In 2002, Sabyasachi Mukherjee, a little-known designer from Kolkata, West Bengal, made his debut at Lakme India Fashion Week in Mumbai. There was some buzz around his name, but expectations from the media and industry insiders were modest.
His debut collection, entitled ‘Kashgaar Bazaar’, featured Western-inspired silhouettes, yet it was steeped in unapologetic Indianness. From the intricate embroidery to the layered use of India’s diverse textile traditions, the collection celebrated the country’s craftsmanship in a way that felt fresh and authentic. The show’s styling — with books, glasses and nods to the intellectual spirit of Kolkata — was a love letter to his home city, often considered the cultural and intellectual hub of India. Mukherjee’s ability to weave Western influences with a proudly Indian ethos made him the disruptor the country’s fashion industry had been waiting for.
“I remember it being so beautifully styled and staged… [the] models all wore horn-rimmed glasses and were carrying books that had a leather belt roped around them,” says Fern Mallis, author and former SVP of IMG Fashion, who spent a decade working closely with Lakme Fashion Week. “They walked slowly and deliberately, and it was quite mesmerising. My fashion industry colleagues and I all said: ‘Wow — what was that? We have to watch this guy and see if this is a one-time wonder. How will he follow this?’ …and he did, again and again and again.”
This weekend in Mumbai, Mukherjee hosted a blockbuster fashion show to celebrate his 25th year in the industry. Six weeks in the making, the show transformed the Mumbai Jio World Convention Centre into Old Calcutta (now known as Kolkata), complete with a clothesline and massive water fountain. More than 600 guests attended the event, including Bergdorf Goodman’s SVP and fashion and store presentation director Linda Fargo and Saks Fifth Avenue’s fashion director Roopal Patel, as well as Bollywood stars Alia Bhatt, Sonam Kapoor Ahuja and Ananya Panday. Indian actor Deepika Padukone opened the show. Over 150 looks were presented, all made in Mukherjee’s home state of West Bengal.
It was a landmark moment for the designer, and for Indian fashion’s position on the global stage. From opening a flagship in New York to being among the first Indian designers to show at Milan Fashion Week, to global collaborations with H&M, Christian Louboutin and Estée Lauder, Mukherjee has set the agenda for India to become a part of the global fashion system. It was also his first major presentation since Indian corporation Aditya Birla Fashion Retail Limited acquired a 51 per cent stake in the Sabyasachi brand for INR 3.98 billion (almost $46 million) in 2021.
Mukherjee put deep thought into every aspect of the 25th anniversary presentation, which was held on India’s Republic Day weekend and is rumoured to have cost around $7 million. “This is a 25-year celebration of the Sabyasachi school of thought, where I’m revisiting the ideals of past collections but modernising them for a new generation,” the designer tells Vogue Business. “It is not a retrospection but an introspection.”
“Sabyasachi’s impact on Indian fashion is unparalleled. His vision, his tenacity, his unwavering commitment to excellence... it’s all simply unmatched,” says the anonymous founder of Diet Sabya, India’s answer to the infamous @Diet_Prada. “He was the first Indian designer to harness the power of digital publishing, pioneering a social media storytelling format that’s since been copied by every brand under the sun. And he’s the only Indian luxury brand with a genuinely successful handbag and accessories range — touted as the cash cow segment among all international brands.”
Carving his own path
Mukherjee’s belief that India needs to have a global brand has always driven him, and in making that happen, he has carved his own path — including hosting the anniversary show in India, rather than as part of a global fashion week. “The idea is rather than going out to the world for global fashion weeks, to bring global buyers to India,” he says. “India is growing stronger every day, there’s so much happening here right now. We should collectively make an effort to change the status quo and tell a new story all our own.”
Sabyasachi joined the Milan Fashion Week schedule in 2004 before moving across to show in New York in 2006. His show also became the must-attend event at India Fashion Week between 2002 and 2015. But it has now been several years since Sabyasachi showed at any fashion week; instead, he often uses social media as a platform to debut collections.
“The fashion week format did not work for Sabyasachi anymore,” he explains of the move. “Brands were being homogenised because India Fashion Week rarely has off-sites [most shows are held at the same venue]. Secondly, collections mounted for the press became focused on celebrities, pleasing writers and stylists, creating items for the sake of news. Everything became editorial, and there was nothing commercial. I’m a businessman first, and I realised that in this entire fashion week ecosystem, the only person we were completely neglecting was the customer.”
Another big pivot came in 2007 with his ‘Chand Bibi’ collection, as his designs — once primarily based on Western silhouettes — began incorporating India’s rich heritage of saris, lehengas and kurtas. Mukherjee began targeting the Indian bridal market. “I went to America too soon. [British fashion journalist] Suzy Menkes told me to return to India and focus on winning the local market, so when I returned to the world stage, it would be on my terms. With the goal of winning over India, a quick way to build a brand was by working with the movie and bridal industries because the eyeballs there are huge,” he explains. (Mukherjee has worked on a select number of films, including Black in 2005 and English Vinglish in 2012, and conducted bridal makeovers on reality TV show Band Baajaa Bride from 2012 to 2023.)
The zeitgeist is changing once again. The Mumbai show this weekend showcased a limited number of saris and lehengas. “The lehenga is in decline,” the designer says. He believes younger generations no longer want to spend large sums of money on a wedding. “There was a time when status equalled stature; but today, purpose equals stature.”
Mukherjee has also carved his own path when it comes to distribution. In 2009, when most Indian designers were selling via multi-brand formats and studios, Mukherjee began to focus on flagship stores. He opened up first in Kolkata, followed by Delhi and Mumbai. His flagship strategy has continued to this day: he opened his first store in New York in 2022, followed by an emporium in Mumbai in April 2023.
The Mumbai store, located in a historic colonial-era building near Horniman Circle Gardens, symbolises the brand’s evolution into a global luxury powerhouse. Spanning three stories and 2,000 square metres, the emporium consolidates all of Sabyasachi’s categories, showcasing the brand’s commitment to craftsmanship and innovation. It is also home to 100 chandeliers, 275 carpets, 3,000 books and 150 works of art. If there is one thing Mukherjee understands, it’s that luxury retail is as much about theatre as it is about product.
The power of collaborations
Mukherjee’s first global collaboration was with Christian Louboutin in 2017. This partnership showcased a blend of Louboutin’s iconic red-soled footwear with Sabyasachi’s signature embroideries and Indian craft textiles. The limited-edition drop was sold in stores including London’s Harrods, Lane Crawford in Hong Kong and Bergdorf Goodman in New York. This is how Mukherjee caught the eye of Bergdorf Goodman’s Fargo. “We started with a pop-up, and our relationship grew. It was a work in progress. That’s what’s special about our relationship — it’s a conversation,” she says.
Fargo continues: “Mukherjee has changed the perception of Indian designers in New York, especially with the opening of his store. He has created a universe, a language, a world where people can dream. It is Indian in soul, yet so global.”
In 2021, Mukherjee became the first Indian designer to launch a collaboration with high street player H&M. It received criticism at home for the alignment with mass production. Mukherjee says he remains a proponent of slow fashion and India’s handcrafted textile traditions, and defends the choice to partner with H&M. “Global H&M collaborations have been very prestigious because they throw a spotlight on a designer and highlight the power of an emerging market,” he explains. “The H&M collaboration was an India story first: the products were inspired by India, most of it was made in India and they even agreed to do a sari. It sold out worldwide, and people were clamouring for those products. It may have been the biggest global moment in Indian fashion. I am very proud of it.”
Last year, he collaborated with Estée Lauder on a limited-edition set of lipsticks, encased in plated gold and topped with the iconic Sabyasachi tiger medallion. “Sabyasachi has changed how the world sees Indian fashion,” says Rohan Vaziralli, general manager of ELCA Cosmetics, the Indian subsidiary of Estée Lauder Companies. “He’s taken the essence of India — its luxury, its craftsmanship, its stories — and brought it to a global audience in a way that feels authentic and aspirational.”
Looking ahead: Jewellery, beauty and new markets
Today, Mukherjee’s house has a turnover of INR 5 billion (about $58 million), with INR 1.5-1.8 billion ($17-21 million) coming from fine jewellery (launched in 2017) and approximately INR 600 million ($7 million) from accessories. Mukherjee believes that, in the short term, accessories will grow steadily by volume and value as distribution increases, with jewellery being the significant value leader in the long term. Next, he plans to launch fragrance and beauty.
Geographically, he has his eye on expansion into the Middle East and is looking further afield to Singapore and Malaysia, where he already has a strong customer base and awareness. There are also more store openings planned for India.
Always looking ahead of cultural trends, Mukherjee sees global consumption shifting from material goods to experiences. Modern consumers now demand authenticity, quality and sustainability over mere branding. With its rich craftsmanship and generational skills, India offers the world a model for conscious consumption and empowered economies. “This will be a great time for India,” he says.
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