Here’s what you missed at Vogue India’s Forces of Fashion 2025

Vogue India’s Forces of Fashion in association with Rabanne opened with a dual purpose: to admire fashion and to honour the hands that shape it. Over five days at Nilaya Anthology in Lower Parel, Mumbai, more than 35 designers explored Architecture in Fashion, transforming structural inspiration into large-scale installations. The showcase culminated last evening with a green-carpet gala at JW Marriott Juhu, where designers, industry leaders and cultural change-makers gathered for a night of conversation and celebration.

Sushmita Sen, Neena Gupta, Sharvari, Ibrahim Ali Khan and Vijay Varma were among those in attendance, joined by designers like Anita Dongre, Shantnu & Nikhil, JJ Valaya and Suneet Varma. Guests started the evening by raising a toast, courtesy of Grey Goose Vive Le Voyage at Arpita Mehta’s designer bar, a space that set the mood.

Host Shibani Akhtar set the tone for the evening that unfolded in three parts. The first round of awards honoured names from film, art and cultures whose sartorial choices left a lasting impact.

The spotlight then shifted to the panel discussion led by Vogue India’s Head of Editorial Content, Rochelle Pinto. In a dress by Chanakya School of Craft in collaboration with Karishma Swali, paired with jewellery from Outhouse, Meenu Subbiah, Moi and Aprajita Toor heels, she was joined on stage by Mehr Jesia—one of India’s earliest and most iconic supermodels—and stylist and creative consultant, Ekta Rajani.

The panel was a conversation about the power of community in an industry often defined by individuality. “I’ve been born to be a woman’s woman,” Jesia reflected, crediting the women in her family and the friendships she forged in her modelling years as the “wind beneath her wings”. Rajani recalled a defining early moment as an assistant stylist on Fashion: “I messed up big time… but Rita Dodi showed me grace and dignity. It shaped how I work with people today. Paying it forward, for me, is teaching, connecting and also learning back; it’s a two-way street.”

The night’s honourees reflected the many ways Indian fashion is being written today. Sushmita Sen reminded us that influence can be both iconic and enduring; Neena Gupta proved that reinvention is ageless; Sharvari and Ibrahim Ali Khan brought the energy of a generation stepping into its own spotlight, while voices like Kusha Kapila showed how storytelling can move seamlessly across mediums. Alongside them, Kartik Research, Bloni and Rkive City carried forward the conversation of craft, couture and circularity, joined by image-makers and innovators such as Aastha Manchanda, Samar Rajput, Nejm and Subiksha Shivkumar. The Chanakya School of Craft, awarded for impact, tied these strands together with its reminder that fashion is also community.

To cap the night off, all attendees and awardees raised a toast and left with a curated selection of Moroccanoil goodies.

Also read:

Forces of Fashion 2025: 39 of India’s best designers come together for a Vogue showcase like no other

Manish Malhotra, Gaurav Gupta, Anita Dongre, Rahul Mishra and more—35 of India’s biggest designers unite for an art-meets-fashion showcase in Mumbai

What the fashion industry wore at Vogue India’s Forces of Fashion 2024What the fashion industry wore at Vogue India’s Forces of Fashion 2024