Aisha Rao Brought Botanical Maximalism to India Couture Week

Aisha Rao made her India Couture Week debut with a collection that felt both fresh and fiercely self-assured. Titled Wild at Heart, it was a bold foray into couture—part fever dream, part masterclass. Maximalist, yes, but with method. Whimsical, but never unmoored.

Rao, known for her fantasy-led appliqué and offbeat storytelling, didn’t abandon her signatures. She elevated them. Banana leaf motifs unfurled across metallic Banarasi brocades. Soft champagne tones shimmered under sharp, structured silhouettes. Palm trees appeared on power blazers; banana peels embroidered themselves into eveningwear. It was a garden party of pattern play and precision. Geometry met romance. Checks collided with bead-encrusted blooms. And somehow, it all held together.

Sara Ali Khan, the showstopper, floated down the runway in a rose gold lehenga—but Rao’s vision wasn’t anchored to one moment or muse. The entire collection leaned into narrative. For women, it offered a kind of ethereal edge. For men, it proposed statement jackets, draped cuts, and sparkle with structure—a gentle reminder that glamour isn’t gendered.

But beyond the shimmer and spectacle, Rao’s couture debut said something quieter, and more enduring: that fashion is still at its best when it dares. When it dreams. And that even among the veterans of ICW, there’s room—glorious, glittering room—for a designer unafraid to colour outside the lines.

Excerpts from a conversation.

What was the inspiration for your collection?

Our couture collection is a maximalist ode to nature’s untamed beauty. It’s where memory, fantasy, and possibility merge through design and craftsmanship. The silhouettes are romantic yet statement-making: draped saris, exaggerated lehengas, theatrical blazers, and fluid menswear. The colour palette moves from molten metallics like brushed rose gold and antique champagne to rich tones of teakberry and lush green, contrasted with dreamy pastels. Our signature appliqué embroidery is reinterpreted with fresh motifs like cacti, palm trees, and wild flora.

There’s a stunning visual duality at play: softness and sharpness, florals and geometry, fantasy and architecture. Was there one piece that best captured the soul of Wild at Heart for you?

For us, it isn’t about one piece, it’s a feeling that runs through the entire menswear line! I’m drawn to the balance we’ve created: tailoring is sharp, but softened with intricate embroidery, familiar silhouettes reimagined with whimsical motifs, and a colour story that’s both grounded and expressive. Refined, but never rigid- that’s the spirit we’ve dressed.

What role do men play in the Wild At Heart narrative? And who is the ideal Aisha Rao man?

In Wild at Heart, men are just as much a part of the fantasy as the women. They bring strength, flair, and a sense of ease to the narrative. The Aisha Rao man isn’t afraid of colour, embroidery or a little sparkle. He embraces statement pieces that blend structure with whimsy and tradition with a sense of theatre. He is confident, expressive and grounded, yet playful in how he dresses. Whether it is a richly embroidered Bandhgala or a sharply tailored metallic blazer, he wears each piece like a conversation, bold, memorable and entirely his own.

You’re known for fantasy-led appliqué — how has that technique been reimagined in this collection?

What began as a simple effort to repurpose leftover fabrics has evolved into a signature storytelling tool for us. Season after season, we’ve reimagined appliqué, layering it with more emotion, depth and detail to reflect the heart of each collection. With Wild at Heart, we’ve taken our signature appliquéd motifs that are playful, surreal and often unexpected, and set them against traditional fabrics like Banarasi and tissue to give them a more timeless, heirloom-like appeal. It’s still playful, still unexpected, but this time with a sense of regality. For our India Couture Week debut, we wanted the appliqué to feel both familiar and elevated, a little bit of fantasy stitched into legacy.

Metallics and natural world ever go together, yet your collection combines both – the banana peels and the rose gold metallics. Why this combination and why do you think this works?

Metallics have always existed in nature, whether it’s the iridescent shimmer of a beetle’s wing, the golden haze of late afternoon light, or the glint of dew drops at dawn. These quiet, luminous moments inspired our molten palette this season. Metallics are also a key highlight in Kohler’s new collection, which aligned perfectly with our shared vision for Wild at Heart. It allowed us to explore brushed rose gold, antique champagne, and liquid silver in a way that feels modern yet organic, adding depth and a sculptural edge to our otherwise botanical world.

This is your first ICW appearance among a cohort of legacy designers. What does standing alongside names like Tarun Tahiliani and Rohit Bal mean to you at this stage of your journey?

It’s deeply humbling and motivating to share the platform with designers whose work has defined Indian couture for decades. Tarun Tahiliani, Rohit Bal, and others have set the benchmark for craftsmanship and innovation, and standing alongside them feels like both an honour and a responsibility. We see it as a moment to bring our own voice,  rooted in playfulness, bold colour, and maximalist storytelling into a space that celebrates India’s couture heritage. It’s a reminder that while we are still evolving as a brand, we have something unique to contribute to the conversation.

As Esquire India, we always ask: What, to you, is a man at his most stylish — or most interesting?

A man is at his most stylish when he has the confidence to explore, experiment, and express his individuality. At Aisha Rao, we design with this belief, that menswear should be as bold, playful, and memorable as womenswear. With Wild at Heart, we’ve introduced a fresh colour palette for men: molten metallics like brushed rose gold and antique champagne, rich tones of teakberry and forest green, and pastel accents. Paired with sharp tailoring, unexpected embroidery, and a touch of whimsy, these colours challenge the traditional boundaries of menswear while celebrating personality and confidence.