#fdci

The indian fashion scene as we know it today rose to what it is due to rapid changes in the 80s and 90s, with the first generation of fashion designers such as Satya Paul, Ritu Kumar (One of India’s earliest designers--beginning her career as early as the 60s!) and others, and the ministry of textiles establishing the National Institute of Fashion Technology.

 The 90s saw the birth of iconic fashion staples (such as the kurti by Monisha Jaising, Manish Malhotra’s ‘cocktail sari’ and bollywood glamour) propelled by these fresh breed of designers, and also saw the birth of the Fashion Design Council of India (which was instrumental in launching fashion weeks in the country). This was largely due to the liberalisation of the Indian economy in the 90s. As Indian fashion has carved a niche for itself in the global fashion industry, it’s really interesting to take a look back at some of the fashion magazine pages from the early to mid 2000s. (Especially with the y2k trend/ fascination with 2000s fashion still going strong!)

These photos have been sourced from past issues of two iconic Indian magazines, ‘Women’s era’ and ‘Femina’.

The recently concluded Lakmē Fashion Week in partnership with the Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI) saw designers celebrating indigenous crafts and going back to the essence of heritage techniques while lending ready-to-wear a contemporary spin. A model walks ANURAG GUPTA presentation at NIF Global Presents GenNext, part of Lakmé Fashion Week 2025, held on October 10th at The Grand New…