There have been many fashion greats who have drawn inspiration from deeply intertwined stories of kinship, but few do so as intimately as Rahul Mishra. Based in New Delhi, Mishra has emerged as a world-renowned couturier, most notably becoming the first Indian designer invited to show at Paris Haute Couture Week—a milestone that marked India’s place on the global fashion map. While his international acclaim speaks to his artistry, it is the personal threads of his upbringing that truly define his work.
Raised in a family where patience, resilience, and care were quietly taught, Mishra learned from his grandmother’s delicate handiwork, his mother’s instinct for resourcefulness long before sustainability became a buzzword and his father’s eventual, unwavering support. Today, his designs—worn by stars from Zendaya to Gigi Hadid—carry a distinctive blend of glamour and elegance, instantly recognisable for their intricate embroidery, fusion of science and beauty and elaborate 3D appliqués and embellishments. Each piece is as much a reflection of his family’s influence as it is a celebration of craft.
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“I spent my first 10 years in a remote village while my father worked away. My mother, with help from my grandmother and uncle, raised my sister and me almost alone, heartbroken at times but unbreakable, teaching patience and strength without words,” he shares.
“My grandmother’s patience at the loom, my mother’s instinct for recycling before ‘sustainability’ existed, and my father’s late but wholehearted support are all stitched into my thinking.”
Family is thus an intrinsic and undeniable part of his work. In fact, his wife works closely with him at his atelier. “Family is the centre of my life and work. My wife is an equal partner in design and business. My grandmother’s patience at the loom, my mother’s instinct for recycling before ‘sustainability’ existed, and my father’s late but wholehearted support are all stitched into my thinking. The kindness and empathy I absorbed at home flowed naturally into the brand. Each collection that feels intimate is really a continuation of their values, proof that beauty and compassion travel together,” he shares.
He reflects on the beginnings of his journey, however, and how that has lent itself to the legacy that he has today. “My first challenge wasn’t fashion school, it was my report card. Because I excelled academically, my father hoped I’d be an engineer or doctor. When I chose design, there was real resistance. After my acceptance to the National Institute of Design, he didn’t speak for an hour. To friends, he half-joked that I was studying ‘design engineering’ because no one understood fashion. Over time everything changed. He lived to see the brand grow globally and became one of my proudest supporters. He passed away last December, but by then he had followed every milestone with joy. What began with silence ended in deep understanding and shared pride.”
Here, the designer opens up about family, craft and the philosophy that guides his couture.
You’ve showcased how personal your collections can be. Why was it important to you to bring this facet to your designs?
Fashion is my language. Each collection is an essay of my inner voice, not just fabric and silhouette. Sometimes it celebrates memories of my village; other times it tackles urgent questions—creating livelihoods for artisans or carrying Indian narratives onto the global luxury stage. Every collection is personal yet outward-looking. I draw from family and heritage but also ask how a piece can create employment, preserve knowledge, and hold meaning beyond the runway. Beauty matters, but purpose is essential. By embedding these concerns, I hope fashion becomes a living story—one that carries memory, sustains communities, and resonates far beyond a season.
You dedicated part of your work to your family. What inspired that gesture and how do they influence your creative process?
Family is the centre of my life and work. I run the label with my wife Divya, an equal partner in design and business. By choice her name isn’t on the label—she believes Rahul Mishra is a philosophy that belongs to everyone building it with us. Kindness and empathy I absorbed at home flow naturally into the brand. Each collection that feels intimate is really a continuation of their values, proof that beauty and compassion travel together.
Your designs often feel like a bold break from tradition. Can you tell us more about this?
My work thrives on nowness—what feels relevant today—yet it is grounded in tradition. We start with centuries-old techniques and give them space to evolve. A 200-year-old embroidery may become a silhouette that feels like the future. People call it a break from tradition; I see it as expansion. We honour every stitch’s lineage but refuse to let it stand still. By seeking newness from within history, we keep tradition alive and dynamic for a global audience.
What role has intergenerational experience—stories, values, even tension—played in shaping how you view success as a designer?
Since the Woolmark Prize, I’ve seen that success is collective, not solitary. Our Delhi studio anchors the brand, but artisans from remote Indian villages and collaborators worldwide—my New York stylist Michael Philouze and his associate Ella, pattern-maker Shirley in Los Angeles, and a Paris production team—bring each collection to life. The entire global team functions like a large family built on trust and shared purpose. Showing alongside Dior or Chanel forces us to raise our standards and learn. Failures have taught as much as triumphs. Since 2013 we’ve stayed on the Paris calendar, joining haute couture in 2020 and never missing a season, even through the pandemic. That persistence and community spirit are my true inheritance: patience, continuity, and the belief that great work is never solitary.
There’s often a quiet kind of support that goes unspoken in families. Were there any small acts, gestures, or sacrifices from your family that stuck with you during your journey?
My father recognised my aptitude and sent me to boarding school, adding his own nurturing. Hardship became a teacher: the deepest values—endurance, empathy, forgiveness—bloom in difficult soil. Today, Divya and I care for two sets of parents and our daughter Aarna, extending the same sense of family to the 500 people in our studio. Artisans seek our guidance on everything from their children’s education to buying a home, and we try to be there with support or advice. Our workspace feels like an extended family where everyone knows and looks out for one another. Every show and every stitch is the result of that shared foundation of care.
