FDCI India Men’s Weekend 2026 spotlights stories, nostalgia and utility with a dash of opulence

At Jaipur’s Diggi palace, the precocious ceiling of the durbar room, the serene lawns and the calm poolside play quiescent witnesser to each the hustle; of manner choreographers dispensing instructions, models awaiting their turn, oregon lounging connected the seats being readied for the evening’s shows, and designers darting betwixt the ramp and the greenish rooms.

For the Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI), this is the 4th twelvemonth of bringing designers from crossed the state who are pushing boundaries and expanding the vocabulary of menswear arsenic a portion of House of Glenfiddich presents FDCI India Men’s Weekend. JJ Valaya, Ashish N Soni, Abraham and Thakore, Rajesh Pratap Singh, Inca, Mr Ajay Kumar, Son Of A Noble Snob, Vivek Karunakaran, Dhruv Vaish, Sahil Aneja, Antar Agni, Felix Bendish and much were a portion of the enactment up this year; a premix of celebrated designers and emerging talent. 

This year, the play extended beyond flowy silhouettes, powerfulness shoulders and glittering embellishments, arsenic the ramp became a signifier for show art, storytelling, and impeccably curated music. If Nitin Bal Chauhan’s postulation which drew inspiration from the people communicative of Gugga from the Chamba portion had models successful masks locomotion to roars and drum beats, Varun Dagar brought his fluid moves to ‘Zombie’ by The Cranberries astatine Rajesh Pratap Singh’s sombre, reflective show. 

Sunil Sethi, president, FDCI, emphasises connected their committedness to contiguous divers modern menswear from 23 established and emerging designers. “I americium conscionable fortunate that men’s manner is each implicit the country, with designers from crossed cities being capable to showcase here, arsenic good arsenic antithetic choreographers moving connected the shows,” helium says.

We bring you the highlights from the shows, and conscionable the designers for the low-down connected what you should beryllium adding to your closet this year. 

Countrymade by Sushant Abrol

‘Nostalgic Utility’ is however Sushant Abrol describes Foundry, his latest collection. A paper describing his intriguing and inventive postulation comes with Foundry Object No.01, a metallic motif from a jerry tin that holds substance for subject jeeps, that Sushant wants america to hold, region and rotate. 

“A foundry is simply a spot wherever you melt metal, reshape and remould it. For us, this entity symbolises the brand’s travel wherein it fuels the mundane expeditions you instrumentality successful life,” helium says. 

Taking cues from workwear and adding tactile elements to marque the apparel much interactive; to interaction and discover, Foundry has chore jackets, truckers, bomber jackets, and brushed blazers. The denims travel with hickory stripes crafted utilizing the brand’s signature French knots, embroidery connected jackets that represents metallic melting, and ikat utilized to correspond a vigor representation of temperatures successful a foundry done ochres, reds and blues. “We travel from a onshore of affluent taste practice and astatine the aforesaid time, arsenic a brand, I consciousness it is my work to reprogramme these crafts,” says Sushant. The foundry’s aesthetic extends to the accessories arsenic well, and models locomotion by holding metallic instrumentality boxes and welder’s masks.

On the ramp, the colours travel; from blues to ochres, reds and whites, and past greens earlier yet ending with browns and ash. “The vigor has simmered down and the result isn’t astir the entity that has been made successful a foundry, but the travel itself,” Sushant adds. 

Abraham & Thakore

The decorator duo’s collection, Sartorial Sarongs, makes a literal splash, opening with 2 models emerging from a swimming pool. The robes they deterioration soon springiness mode to lungis and mundus, an mundane garment crossed the country, re-imagined successful a classy achromatic and achromatic colour palette with circular motifs, pinstripes, enactment prints, quirky paperclip motifs arsenic good arsenic a motion to Jaipur with Hawa Mahal featuring connected the garments arsenic well. A rolled up paper successful the hand, is simply a casual accessory present connected the ramp.

“Lungis and mundus tin beryllium a precise elegant substitute for trouser dressing. I besides similar the governmental accusation of it due to the fact that it benignant of questions assemblage attitudes and however we person been indoctrinated to judge determination is lone 1 close mode to dress,” says David Abraham. 

With drawstrings, belt loops and pockets, the sarong present is for each occasions, and the postulation features jazzed up versions arsenic well. Parties and weddings this twelvemonth are hopefully going to spot rather a spot of the sequinned mundus successful black, and a showstopping gold, crushed silk garment and mundu set.  

Vivek Karunakaran

The unmistakable beats of ‘Kannodu Kanbadhellam’ from Jeans makes the assemblage beryllium up adjacent earlier Vivek Karunakaran’s showcase begins. For the designer, Thangam, his latest postulation is simply a continuation of Idam, his past postulation which helium considers a solemnisation and a movement. “We fearlessly represented who we are and our roots. If Idam was a book, Thangam is present 1 of its chapters,” helium says. 

True to its name, Thangam shimmers arsenic models measurement onto the runway wearing veshtis, waistcoats, flowy pants and bandhgalas successful Kanjeevarams, earthy silks, tussars and organza. “The golden present is quiescent and not in-your-face, we person played astir with the constituent arsenic good and it is crushed, textured and successful integrated lines,” Vivek says. Not limiting the colour palette present to creams and an organza gold, Vivek has the models don affluent jewel-toned reds and pinks, subtle maroons and blacks. While flowy pants successful golden lucifer up effortlessly with a kurta and a brushed blazer, panchakachams and angavastharams brace conscionable arsenic good with bandhgala-style unfastened jackets, each connected the ramp arsenic strains of ‘Ponmagal vandhal’ play.

Vivek besides shares a idiosyncratic transportation to the postulation — his mother’s sanction is Thangam. “For me, it was important to determination distant from viewing golden simply arsenic ornamentation and alternatively spot it arsenic a connection of love. For generations, golden has been treasured and passed down, holding heavy affectional value wrong families,” helium adds.

Inca

“I enactment with trade connected a precise basal level. My effort is to marque it a portion of your regular beingness and not reserve it for peculiar occasions,” says Amit Hansraj of Inca. 

In flowy pants, dhotis, abbreviated kurtas, jackets and shirts, Amit’s postulation astatine the India Men’s Weekend with bandhani and shibori influences popped connected the runway successful glossy browns, buttery ochres and agleam blues. “My postulation traces the travel of a dot, arsenic it expands and shifts successful shape. We commencement with the infinitesimal bandhani dots, and dilatory subdivision retired into bolder shibori prints; overmuch similar however you enactment an ink blot connected a driblet of water,” Amit explains. 

Flowy dhoties travel paired with short, sharply tailored kurtas and shirts layered connected with jackets. The accessories here; chunky necklaces and a bluish fringe container with shibori enactment besides makes heads turn.  “I plan a clump of separates and enactment it each together, truthful it looks interesting, cohesive and unsocial successful its ain way,” Amit says. 

Siddartha Tytler

The runway is illuminated successful stripes of airy for Siddartha Tytler’s showcase and successful the spotlight is Parsi gara thread work, reimagined successful his postulation Miraas. “It is specified a beauteous civilization and tradition, with specified intricate and beauteous enactment which you bash not spot precise often now. We person modernised and attempted to bring it backmost successful the open,” the decorator says. 

Sharply tailored black-and-white kurtas and achkans successful silk organza and earthy silk diagnostic intricate threadwork, elevated with reflector enactment and appliqué that glints nether the lights arsenic models instrumentality implicit the runway to a remix of Britney Spears’ ‘Toxic’. The show’s brisk gait does not detract from the details; the striking thread enactment executed by a squad of artisans in-house who volition besides beryllium moving connected aboriginal collections, is exquisitely detailed. 

“A wide regularisation is, if you privation to get noticed, travel to me,” Siddartha laughs.

Nikita Mhaisalkar 

Nikita Mhaisalkar did not person to look further than her hometown of Sidhpur successful Gujarat, with its Victorian havelis, pastel colours and migratory birds for inspiration for her newest collection, Nostalgia. “Not galore radical cognize astir the town’s beauteous havelis, which bash not look similar a portion of India. I wanted to enactment astir this aesthetic, the vibe, and its pastel colours,” she says. 

Fluid and yet sharp, well-cut garments that Nikita describes arsenic “very French, precise Victorian and precise smooth”, with couture embroidery inspired by the motifs and carvings from the havelis make up Nostalgia. Models strut down the runway successful the evening light, with suit sets, flowy shirts and pants and feathery neckties successful pastels accentuated with cameo brooches, which Nikita has an absorbing sourcing communicative for arsenic well.

“I met idiosyncratic successful Sidhpur who collects these brooches which are highly old. They were benignant capable to lend it to maine for the show,” she says. She brings Sidhpur’s whimsy to her showstopper outfit, a sharply-tailored pinstripe suit successful wood greenish worn with a feathered necktie and a postulation of brooches.  

Til by Ankur Verma

In beige, earthy greens and browns and pops of agleam orange, Til by Ankur Verma’s latest postulation Breathe plays astir with handwork and textures portion keeping the brand’s zero-waste, sustainable doctrine successful the forefront. 

A textured, drop-shoulder overgarment successful beige, the archetypal garment successful the showcase connected the runway, is simply a portion truthful affluent successful texture that you privation you could analyse it person to respect the trade that has gone in. This piece, Ankur says, has been wholly made of upcycled material. 

“My marque is inspired by tegument textures and I wanted to bash thing creative. From wrinkles, freckles and moles, everything takes signifier present connected the garment done applique work, embroidery, and raffla work,” Ankur says. 

Relaxed fits, brushed agelong jackets, hoodies, capes, shrugs and kurtas diagnostic successful the collection, versatile pieces which Ankur says tin beryllium styled separately, layered, worn implicit denims, oregon with scarves and stoles added arsenic 1 wishes. 

Son Of A Noble Snob

Mani Shanker Singh of Son Of A Noble Snob says helium loves challenging norms. “Why should a summertime palette lone person definite colours?” helium asks. His postulation Contra, fuses military, athletics and grunge, successful silk, Chanderis and linens, with Japanese influences and besides features manus embroidery similar his erstwhile collections. 

With camouflage people kurtas, epaulettes, crisp collars and beforehand pockets, arsenic good arsenic flowy pants successful greens, browns, charcoal and achromatic taking implicit the ramp, Mani says that his absorption is connected modern, hep planetary aesthetics, but portion retaining a spot of Indianness astatine the aforesaid time. 

“I consciousness similar truthful galore cultures and trends are getting blurred, and coming together. Contra arsenic well, wants to bring this each unneurotic and marque it seamless. With everything happening successful the world, I deliberation arsenic an creator and a manner designer, it is our work to bash this,” Mani says.