THE EXCITEMENT AROUND Indian menswear is palpable, and the interest in men's fashion is exploding. To reflect this dynamism and range, GQ and FDCI combined forces at Lakmé Fashion Week to curate a show starring some of India's buzziest brands: Jaywalking, Countrymade, and Rishta by Arjun Saluja.
Jay Jajal - whose label Jaywalking is among India's leading streetwear brands - returned to the runway after five years, while Delhi-based couture master Arjun Saluja was showing after a seven-year-long hiatus. "It's been so long since I've done this that I've forgotten how fashion weeks work," Saluja confessed during the rehearsal, just an hour before the countdown. Jajal was on the other end of the spectrum. "I love it! The backstage bustle and all the attention I'm getting is great," he joked. In the show area, a crowd of journalists, celebrities, and loyal fans of the designers clamped up together, eager to witness what was about to unfold. Here's an off-the-runway breakdown of three individualistic collections presented by three distinct voices.
JAYWALKING
Jay Jajal
A week before the show, Jay Jajal was handing out show passes to lucky buyers through his Instagram stories. "I show everything about my life online, so for me to keep this 16-look collection under wraps was a different experience," he said a week later, backstage before his show. The 30-year-old's streetwear label has seen a meteoric rise since its inception in 2019. Jaywalking, a brand that is solely built around digital culture, returned to the runway after five years.
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