to do so without sacrificing quality? Even harder. “Knowing how wasteful fashion has become, you have to rethink your way of making and be brave with what you create,” she says. If Kim Kardashian and Kylie Jenner are clamouring for your designs, does that quell your anxieties for the future? Not necessarily, for Khade. “I’ve had some great opportunities career-wise,” she says, “but I’m not sure if I’ve felt like I’ve ‘made it’ yet. I think there’s always so much to learn and new areas to grow and push, which ultimately keeps me working.” “There are so many clothes out there now that it’s really hard for young designers to build a design identity”

Dhruv Bandil

Whether it’s before or after high school, we all eventually come to the understanding that prizes and medals aren’t the beginning and end of life. Despite that freeing realisation, there are still some accolades that incontrovertibly change the course of a career. For a designer, one of those is the L’Oréal Professionnel Creative Award. Dhruv Bandil, the Central Saint Martins graduate from Morena, a small town in Madhya Pradesh, was 2023’s recipient. Bandil works and creates in London, but his designs draw direct inspiration from his Indian hometown. His technicolour dip-dyed fabrics and multidimensional embellishments reference temple deities and sari drapes. They’re a bolder version of reality: silhouettes are blown up and colours are dialled high. Bandil’s vision is high-octane and explosive. Following his momentous win of the LPCA— he was the second Indian designer to be be - stowed the prize after Ashish Gupta—does he feel that he has achieved what he set out to? “When I was younger, success seemed like a definitive end-point,” he reflects. “But as a creative now, I think success is more like running water. Dynamic and continuous, rather than a fixed destination.” “I never have had that feeling [of having succeeded]. It’s like one task ends and another one starts. Even if I set a goal, it’s about how I move forward.” Like any emerging designer worth his salt, Bandil greedily soaks up inspiration from the city around him. London, with its plurality of design aesthetics and generous spread of inspiration, provides a wealth of muses. Of the Londoners who have inspired him, he mentions Craig Green, whose “fear-less approach and unwavering courage captivate me. His creations feel akin to witnessing a transformative ritual unfold with each piece,” as well as his LPCA predecessor Gupta, whose “ability to infuse humour into fashion is something I deeply admire.” “As a creative, I think success is more like running water—dynamic and continuous, rather than a fixed destination”

ROOT CAUSE Bandil ’s graduate collection translated temple designs onto clothes by exaggerating them to form bulbous shapes and splashing them with loud crayon colours

Ashish

Ashish Gupta is a veteran of the fashion scene, having started his eponymous label just after the turn of the millennium. His riotous, joy-inducing designs don’t hold back and his runways are ripe with subversive, queer-coded psychedelia that merge his fine arts background with his mastery of design. Gupta’s latest collection, which debuted in January 2024, found joy and humour in the mundane and the administrative. “If you run a small independent fashion business, you pretty much go from one season to the next,” he says. “I don’t think I’ve ever ‘made it’. Or perhaps there isn’t a moment that really defines that.” Gupta is blessed with a broad perspective on the industry. His tenure allows him a long lens on what it once was, and therefore, of what it could be. “Inclusivity is probably the biggest positive change, at least when you look at models on the runway,” he says. “Behind the scenes, I’d say there is still some way to go.” Gupta himself has been a key player in diversifying what ‘behind the scenes’ looks like in London’s fashion industry. His illustrious career was celebrated last year with a retrospective at London’s William Morris Gallery, which showcased 60 pieces across his oeuvre, from his More Glitter Less Twitter shirt (a response to the election of Donald Trump in 2016) as well as designs worn by Beyoncé, Debbie Harry and Charli XCX. “It was nice to have the recognition. I felt like I hadn’t completely wasted so many years of my life,” he says of the exhibition. Gupta’s humility must stem at least partly from the fact that when he was starting out in the industry, the ability to make a career out of fashion seemed like enough. Now that his work is so acclaimed, however, his goal posts have shifted. “Now, it’s being able to do all the creative things I want to do, without compromise, and having the means to do them. I think success is having the luxury of time and finding joy in your practice outside the banalities of running a business. Both those things are rare and very precious.” “Inclusivity is probably the biggest positive change, at least when you look at models on the runway. Behind the scenes, there is still some way to go”

Harri KS

To create the kinds of clothes that Harri KS does—surreal, art-like, challenging to the eye—it takes a certain confidence. One would assume that kind of confidence is won through years of reinforcement, but Harikrishnan Keezhathil Surendran Pillai only recently graduated from the London College of Fashion. In 2023, the musician Sam Smith took one of Harri’s fantastical latex designs to the Brit Awards red carpet, placing the designer firmly in the spotlight. “It’s a feeling I can’t explain when you see someone [like that] step into one of your creations. It gives it a completely different life,” Harri says, reflecting on the moment. “It’s the coming together of two worlds.” Harri’s career path now, fashioning his sculptural designs between New Delhi and London, couldn’t be further removed from what was expected of him at a young age. “I grew up in rural Kerala in a family full of people in public service,” he explains.

It was the most aspirational career path, representing stability and success. “I was never encouraged to explore a creative pathway, let alone fashion,” he says. Perhaps that’s why success now has multiple dimensions for Harri. His first standalone collection at London Fashion Week in September 2023 received critical acclaim, but since last year, “after building a team and community around me, my idea of success has completely changed. I don’t obsess over my designs. It’s not about me anymore. It’s about my team, their happiness in the studio, their productivity, their learning. Now, success to me means longevity and consistency. ” Despite his relative newness to the London fashion industry, Harri’s star has clearly and quickly risen high. So does he feel like he’s ‘made it’? “I only get that kind of a feeling [right] after a show—it lasts for just a minute and then it’s followed by lots of reflection.” “After building a team and community around me, my idea of success has completely changed”

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