Just last month, the iconic Rohit Bal brought the house to its feet, as he pulled off an incredible grand finale in collaboration with the House of Lakme. His collection ‘Kaaynaat” (universe), inspired by the “vast, ethereal beauty of the cosmos and the delicate bloom of flowers”, was eye-wateringly good. Of course, the real reason behind the tears filling evesat the show was his triumphant return after a challenging year of health battles.
A resurrection, no less, as he joined showstopper Ananya Panday on the ramp, grooving to the beats of Madonna’s Vogue! That he was visibly frail, had to be helped onstage, etc, made no difference to his spirit. For the moment, he was alive, jubilant and doing what he did best – what else could possibly matter? As news breaks of his passing on Friday, Elton John’s tribute to Princess Diana rings afresh: “Your candle has burned out long betore your legend ever willl.
Bal wore the inevitable ‘Enfant Terrible’ crown on his golden locks with exquisite indifference, even nonchalant pride. No, he did not mind being called “India’s bad boy of fashion. In fact, he accepted it—with a smirk on his fine-featured face—as a compliment. The term actually meant someone who rebels against set conventions, he would reason, and thars who he was: the unruly one, leading his life his own way both professionally and personally.
The 63-vear-old Kashmirborn Gudda, as he was called by family and friends, was always marked out for greater things. A first-class degree holder in History from St Stephen’s College, New Delhi, he found his raison detre learning fashion at the National Institute of Fashion. Starting off working for his brother’s export company, he soon began designing for his own line, launching a collection of traditional menswear in 1890, And tashion, as the country knew it, would change irrevocably. Debuting on the scene ata tipping point, he epitomised the naughty Nineties, an era of progressiveness, vision and hedonistic abandon.
In an interview to GQ in 2015, he would speak of how he, along with a select group of 20 “visionaries and fighters”, battled the odds to make it. They were breaking all the existing norms, if fashion or sexual liberation. Living life with complete abandon, taking their pleasure without concern for public image… The early years of the decade were incredible as they were grown up enough to have the means to enjoy themselves, but not famous enough to be concerned about possible consequences, he would explain.
The undisputed poster-boy of the period, he turned Indian menswear fashion upside down and left the country gasping. Dressing men in skirts and nose-rings, even sindoor, Bal set about liberating the Indian man from the drab wardrobe choices made for them by their women. Sparked by his own understanding of history and male costume, he accentuated the Indian man’s masculinity in a never-seen-before manner. He called it making cool happen in a time that wasn’ essentially cool.
Amidst all the distracting sound and fury, he entrenched himself as a menswear pioneer, whose marketing smarts and entrepreneurial skills established and sustained his brand for decades to come. Marrying traditional patterns and craftsmanship with modern sensibilities, he drew on history, fantasy and folklore to redefine opulence, glamour, and design.
The toast of the swish set, it wasn’t surprising that Timemagazine dubbed him ‘India’s master of fabric and fantasy’. His use of the lotus and peacock motifs was matched by the spectacular construction in his clothing. His clientele soon swelled to include the likes of Uma Thurman, Cindy Crawford, Pamela Anderson, Naomi Campbell and Anna Kournikova. Achieving one milestone after another, from establishing dedicated spaces at prestigious stores in India, the Middle East & Europe, to showing at the major fashion capitals across the world, to collaborating with renowned brands like Louboutin and Lancome, he had a simple mantra for staying relevant in a competitive market. One’s relevance, he believed, was directly proportional to one’s belief in oneself. Try to be someone else, and it’s lost but stay true to yourself and you remain relevant.
A great champion of individualism, he counted himself lucky to have done it his way. A massive heart attack suffered in 2010 saw Bal take a step back. Becoming more selective about the events he attended, he chose to focus on more important things like his collections, restaurants, and numerous brand extensions. However, the change hadnt been easy. His pre-existing heart condition, compounded by pancreatitis, saw his condition deteriorating in 2023, post which he was put on ventilator support.
Diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy, the condition prevented his heart from pumping adequate blood to the body. It is perhaps only sheer willpower that enabled him to pull off his final goodbye to his legion of admirers: on the ramp, where he always belonged, wowing with his designs. Thank you for the thrills, Mr Bal. They don’t make them like you anymore…
