Intricate styles inspired by global culture and history designed for everyone.

Cover Photo from devyanimehrotra.com

What matters most when picking out clothes that make you feel good? Is it the fit, the styles, the colours, the prints, or a mix of many? South Asian clothing can be unique, with different styles, fits, and vibrant colours that can make anyone feel good. Clothes range from being very lavish and extra, which is usually worn to weddings and formal events, to more every day to wear around the house and to casual events. Although everyday clothes can be more subdued typically, South Asian fashion still calls for fun prints, embroideries, etc. even in casual clothing. As many think that day and evening wear are separate, Devyani Mehrota believes differently.

Devyani Mehrota is an Indian designer label, started in 2019, that offers contemporary Indian clothing with a focus on the global market. The label seeks inspiration from various cultures and styles globally, doing so with a freewheeling nomadic attitude. In true South Asian fashion, the label works with rich colours, prints, embroideries, and layers of texture. Allowing their customers to have the perfect day-to-evening look without having to compromise comfort and being able to stay chic.  Devyani Mehrota’s vision is to retain distinctive expressions, and not only provide a great product but have them become memories, clothing that is lovingly worn and owned. 

The brand was created by designer Devyani Mehrotra, who designed her label for people who don’t tend to run after trends. It’s for those who have a personal style and express themselves through clothing and fashion. The designs are created to be timeless, a part of a story, and this is the reason why the clothing has an underlying earthiness and oldness to them. 

The label recently participated in Vancouver Fashion Week, which was also their first time showcasing on the runway itself. As it was the first time, they needed to showcase the label’s aesthetics as much as possible. The prep for Fashion Week was a challenging process, which came with Devyani’s recent move to Canada, with the workshop still being in India. This was her first time being away from the workshop as well, so coordination with the team back in India was important, and everything ended up going smoothly. With a focus on the label as a whole, it was important to showcase styles that are of interest to even those who have little to no interest in fashion. It took a great deal of effort for the label to tone down designs and still have them look appealing, along with having them look new and interesting for the audience to enjoy. 

The Fall-Winter 2023 collection showcased at Vancouver Fashion Week, named ‘Safar-e-Misr’, which translates to ‘Journey to Egypt’,  has styles inspired by Egyptian history. It takes inspiration from many times of the past, including Ancient Egypt with pharaonic elements, combined with elaborate tents of Ottoman Egypt. Some of the prints include symbols such as the eye of Ra, a falcon, Bastet the cat Goddess, and more. These prints are all highlighted through fine zardozi work, which is a type of heavy and elaborate metal embroidery. Other design elements also included applique work and fur-like collars made with fringe and tassels to help capture the essence of the vintage winter romance that Devyani was trying to embody in this line. This is a personal favourite collection of hers, with some of her favourite designs including a black fur-like gilet made with multiple laces in gold, fringe, sequin work and semi-precious stones. Originally designed to be a women’s wear piece, it was worn by a male model in the show and has since become a unisex piece. Another favourite style of the designer is a citrus green kaftan set and a blue woollen trench jacket. The jacket is especially of interest as Devyani has always been fond of designing jackets but was never able to explore this area until now (Canada is cold!).

With beautiful and versatile styles that tell stories, Devyani Mehrotra is a label to look out for. For Canadian shoppers, Devyani Mehrotra can be shopped online at https://devyanimehrotra.com/. The label ships worldwide, and customers can also contact the label over on Instagram and Facebook @devyanimehrotraofficial. They are also currently putting together pop-up shops across the Greater Toronto Area, and you can look out for that on  their social media. For Indian shoppers, the label is available in various stores across the country. Keep up with Devyani Mehrota for new launches and to watch the brand grow globally!