After The Whole Nine Yards, designer Neha Chawla has launched another chic label with an entirely different instinct. Named Enci, the label is shaped by clarity, structure, and quiet confidence, reflecting Neha’s personal dressing style. “What makes Enci different is that it isn’t decorative first; it’s engineered first. Every silhouette starts from construction and form. They are structured yet fluid, refined and purposefully simple. I’ve always moved away from decorative richness towards restraint. I also wanted Enci to reflect a very specific idea of femininity, one that‘s structured but soft,” says Neha.
Many of their foundations are corset-inspired, giving shape without restricting movement, with panelling and stitch lines that create rhythm rather than rigidity. The debut collection is built entirely around structure without excess. It comprises clothes that hold their form through construction, not decoration. Neha has worked with fabrics that can carry weight and shape on their own, allowing her to create silhouettes through origami-inspired folds, hand-applied cording, and precision pleating. The palette is led by ecru and black, their signature tones and layered with dusky pink for softness, along with unexpected pops of lime and ice blue. Neha speaks with us about fashion and its evolution.
What trends are ruling this coming winter season in formal, occasion, and party wear?
This season feels like it’s catching up to how we’ve always thought at Enci. Deep, sophisticated tones like black and brown continue to lead dressing, forming the base of elevated tailoring and outerwear this season. The column dress is emerging as a defining silhouette. There’s also a renewed focus on defined waistlines and minimal construction. Clean lines, considered proportion, and construction will rule.
What’s the idea behind the new collection?
The idea was to translate the language of architecture into clothing — the way a building‘s form communicates intent through its lines, its proportions, its restraint. I wanted every piece to feel engineered rather than designed, so the construction itself becomes the story, not an afterthought.
Who are your target consumers?
Enci speaks to the woman who dresses with intention — confident in quiet, considered style rather than loud statements; someone who travels, appreciates design and architecture, and gravitates toward pieces that feel constructive rather than decorative.
What kind of fashion does the new generation believe in?
I think the new generation is moving away from fashion that shouts and toward fashion that has a point of view. There’s a growing appetite for pieces that feel intentional. Quiet confidence is becoming the new statement.
What inspires you as a designer?
Travel, mostly. Every city I visit shows me a different way of thinking about structure and space, and I constantly translate that back into silhouettes. I’m drawn to spaces and architecture that feel deliberate, and I try to bring that same deliberateness into the clothes we make.
What are the winter wardrobe essentials one can choose at Enci?
At Enci, a few pieces from our current collection capture what I’d call the essentials for the season. The tracery dress — a structured black gown with soft ice-blue bishop sleeves — is exactly the kind of anchor piece I mean: dramatic sleeve volume balanced by a fitted, seamed bodice, built to carry you through any winter evening. For softer occasions, the Vellum dress in dusky pink, with its corset-inspired bodice and gathered skirt, brings warmth and movement without ever feeling heavy. The truss top and lintel skirt — a long-sleeved black top paired with a sage-and-ivory pleated skirt — is a great example of how we layer tonal contrast into eveningwear rather than relying on prints. And for something more directional, the Radial top and lattice Skirt, with its pleated bell cuffs and forest-green ribbed waistband, shows how texture and structure can do all the talking.
Tell us about your upcoming collection.
For our next collection, we’re deepening the palette while staying rooted in the same philosophy. Alongside our signature dusky pink and black, we’re introducing plum and olive, richer, more grounded tones that feel true to the architecture of winter itself. The construction language stays the same: origami folds, hand-applied cording, and precision pleating, letting structure lead rather than decoration. It’s really an evolution rather than a departure.