spot light: south asian designers

#southasianheritagemonth

​'we look at these creatives as custodians of these skills, who aim to celebrate their heritage with a modern approach and relevance'

Fashion Director: Joseph Toronka
Global Media Editor: Anupreet Sidhu
​
As we celebrate South Asian Heritage month here at SoEdited, we champion the creatives from the diaspora that are making waves across the fashion industry. The region has always been seen as the manufacturing hub for our industry. Yet we still fail to fully acknowledge the creative mastery of the regions outstanding craftspeople, from some of the most exquisite variations in surface embellishments to possibly the most diverse fabric waving technicians. 

Celebrating the diaspora here in the UK, we look at these creatives as custodians of these skills, who aim to celebrate their heritage with a modern approach and relevance. The diaspora has long contributed to the success of today's multicultural Great Britain. From business to politics, health care to retail, they have produced leading industry figures across sectors. 

In recent years we have seen strides been made in the creative sectors, and fashion is no different. As, we champion emerging talent like menswear designers Priya Ahluwalia or celebrate household names, including designer Ashish Gupta. We recognise their creative strengths but also the commonality that their South Asian heritage mixed with their British cultural identity has played a major part in making them globally renowned brands.
​

Supriya Lele is a British-Indian designer with an eponymous fashion brand founded in 2016. Lele was a finalist of the LVMH Prize 2020. Her work is deeply rooted in her own cross-cultural point of view, examining her Indian heritage and British cultural identity whilst creating work from a decidedly female viewpoint that tells a nuanced and delicate story.
​
instagram Supriya Lele

#southasianheritagemonth

#southasianheritagemonth

Priya Ahluwalia is the designer and founder of her menswear brand Ahluwalia. She takes elements from her dual Indian-Nigerian heritage and London roots and explores the life of vintage and dead stock clothing, using textile techniques to give them new life. Ahluwalia won the H&M Design Award 2019 and she collaborated with Adidas at Paris Fashion Week for AW19. She was also a Finalist for the LVMH Prize in 2020.

instagram Priya Ahluwalia

Ashish Gupta is an Indian fashion designer, who lives in London, designing under the label ‘Ashish’. With his mix of Western and Eastern influences, Gupta’s designs blend sportswear, high-octane glamour and craftsmanship. He designs in London, has workshops in India, where he gets complex hand embroidery done, and sells in London and Toronto.

instagram Ashish Gupta

#southasianheritagemonth

#southasianheritagemonth

Omar Mansoor, born in Pakistan, is a London-based fashion designer, best known for his couture occasion wear. His luxurious collection of immaculately cut dresses, gowns and separates has adorned glamorous women around the world including British actresses, International royalty and European aristocracy at various red carpets including Oscars and Cannes.

instagram Omar Mansoor

London born Sri Lankan designer Amesh Wijesekera is the founder of his label Amesh.
​The brand is about celebrating diversity, cultural fusion, individuality and a sense of freedom. One of the main messages of the brand is to celebrate Sri Lankan culture and South Asian beauty.

instagram
Amesh Wijesekera

#southasianheritagemonth

#southasianheritagemonth

Harikrishnan KS, an Athlete turned designer, grew up drawing on any possible surface he could find.
​Now, London based , Hari, took the Internet by storm with his Latex “ballbottom” pants, which he created as a part of his MA graduation collection.

instagram
Harikrishnan KS