Designer Aisha Rao discusses conscious luxury, textile innovation and building a brand guided by craft rather than trends.
By Nichola Marie
Your INTER–HANA collection, unveiled at Lakmé Fashion Week, marks a new chapter for your brand. What does this collection represent for you and the brand? INTER–HANA marks a new chapter for us, deepening our commitment to purposeful luxury and authorship. Our journey with appliqué has always been rooted in giving new meaning to remnant materials, a philosophy that naturally led us towards developing our own conscious design language. For INTER–HANA, we experimented with resham, badla and cotton, exploring how these materials could become an extension of that language. The process involved extensive refinement, sampling, and learning, opening up new creative possibilities along the way. Developing fabrics in-house allowed us to think more holistically about texture, form, and surface, creating garments where every element feels intentional. For me, the collection reflects confidence in our craft and our ability to innovate while staying true to our purpose. For the brand, it reinforces our commitment to creating thoughtful, craft-forward textiles with greater consciousness and intention. What began with INTER–HANA is very much the foundation for where we’re headed next.
Your journey from studying law to building one of India’s most distinctive luxury labels is unconventional. What were some of the defining moments? I come from a family of lawyers, so studying law at NUJS felt like the natural and sensible path. While I valued the discipline and structure it offered, I was always deeply inspired by art and the creative process. It was something I instinctively resonated with, and over time I realised that creativity was not simply an interest, but my true calling. I was conscious of the industry’s excesses and knew that if I were to build a brand, it had to be rooted in a more thoughtful approach. That perspective eventually led me to study at IED Barcelona and later garment construction at Parsons, where every project that felt the most instinctive and fulfilling seemed to bring me back to fashion. What truly reaffirmed my decision was the response to our work. Seeing people connect with and embrace our designs gave me the confidence to trust that instinct. As the brand evolved, so did my understanding of what fashion could be, not just a form of selfexpression, but a medium for storytelling, craftsmanship and cultural dialogue. When I launched Aisha Rao in 2018 as an upcycled luxury label, it felt less like a career shift and more like stepping into something I had always been moving towards. Once that path became clear, there was really no looking back!
You built your label on the idea of upcycled luxury and innovative appliqué work using fabric waste. How has your understanding of sustainability evolved? My vision from the very beginning was to build a brand that was purpose-led and ethical. Fashion as an industry has long struggled with excess, and I wanted to create something that consciously moved in a sustainable direction. Our appliqué work emerged from that thinking. It began as a way of repurposing fabric remnants and transforming them into something beautiful and valuable. Over time, it evolved into the core of our design language and became synonymous with the brand itself. As we’ve grown, our understanding of sustainability has evolved as well. We realised that it cannot be achieved through a single design technique or material choice alone. Today, it is about building a thoughtful ecosystem where creativity, craft and consciousness coexist. We continue to push this dialogue forward through constant experimentation and innovation, whether through our appliqué techniques or the development of materials. We call ourselves an upcycled luxury brand, and that remains central to who we are.
In an industry where trends can change overnight, how have you remained true to your creative identity while continuing to evolve? I think the key has been staying rooted in a clear point of view rather than chasing trends. Colour has always been an integral part of our identity, and I have always believed in its ability to evoke emotion, individuality and self-expression. We have never shied away from experimentation, whether through colour, texture, or silhouette, because that sense of exploration is central to who we are. At the same time, craftsmanship remains the soul of our garments. While our work continues to evolve, the intention is always to push craft forward in a meaningful way rather than respond to fleeting trends. Whether it is through appliqué, textile innovation, or new surface techniques, we are constantly exploring how traditional craftsmanship can be reinterpreted and expanded. The industry moves quickly, but I believe lasting evolution comes from curiosity and conviction. For us, change is driven by intent rather than external factors. When you are guided by a strong creative identity, evolution becomes a natural progression rather than a reaction.
What have been some of the most rewarding milestones in building the Aisha Rao brand? Looking back, one of the most defining milestones was establishing a distinct voice within the couture landscape. Through collections like Razzmatazz, Nadenka, Pastiche and Matilda, we embraced colour unapologetically and introduced a more whimsical, expressive approach to Indian occasion wear. At a time when bridal and couture fashion often followed a certain visual language, we were excited to challenge those conventions and carve out a space for a wearer who was looking for something more individual and imaginative. We have had the privilege of showcasing our work across several platforms over the years, but our debut at India Couture Week with Wild at Heart remains particularly special. It was a deeply personal collection, and seeing that vision resonate with people reaffirmed that there was an audience for craft-driven couture that celebrated self-expression and individuality. It was also an important moment in our journey with heritage weaves, which are now an integral part of our evolving design vocabulary. Another significant milestone has been seeing our philosophy of upcycled luxury mature alongside the brand. What began with appliqué and the repurposing of remnant materials has grown into a broader commitment to conscious creation, material innovation and purposeful luxury. Most recently, INTER–HANA in 2026 marked an important new chapter. Through in-house textile development and innovative fabrics, we moved towards a deeper sense of authorship, creating fabrics and surfaces that were entirely our own. It felt like a culmination of many years of experimentation and a natural progression of our commitment to craft, sustainability and innovation.
When you look ahead, what excites you most as you enter the next phase of your journey? The next phase of our journey is centred around innovation and deeper authorship. With INTER– HANA, we began exploring a new direction through in-house textile development, and we are continuing to build on that foundation. A significant focus for us is refining and perfecting these fabrics, pushing material innovation further and arriving at outcomes that feel both purposeful and distinctive. In the coming collections, you will see a more evolved expression of our signature design language through new textiles, surfaces and craft interventions. At the same time, our accessories narrative has grown considerably. We are exploring exciting new shapes and forms that extend the Aisha Rao universe beyond garments, while remaining rooted in the same spirit of artistry and experimentation. We are also working on a new jewellery vertical, which is a particularly exciting area for us. It is still taking shape, but we are looking forward to bringing our design perspective into this category and expanding the way our clients engage with the brand. Ultimately, our ambition is to continue evolving creatively while remaining grounded in the values that shaped the brand. As we grow, our commitment to conscious creation, innovation and ethical intent remains unchanged, and we will continue working towards building a more thoughtful and purposeful luxury ecosystem.
