Conscious coupling
VOGUE India|February 2021
Over the past decade, Simone Rocha has dressed and been inspired by strong women. Now, with an H&M collaboration with designs for men and children, her sartorial influence promises to grow manifold. Priyanka Khanna reports on a match made in fashion heaven
Priyanka Khanna
Conscious coupling

PAIR OF ACES Looks from H&M X Simone Rocha span kids wear and menswear, featuring the designer’s trademarks

For this issue, dedicated to love and romance, I started listing the designers we would consider ‘romantic’. But the list made me pause to wonder: what really is sartorial romanticism today? Is it the fantasy of couture imagined in reams of tulle and taffeta? Is it a nod to Victoriana? Or is it the bohemian medley à la the quintessential icon Talitha Getty?

In the case of Simone Rocha, within her prettiness lies a hint of the eerie. Her clothes have a haunting beauty, their appeal richly layered with the ceremonial (Irish communion dresses and papal influences), the historical (Nell Gwyn, the mistress of Charles II, along with Anne Boleyn, have made up her vision board), the personal (china dolls in Victorian dresses from her childhood, Aran knitting native to Ireland), all created, as Rocha has stressed over the years, for different generations, sizes and shapes.

In 2021, I believe this is the sartorial romanticism that women are looking for. As Dublin-born Rocha, a graduate of Central Saint Martins and the daughter of designer John Rocha celebrates a decade in the business, she reintroduces archival pieces to bring all her aesthetic tenets—signature pearls, scalloped edges, broderie Anglaise and more to an H&M collaboration.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM VOGUE INDIAView all
Breathe In, Breathe Out
VOGUE India

Breathe In, Breathe Out

A powerful tool to help you master your nervous system or another biohacking buzzword? SIMONE DHONDY explores the inhalations and exhalations of breathwork

time-read
4 mins  |
November - December 2024
Red Pill, Blue Pill
VOGUE India

Red Pill, Blue Pill

India's nutraceutical industry is booming thanks to advanced technology, distrust of the medical system and rising vanity. With multivitamins becoming purer and more effective, NIDHI GUPTA finds out if supplements have become the new serum

time-read
4 mins  |
November - December 2024
Sign of the times
VOGUE India

Sign of the times

No longer do you need to have an answer to, \"What is the significance of this?\" when people point to your new tattoo. ARMAN KHAN discovers that everything is on the table when you get inked temporarily

time-read
3 mins  |
November - December 2024
Return to form
VOGUE India

Return to form

Watching the world's most elite athletes deliver the best performances of their careers rekindled SONAKSHI SHARMA's own love for sports

time-read
3 mins  |
November - December 2024
Dimple, All Day
VOGUE India

Dimple, All Day

YOU MAY HAVE WATCHED HER ON THE BIG SCREEN FOR OVER FIVE DECADES, BUT DON'T MAKE THE MISTAKE OF ASSUMING THAT YOU KNOW DIMPLE KAPADIA.

time-read
9 mins  |
November - December 2024
MUSIC, TAKE CONTROL
VOGUE India

MUSIC, TAKE CONTROL

As someone who had always sought safety in numbers, ALIZA FATMA often wondered what her own company would feel like. The answer arrived unexpectedly when she attended her first-ever music festival, one of the largest in the world, all alone

time-read
3 mins  |
November - December 2024
Let it grow
VOGUE India

Let it grow

When we think of hardworking farmers toiling in India's scorching heat, we often think of men, the sweat on their brow, the sinews in their arms. JYOTI KUMARI speaks to four women who are championing the invisible female labour that keeps these fields running

time-read
5 mins  |
November - December 2024
YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE
VOGUE India

YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE

When armless archer Sheetal Devi set her sights on the Paralympic Games this year, she knew she had a tough journey ahead of her. Luckily, her mother was with her every step of the way.

time-read
5 mins  |
November - December 2024
Beauty and the feast
VOGUE India

Beauty and the feast

The appeal of Indian weddings has always been in a sprawling spread. For additional bragging rights, Aditi Dugar recommends going beyond designer tablecloths and monogrammed napkins.

time-read
1 min  |
November - December 2024
Sweet serendipity
VOGUE India

Sweet serendipity

From a scavenger hunt-inspired proposal to a Moroccan-themed baraat, Malvika Raj and Armaan Rai's love story prioritised playfulness throughout their blended celebrations.

time-read
4 mins  |
November - December 2024