Haute couture: Manish Malhotra makes his Paris debut with a flamboyant tribute to his mother

Combining a farewell with a tribute to his recently deceased mother, Manish Malhotra made his haute couture debut in Paris on Wednesday. The Indian designer unveiled a vibrant collection, titled ‘Maa,’ at the Pavillon Cambon Capucines (1st arrondissement of Paris). It was a hotly anticipated debut for a designer who made his name dressing numerous Indian film stars; judging by the audience’s reaction, he passed the test with flying colours.

But beyond the garments themselves, this Autumn–Winter 2026/2027 couture collection pays a moving tribute to the designer’s mother, prefaced by a short film with the same intent. As the lights came up, the models took to the catwalk in a whirlwind of gemstones, embroidery, and colourful fabrics, composed into sculptural ensembles and mirrored in the pavilion’s glass roof. 

Craftsmanship in the service of gratitude

“For the first time, we’re working on structure. Structure is like your mother’s enduring calm, holding you in her arms,” explains the designer, pointing to the photos in the collection’s lookbook. “Then you have the bows, symbolising the bonds with your mother, followed by flowers and rubies. Then you blossom, you emerge, and you shine- and you shine because your mother supports you, and that is how abundance comes into your life,” he continues.

This collection, more than any other, places craftsmanship at its heart. Manish Malhotra cites Chikankari embroidery, made by women in India, as well as brocades (silk fabrics enriched with motifs woven in gold and silver) and “traditional” pieces. On the neon pink carpet of the Pavillon Cambon Capucines, guests discovered some of the most sophisticated womenswear. With exaggerated volumes, the opening looks enveloped their wearers, first like blankets and then like a conch shell. Sculptures of mothers and their children served as bustiers or were fixed to the fabric, creating a family portrait that transcends time. 

A rich technical repertoire

Next came cocoon-like coats with raised collars- first in opaque pink, then in semi-transparent gold- covered in impressive embroidery. Then the looks blossomed with a draped cream dress covered in embroidered flowers, with dramatically high shoulders leaving the arms bare from the elbow. Other, stiffer dresses seem inspired by coral, with branching forms and rosy hues, alongside dresses with shoulders so broad they read as floral protuberances.
 

As if the couture aspect of the collection were not already abundantly clear, Manish Malhotra also presents hourglass dresses finished with padded ring-shaped extremities, dresses of braided threads unfurling like young ferns, and dresses and coats covered in petals. Volume is everywhere: a short dress with a plunging neckline and giant, sculpted shoulders is cut from deep red velvet and lavishly set with silver leaves arranged horizontally.

Gold, gemstones, and silk

It is hard to overlook certain pieces, but impossible not to mention a triptych of dresses once again defined by imposing shoulders. Short in length, the first illuminates the room with its gilding and a cape with razor-sharp shoulders that falls like a curtain of golden matchsticks. The second dazzles with geometric constellations of gemstones across a figure-hugging silhouette that reveals ribs and hips. The final piece in this trio is a short golden dress, draped on the left side and heightened by rigid rectangular structures that shield the shoulders and cloak them in gilded threads and embellishments.

The show concludes on the same dynamic note, with round-backed dresses featuring harmonious textile details, as if inspired by a peacock’s tail, triangular purple skirts, wide at the hips and tapered at the ankles, sometimes embroidered, sometimes pleated, or a spectacular purple dress with a crossover drape at the front and a back composed of panels of fabric that appear frozen in the wind.