Bloni

New Delhi based ethical demi-couture fashion label Bloni by designer Akshat Bansal creates handmade apparel that transcends the binaries of past and future, tradition and futurism.

Indian luxury fashion brand Bloni adopts a historical or anthropological lens on textiles and textile crafts, merging futuristic materials and emerging technologies. The fashion house articulates its design diversity through gender agnosticism and progressive design, spanning proprietary techniques, craft explorations, biomaterials and archival textiles. There is an unwavering focus on evolving the wearability of fashion in the context of anatomy and future design metrics resetting identities, building hybridities and situating in inter-dimensions.

Founder designer Akshat Bansal's passion doe fashion design stems from his early years with Indian heritage handlooms at his family store in Hisar, his formal training at Central Saint Martins, London and an apprenticeship at Saville Row. His band mission is to create a new standard of clothing that aids accessible cultural exchange and his interest lies is in unexpected materials, fusing the historical and indigenous with contemporary-futuristic.

When Bansal launched Bloni in 2017 he was one of the first Indian fashion designers to introduce experimental textiles like marine plastic and was a pioneer in the concept of a gender agnostic luxury label. It was perhaps a culmination of his diverse educational and work experiences in fashion design.. from his time at Central Saint Martins, Savile Row and internship with Tarun Tahiliani. 

"I envision Bloni as an atelier to be known for capturing unique identities and delivering great experiences; we want our designs to ease clients into expanding their comfort zone, evolving and expressing themselves better.' Akshat Bansal tells Platform. ‘At Bloni, we encourage an unconventional approach and believe in developing and nurturing ideas. Our process allows clients to understand and create an innovative self which would enable them to bring out the quirk in themselves..’"

This unconventional approach to design has led to an edgy futuristic aesthetic that blends traditional textile craft with emerging technologies. Think heat-sensitive materials- for instance. Or intertwining metal and wood into a new material altogether. Per Vogue: “Bansal has established a smart streetwear persona complete with reflective gear and tactile textiles, an overall edgy and deconstructed brand language, that runs parallel to his background of traditional savoire faire, the Savile Row apprenticeship he did while in London…”

Bloni also focuses on textile innovation. Per Voice Of Fashion: "The collections are dominated by the use of Econyl, a regenerated nylon and its variant Vita Econyl... Locally sourced Chanderi, cotton and khadi blends add to the textile repository, while other materials are acquired from markets like Australia, Korea and Egypt… Then there’s recycled parachute, also used in previous collections—a nylon-polyester blend that has been transformed into a bomber. Tie-dye has been a constant for the brand…"

2020 was a milestone year when Bloni's Akshat Bansal made it to Forbes 30 Under 30 for reimagining the traditional chanderi fabric and deftly blending textile craft and technology to provide fashion forward design solutions.

To create a new standard of clothing that aids cultural exchange. The designer's interest lies is in unexpected materials, fusing the historical and the indigenous with the contemporary-futuristic. Through the lens of each collection, we see a snapshot of our time with its dreams, its fears—and, counterintuitively, it is this responsiveness to the present that points the propels the designer forward, to something new. 

At Bloni- Akshat Bansal envisions encouraging his clients to expand their comfort zone, evolving and expressing themselves with new cutting- edge design. In accordance with this vision the demi- couture brand's aesthetic blends traditional textile and textile craft with emerging technologies to create a new design vocabulary. The goal is to show people a brand that is relevant without reinventing the wheel every collection.

Demi- couture brand Bloni designs and retails comfortable- unconventional and yet very wearable gender-neutral apparel like  futuristic trench coats and reflective trousers. The anti- fit tulle jackets, tie-dye jackets and belted latest skirts are among the season's hot-selling pieces.