Rohit Bal, India’s leading fashion designer and a founding member of the prestigious Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI), passed away on November 1, 2024, after suffering a cardiac arrest. FDCI Chairman Sethi confirmed the news, sharing that Bal had been battling heart ailments for some time. “He was rushed to the hospital today…but didn’t make it,” Sethi told The Indian Express. Bal was 63.
Just weeks before his passing, Bal presented his stunning collection, Kaaynaat: A Bloom in the Universe, at the Lakmé Fashion Week x FDCI in New Delhi. Actor Ananya Panday walked the ramp as his showstopper. A friend close to the designer has now revealed to NDTV that Bal had been admitted to the ICU for heart ailments just a week before this show. However, driven by his undying love for his work, Bal resumed work soon after discharge and delivered a hit show.
This incident wasn’t the only testament to his passion. Throughout his life, Bal’s dedication to fashion has been evident. To witness his joy firsthand, look no further than the video from the finale, where Bal danced with models, radiating happiness that fashion and designing brought him.
View this post on Instagram---Advertisement---
Master of details and designs
Born in Srinagar, Bal did his graduation from St. Stephen’s College in Delhi and then went on to study fashion at the renowned National Institute of Fashion Technology. He started his career in 1986. For four years, he worked in collaboration with his brother Rajiv Bal, but later turned independent in 1990 and launched his eponymous label.
The ace designed left Kashmir, but the place never left him, and it was evident in most of his designs, which were inspired by Kashmiri heritage – peacocks and lotus being the most used motifs. If noticed intricately, in his designs, cuts and finishing were given as much importance as the embroidery and embellishments on them. Every piece he worked on reflected royalty, opulence, and grandeur, largely because of the fabric; In most cases, it was either velvet or brocade. He was, in fact, given the tag of ‘India’s Master of Fabric and Fantasy’ by Time magazine in 1996. Though he largely took hints from history, the fantasy blended beautifully, made his work stand out.
A trailblazer
Bal was a trailblazer among his peers. It was only after he took the bold step to patent and copyright his creations, that other designers thought about maintaining their exclusivity and aesthetic. His exquisite designs have adorned several renowned names such as Madhuri Dixit, Priyanka Chopra, Sonam Kapoor, Ranveer Singh. Besides Indian celebrities, Bal also created magic with his outfits for international icons including Cindy Crawford, Pamela Anderson, and Uma Thurman. Additionally, he worked closely with the team of Kaun Banega Crorepati and designed outfits for the show.
Bal’s work was noticed and appreciated across the world and he won several prestigious honours for it. He was given ‘Designer of the Year’ award at the Indian Fashion Awards in 2006. Later, in 2012, he was felicitated with Lakme Grand Finale Designer. The ace designer then went on to win ‘Iconic Fashion Designer of the country’ by the jury of the Rajnigandha Pearls India Fashion Awards in 2020.
Bal could have done far greater things had he received the kind of support designers get internationally. He spoke about the restrictions in our country during one of his interviews in 2021. Sharing his own example, he told ‘The Voice Of Fashion’, “Only I know how I got permissions for my show at Qutub Minar, (‘Gulbagh’, for the finale of Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2015 at Quli Khan’s tomb near Qutub Minar). All the applications I had to write, I would never do it again,” he said, and added, “Indians couldn’t care less about fashion. The Indian government or the bureaucrats have never done anything for fashion. By and large there is 0.1 per cent of population which is interested and who buy. But I am talking about India as a country. They care about Bollywood and cricket. Even in terms of business, the ratio between fashion and exports is 1:10. It is really sad.”
His contribution to the Indian fashion industry will be recorded in history.
