VOGUE India November 2022

LOOKING AT OUR November cover, three generations of strong Bollywood female leads poised together in one frame, I have to take a minute to appreciate that sometimes, the stars really do align. Mere weeks before our looming deadline for the issue, I sat on Rhea Kapoor’s couch in her made-for-Instagram Bandra home and she said, “Let’s do this.” So we did. Cue photographer James Tolich and racks of timeless, black bodycon silhouettes à la Azzedine Alaïa, Bottega Veneta and Valentino, paired with dazzling jewels from Birdhichand Ghanshyamdas Jaipur as we pay tribute to the combined power of the female form, the movie star and women standing together. While my education into the inner workings of Bollywood is still nascent, I’m so proud to have Vogue India’s stamp on this industry-first trio…

RHEA KAPOOR Mumbai-based Kapoor is a stylist, entrepreneur and producer who has produced films such as Aisha, Khoobsurat, and Veere Di Wedding. In ‘The gang’s all here’, she orchestrates a conversation between cast members Tabu, Kareena Kapoor Khan and Kriti Sanon. Page 62 ISHA SINGH SAWHNEY A journalist and entrepreneur, Singh Sawhney is currently writing a collection of short stories while also building and running her artisanal kombucha brand, Bhu. In ‘Kiss of kismet’, she speaks with record-breaking musician Raveena Aurora and legendary jazz singer Asha Puthli who talk about collaborating on the former’s latest album. Page 44 Mickey Contractor Contractor is one of Bollywood’s most sought-after makeup artists whose three decades of experience and expertise has led him to launch his own line of products with M.A.C. For Vogue India’s November cover, he works…

Saaki, meaning ‘the one’ in Sanskrit, began as a tiny pop-up store in Australia four years ago. Lakshmi Pillai, the Indian-origin owner of the store nestled on Queen Street in Sydney, and who has since changed the name of the store to Lakshmi, dreamed of bringing her experience growing up around handloom textiles to the shop around the corner. “Having lived in Africa and India, craft was something I grew up with,” explains the creator of light-as-air craft-focused collections and curator of Indian design for the Australian and global woman. “To me, fashion felt speedy and I wanted to showcase a few favourite collections that are special and can stay in your wardrobe forever,” she continues. “Pieces that can be shared in the family and cherished. Inspiring and introducing Indian…

THE LEGEND OF the Louis Vuitton Capucines precedes it. The leather version of the classic LV trunk bag, named after the first store on Rue Neuve-des-Capucines in Paris, debuted in autumn/winter 2013-14. Retaining the vintage boxy shape, it angled out like a trapezoid, and quickly cemented itself as a timeless style and a rite of passage. Seen on the arms of Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga and, at home, in the hands of Mira Kapoor for a Vogue India shoot, the Capucines evidently has long-term staying power. Every so often, the perennial classic bag becomes the canvas for emerging and leading contemporary artists to envision the handbag as a piece of modern art: something to adorn the body while serving a purpose, but also becoming a conversation starter. In its many iterations,…

WHEN LOUIS CARTIER designed the Tank watch in 1917, Europe was at war. It is said images of the newly introduced Renault tanks on the Western Front inspired the spare lines and proportions of the timepiece. Form and function were balanced with inspired creativity, resulting in the pared-back elegance of a shape somewhere between a square and a rectangle—a radical departure from the ornate rounded shapes of the watch’s contemporaries. While the Tank’s prototype was made in 1917, it was another couple of years before the watch was presented to the world. During that time, Cartier and his watchmaking partners researched and refined; working on the aesthetics, function and mechanics of the timepiece to present a design far ahead of its time—a modern classic for the ages. Worn by the founder himself,…

The 2023 Cruise shows travelled far and wide this season. LOUIS VUITTON dropped anchor at the Salk Institute in San Diego, continually consolidating architecture with a resort-ready collection. From sunset scapes, we docked ship at Castel del Monte, near Apulia, at the bewitching midnight hour for GUCCI Cosmogenie. Meanwhile, somewhere in Seville, DIOR put together a spectacle of Spanish dresses, ruffles and embroideries that told a cultural story. Welcome to the world of Cruise. It’s here, and it’s fantastical and far out…