Kunal Rawal talks menswear, craftsmanship and his New Delhi flagship
Kunal Rawal is highly celebrated for rewriting the rulebook of contemporary Indian menswear through a distinct design philosophy that merges traditional craftsmanship with industrial, street-inspired sensibilities. Over his career, his eponymous label has become a staple for Bollywood A-listers and modern grooms alike due to several core design strengths like deconstructed and multi-functional silhouettes, blending edgy street style with heritage couture, inclusivity and androgynous fluidity, and smart “body cheat” garment construction.
Building the world of KR
As he expands his retail footprint with the opening of a new flagship in Mehrauli, Delhi, his fifth store in India and second in the capital, he sat down with Indulge to discuss about the store and his three new couture capsules—KR Hybrid Minds, KR Box Pleat, and KR Black— each exploring a distinct design language while collectively pushing the boundaries of contemporary Indian menswear. Excerpts:
What made this the right time to open a new flagship in Mehrauli?
Honestly, Mehrauli has been on my mind for a very long time. Delhi has always felt personal to me. My mother’s family is from Delhi, one of my closest childhood friends is from Delhi, and some of my strongest memories growing up are connected to the city. I remember being fascinated by the Qutub Minar as a child. There’s something about the way it dominates the landscape that stayed with me. For years, I had this dream of opening a store that looked out onto that part of the city. So when the opportunity at Ambawatta One came along, it felt like one of those rare moments where timing and instinct aligned perfectly.
Indian menswear has evolved significantly in recent years. Where do you see the category heading next?
This is my 20th year working in menswear, and I genuinely can’t count the number of times people told me that menswear would never move the way womenswear does in India. For the longest time, fashion conversations were centred around couture for women, while men were almost treated as an afterthought. What’s exciting today is that menswear is finally having its moment, and very rightfully so.
You’re seeing a level of diversification that simply didn’t exist before. Designers are exploring traditional crafts, textiles and techniques specifically through the lens of menswear rather than adapting ideas from womenswear. Men are having fun with fashion again. They’re experimenting, they’re collecting pieces, they’re thinking about heirlooms, craftsmanship and personal style in a way that feels very refreshing. That’s only going to grow.
How has your approach to designing for the modern Indian man changed over the years?
The biggest shift has been functionality. A decade ago, people were primarily looking at aesthetics. Today they still want something beautiful, but they also want it to work for their life. Comfort and multifunctionality have become non-negotiable. India is an incredibly social country. We celebrate a lot, we travel a lot, we’re constantly transitioning between occasions. So today’s customer wants garments that can keep up with that lifestyle. Personalisation is another huge shift. Men today want clothes that feel specific to them. They’re looking for individuality, not uniformity. That’s something we think about constantly while designing.
Could you tell us about the inspiration behind KR Hybrid Minds, KR Box Pleat and KR Black?
This season I was interested in exploring three different ideas that have always existed within the brand, but giving each of them the space to breathe on its own. KR Hybrid Minds comes from a place that’s very personal to me. I’ve always loved architecture as much as I love fashion, and I’ve always been fascinated by the idea that something can look like one thing while functioning as something else entirely. So you’ll see garments that appear layered but are actually engineered as a single piece, silhouettes that borrow from military discipline but still feel fluid and easy.
KR Box Pleat started with an obsession. I’ve been drawn to box pleats for years. It’s such a familiar detail, but somehow it never really existed in our world. The more I explored it, the more I realised it could become much more than a design detail: it could become a code. So we pushed it across kurtas, bandhgalas, shirts and eveningwear. It’s a collection built around structure, repetition and movement. Almost like taking one idea and seeing how far you can stretch it before it becomes an identity of its own.
And then there’s KR Black, which is probably the most personal of the three. I’ve always said black is my ivory. It’s been part of my wardrobe and part of the brand for as long as I can remember. This season felt like the right time to give it its own voice. The idea is simple: black on black on black—but simplicity is often the hardest thing to execute. Instead of colour, you’re working with texture, surface, finish and detail. For me, KR Black feels less like a collection and more like a permanent code within the World of KR.
Which details, techniques or silhouettes are you particularly excited about this season?
I’ve been very excited about the applique work we’ve been developing, as well as some of our tone-on-tone threadwork. We’re also working extensively with oxidised zardozi, which is fascinating because it evolves beautifully over time. The embroidery almost ages with the garment, which makes every piece feel more personal the longer you own it.
On the functionality side, we’re introducing a lot of new elements like magnetic stoles, new belts and continuing to explore transformable details that allow garments to adapt and evolve over time.
What can we expect next from the Kunal Rawal universe, both creatively and in terms of retail expansion?
Were already working on our next store in Kolkata, which is something I’m very excited about, and there are more expansion plans in the pipeline. At the same time, we’re continuing to invest heavily in building the larger World of KR: not just through clothing, but through music, retail experiences, storytelling and all the other creative avenues that have become part of the brand over the years. I feel like we’re only just getting started.
Prices start at Rs 30,000. Available online.
—manuvipin@newindianexpress.com
@ManuVipin
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