Krishna Mehta

Krishna Mehta, renowned Indian fashion designer with an eponymous fashion brand, celebrates 35 years of her career as a designer this year. To celebrate this milestone, the brand recently launched the first of a series of highly curated pop-up concept stores, at House of Tales in Kala Ghoda. The inauguration of the store as attended by well wishers and supporters from her 35 year journey, as well as partners/designers who have their products currently on display at the store. 

Mehta says that though it is 35 years since she entered the business, she “still wakes up with a bounce in my step!” A graduate in Economics & Commerce who started studying to be a Chartered Accountant, Mehta also completed a course in designing from Sophia Polytechnic way back in 1978. She also studied various aspects of art and learnt many of the skills associated with creating apparel, such as embroidery, block printing and knitting, before launching her career as a fashion designer.

 A show at the Fashion Week

Reminiscing about some of the highlights of her journey of over three and a half decades, Mehta recalls her first fashion show on the QE2 where she showcased her batik hand painted men’s shirts. “I still remember exactly how fast my heart was beating!”

 New concept store

Among other special memories were the “invitation to Milan Fashion Week to present my tie and dye collections”; the “appointment by Flash, the Swedish retail brand to design for 100 stores”; and her “first lecture at SNDT University” which involved “passing on my passions on to the next generation”. 

During her illustrious career, Mehta has been a Board member of the Fashion Design Council of India; a Board member of IAM; an Advisory Board Member of the Lakme Fashion Week; and a member of the visiting faculty of fashion institutes like B.D.Somani, Wigan and Leigh and S.N.D.T. in Bombay and the Lakhotia Fashion Institute in Hyderabad.

Over the years, Krishna Mehta has won numerous awards. Some of these include the Peacock award in 2001 from the Government of Gujarat in recognition of her service rendered to the cause of helping the earthquake victims; the CMAI (Clothing Manufacturers Association of India) award in 2004 for The Best Designer in the Menswear category; the Times of India Award in 2005 in recognition of usage of natural and khadi fabrics; and the “Pride of Gujarat “award in recognition of the research and developmental work done in the field of designing of textiles and apparels.
 

Krishna Mehta is married to Nilesh Ramesh Mehta.

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