How Indian Menswear Is Entering a New Era of Hybrid Style

At the Lakmé Fashion Week x FDCI Summer-Resort show this March, the verdict among industry insiders was unanimous: menswear won the season. From Taarini Anand’s explorations with knits to AK-OK’s first menswear line and Amit Aggarwal’s sculptural silhouettes, collections leaned heavily on Indian crafts and material innovation, bringing renewed vigour to a category where newness was conspicuous by its absence thus far.

Elsewhere, between actor Vijay Deverakonda’s flamboyant yet rooted wedding wardrobe and Lovebirds’ latest showing in Sri Lanka—where models wore lungis with oversized blouses, exaggerated shorts and batik suits—it became clear that change is afoot. A seismic shift in Indian menswear is undeniable now, even inevitable.

“What we’re witnessing is a structural shift—almost a recalibration of identity,” says designer Vivek Karunakaran, whose textile-led approach earned him rave reviews this season. “For the longest time, Indian menswear operated within fairly rigid codes. Western wear was functional and aspirational, while Indian wear was ceremonial and inherited. What’s changing now is that men are no longer dressing for categories,” he explains.

Brothers Shantanu Mehra and Nikhil Mehra, who have long been torchbearers of modernisation in Indian menswear, agree. “Menswear has moved from imitation to interpretation. Western wear is no longer treated as an external reference point,” says Shantanu. “Proportions, layering, and restraint are being rethought to blur the lines between Indian and western fashion,” adds Nikhil.

As this new language emerges across both western and Indian occasion wear, the two are evolving simultaneously. From weddings to everyday clothing and even holiday-friendly pieces, the modern Indian man wants fashion with more depth, personality and storytelling. Much of this momentum is driven by the rise of independent labels challenging sartorial conventions.

So, you have tasselled co-ord sets at Saim, pussy-bow shirts and sequins at Aisha Rao, soft floral jackets at Anita Dongre, embellished outerwear at Rosani, bomber jackets paired with kurtas at Payal Singhal, draped drama at Antar-Agni, whimsical prints at Cord, and the bold use of colour at Khanijo. And then there are labels such as Countrymade, Re-ceremonial, and Dhruv Vaish approaching menswear from a culture-first lens, with their unique use of Indian textiles.

“We’re moving towards a space where the binary between Indian and western will dissolve even further. I would love to believe that the future is hybrid—not confused but intentional,” says Karunakaran.

The Duality of Dressing

What makes this shift more powerful is that it allows the Indian man to exist in more than one dimension, instead of reinforcing outdated ideas of masculinity. There is a certain confidence in the embrace of softness now. Nikhil calls it an evolved expression of masculinity, “one that doesn’t compromise structure either”. “Draped kurtas, layered silhouettes, even elements like pearls—these are no longer statements. They are part of a broader, more nuanced identity,” adds Shantanu.

Take craft-led contemporary wear brand Harago’s recontextualising of bead embroidery, for instance. The brand’s founder Harsh Agarwal— whose designs have been seen on celebrities Travis Kelce, Bruno Mars, and Harry Styles—has moved away from traditional occasion wear, and into relaxed, vacation-inspired silhouettes. “That juxtaposition created something that felt both elevated and effortless, and it struck a chord with consumers looking for novelty without losing wearability,” explains the designer.

This craft-core-meets-soft-boy aesthetic—very Gen-Z-coded, as some would call it—is on the rise. “But it’s not performative. It’s more personal, driven by a shift towards self-expression,” says Agarwal.

This is accompanied by a tidal wave that has also made men more comfortable in occupying a space that was earlier coded as ‘feminine’, “whether that’s colour, silhouette or ornamentation,” adds Karunakaran. “Men are willing to explore vulnerability and nuance. You notice it in how they now approach fabric, drape, fit, and even posture. The tailoring is softer and less structured. There’s an ease that wasn’t there before. Less rigidity, more fluidity, both literally and metaphorically,” according to Karunakaran.

And then there’s that growing attention to detail, according to Taarini Anand who feels, “menswear is no longer just about tailoring, but is becoming a more layered and expressive category. What’s changing massively is the demand for everyday pieces with a point of view,” she adds. The menswear designer—known for knitwear that leans towards playful, with bright colours and beaded details—is seeing all genders engage equally with her pieces.

“It’s less about who it’s designed for, and more about how it’s interpreted by the wearer. I expect that boundaries will continue to soften between menswear and womenswear. Indian Fashion is becoming less restricted by convention,” she says.

A Return to Craft

Celebrity stylist Divyak D’Souza— who works with stars including Hrithik Roshan and Farhan Akhtar—calls this new movement more exciting than anything he has seen in years, more so as it’s heavily led by a championing of Indian craft and textiles. “The new perspective designers are bringing is by way of fabric innovations and silhouettes. It’s new but also extremely wearable at the same time,” observes D’Souza.

Karunakaran confirms this renewed interest in rootedness. “But it’s being interpreted through a very contemporary lens—subtle surface techniques instead of overt embellishment, textiles with meaning, and popularity of regional interpretations of veshtis and angavastrams,” he explains. “Men today are far more open to conversation during fittings. Earlier, it was transactional. Now it’s collaborative. They’re engaged in the process—questioning, suggesting, and refining. Their relationship with clothing has deepened.”

And while Indian men are increasingly looking inward for inspiration, global pop culture moments and social media have played a decisive role in shifting mindsets, too. When the likes of Diljit Dosanjh and ASAP Rocky wear Chanel womenswear, Sawai Padmanabh Singh layers polki necklaces at the Met Gala, Hudson Williams wears a tank top and scarf with a suit or cricketer Abhishek Sharma steps on the field in a diamond tennis necklace, it begins to move the needle on what menswear can look like.

“There is such an influx of global imagery—from red carpets to award shows—that it’s naturally creating a desire for newness,” says D’Souza. “In a country like India, where celebrity culture has such massive influence, what actors wear inevitably filters down.”

Celebrities alone, however, cannot dictate commerce. The real litmus test lies in whether this evolution translates into products that are both desirable and accessible. “Making cool collections is one thing, but we need strong options across price points,” D’Souza adds.

Tanisha Rahimtoola Agarwal, founder of Mumbai-based menswear store Curato is noticing a change in her customers. “When we launched in 2018, most of our clients were clueless. Now they come in with specific references from social media, sometimes even created via AI,” she says.

“They are also very open to newer brands as opposed to the same-old established names. Indian men are moving past designer labels to a designer sensibility. It’s no longer about who made it, but more about how it makes them look and feel. It can be quirky and experimental, but fit is most important,” she adds.

Indian menswear is at an inflection point—one that could finally push it beyond occasion dressing and into more expressive, everyday wardrobes.