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Bikramjit Bose Eyes Haima Simones + Shruti Venkatech LGBTQ First Vogue India Cover

The February 2021 cover of Vogue India celebrates modern love, featuring Haima Simoes and Shruti Venkatesh as the first same-sex couple to headline the magazine. The couple is wrapped in ‘The Ted’ scarf coat from conscious fashion label Ura Maku. / Hair and makeup by Mitesh Rajani

For the cover story ‘When Haima Met Shruti’, Bikramjit Bose [IG] photographs the couple in designs from Dior, Dhruv Kapoor, Gucci, Hermès, Levi’s, QUOD, Ralph & Russo, SavioJon, Simone Rocha x H&M, Little Things Studio and more.

Vogue India stylist Priyanka Kapadia does a good job of mixing established luxury labels not known for their sustainability or conscious-focus identity with 21st century, artisan-inspired brands like Ura Maku, QUOD, Little Things Studio, Note that 1) Savio Jon doesn’t appear to have a regular production schedule; and 2) Dhruv Kapoor was awarded 2019 Designer of the year- womenswear by Vogue India and says his label is devoted to celebrating female energy. There’s no mention of how the brand supports women and female energy and no discussion of sustainability at all on the website that AOC has discovered. Apologies in advance if the error in misunderstanding either label belongs to AOC.

On September 6, 2018, the five-judge Constitution Bench of India’s Supreme Court unanimously struck down the provisions of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code that previously criminalised consensual same sex relations. Previously, in a 2013 case, a two-judge Supreme Court bench overturned the Delhi High Court case striking down the section 377.

This first-ever Vogue India cover is published within this context of changing laws in India for the LGBTQ community. Neville Bhandara writes the story: Haima Simoes and Shruti Venkatech on their relationship: ‘We’re not just a couple, we’re also best friends. We take on everything as a team”.

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Returning in Feb to Bergdorf Goodman, Sabyasachi Mukherjee Finds New Home in New York

Designer and artisan visionary Sabyasachi Mukherjee’s much publicized investment deal with Aditya Birla Fashion Retail Limited came to fruition in the first week of February 2021.

As fashion world celebrated the 51 percent controlling investment worth about $55 million, the couturier announced that on February 18, he would launch his second exclusive collaboration with New York-based luxury department store, Bergdorf Goodman.

“We had a very good first session at Bergdorf where we sold close to $2.5 million of jewellery. Realising the power of the brand in America, Bergdorf invited me to do a second round. I would like to see more Indian designers going to the west and selling their clothing to the big Indian diaspora, which can be found everywhere. It’s a testament to the power of the Indian consumer. By selling Indian clothes, Bergdorf is raising the bar on inclusivity,” Mukherjee told Vogue India’s Akanksha Kamath over a late night Zoom call.

Now members of the Indian diaspora, and Sabyasachi fans in North America will be happy to know that the second Bergdorf Goodman collection will also offer clothing, shawls and scarves, and accessories and a new line of bags, in addition to its fine jewelery.