Embroidery. Creativity. Fantasy. The recently concluded India Couture Week 2025, in partnership with FDCI, served as a potent reminder that Indian couture is nothing but a celebration of craft pushed to its most glamorous extreme. This season, couture was a maximalist’s dream, with designers pushing the envelope to marry tradition with reinvention. Embroidery took on a cinematic scale, dense with sequins, feather, metallic ornamentation, mirrored shards, Resham thread botanicals and hand-placed crystals that caught the light with every turn.
Colour stories ran the gamut of moody, metallics and of course, primaries. Silhouettes were sculpted yet fluid, while retaining its time-honoured appeal. Think corseted blouses, sculptural jackets, trailing lehenga skirts and sweeping veils that dominated the runway, each echoing a fusion of tradition and futurism. The runway came alive with rich textiles, from handwoven silks and brocades to stately velvet and diaphanous tulle, all layered with opulence. Even the lightest layers felt engineered, where couture was less about nostalgia and more about fantasy and finish. And the mood? Dramatic, daring and deeply artisanal, proving that Indian couture is having its most imaginative moment yet.
Here’s your front-row pass to the most captivating looks of the season.
Return Of The Red
If there was one colour that reclaimed its crown, it was bridal red. This season, the classic palette was not just reserved solely for the traditional pheras, but it emerged in bold, fashion-forward avatars that would look equally at home at cocktail soirées and glamorous sangeets. From fiery scarlet to deep vermilion, designers embraced its timeless energy, proving that red can be as contemporary as it is ceremonial. Quintessence by Tarun Tahiliani saw red in its most timeless form, layered with classic zardozi and thread embroidery. JJ Valaya took leaned imperial, with ornate zardozi and brocade odes to Mughal decadence. Aisha Rao’s Wild at Heart edit featured reds with her signature appliqué and surrealist storytelling.
Falguni Shane Peacock dialled up the drama with generous amounts of crystals and sequins across a flaming red canvas. Rimzim Dadu’s reimagined the red sari as a sari-gown hybrid, while Rohit Bal deep red story came alive in velvet and zardozi work. Roseroom by Isha Jajodia proved red gowns might be the new black. The verdict? Bridal red is no longer a tradition—it’s a statement. And it’s blazing its way into every chapter of the wedding wardrobe.
Jewelled Toned Magnificence
If there was one unmissable thread tying together the drama of India Couture Week 2025, it was the palette that showcased deep, decadent, and dipped in jewel tones. From garnet reds to sapphire blues, citrine golds to emerald greens, couturiers turned to the treasure box for inspiration, casting light on couture’s most opulent mood board yet. Rahul Mishra’s botanical fantasy from his collection ‘Becoming Love’ bloomed in an embroidered tapestry of amethyst and antique gold. Jayanti Reddy reimagined bridal grandeur in wine-soaked velvets and rose-gold metallics. JJ Valaya made a case for regal maximalism, with ruby red and imperial blue taking centre stage. Tarun Tahiliani softened jewel tones through rich fabrics and weightless textures.
Rimzim Dadu translated couture into kinetic sculpture, while Amit Aggarwal leaned into liquid jewel tones for his futuristic silhouettes. Suneet Varma dazzled in deep sapphires, bringing high-glamour energy, hand-embroidered sheers and architectural volume.
Pastel Perfection
As with bridal couture each year, pastels delivered the dream at India Couture Week 2025. Serene shades, spanning the range of blush pinks, icy lilacs and powdery blues, created a visual delight against the maximalist mood. Tamannaah Bhatia looked ethereal in a 3D floral gown by Rahul Mishra, while Sara Ali Khan turned showstopper for Aisha Rao in a lehenga that shimmered in dusky rose, embroidered with whimsical flora and fauna that was equal parts fairy tale and finesse.
Falguni Shane Peacock showcased their latest couture offering, Raj Mahal Bijoux – The Palace of Jewels, which was dripping with their signature tropes. Think metallic embellishments, delicate threadwork and crystal work on dramatic silhouettes. Meanwhile, Alessandra Ambrosio brought international glam to the Manish Malhotra runway, embodying a celestial goddess in layered pearl embroidery and gossamer lilac.
Metallic Allure
Metallics delivered the dazzle. Gleaming silvers, liquid golds, bronze sheens and high-octane chrome turned the runway into a hall of mirrors, every look reflecting a bold, glamorous vision of couture. Whether woven into sculptural jackets or embroidered into second-skin lehengas, the metallic mood was anything but minimal. Falguni Shane Peacock’s gilded looks were a homage to royal architecture, from the marble peacock at Baroda’s Laxmi Vilas Palace to the fresco-adorned walls of Jaipur’s City Palace. Jayanti Reddy’s metallic saris and lehengas were a romantic and royal take, layered with khada dupattas.
Khushi Kapoor turned muse for Rimzim Dadu in a signature corded technique shimmered in molten platinum. Roseroom by Isha Jajodia, known for her old-world aesthetic, brought shimmer to her outing. Bhumi Pednekar glazed in a silvery lehenga by Ritu Kumar, while Tarun Tahiliani brought the disco-era to the fore with his rose gold mermaid lehenga and corset.
