Key Highlights

  • Backstage glimpse: Manish Malhotra shared photos of himself helping Alia Bhatt drape her ivory chikankari saree before the Mijwan show.
  • The showstoppers: Alia Bhatt and Vicky Kaushal walked the ramp in Mumbai on September 26.
  • The cause: The show celebrated Manish's long association with the Mijwan Welfare Society, founded by poet Kaifi Azmi in 1993.
  • Global stage: Mijwan's chikankari was featured in Manish's Paris Haute Couture Week debut earlier this year.

Fashion shows are judged by what happens on the ramp, but Manish Malhotra chose to celebrate what happens just before it. The designer shared a series of backstage photos from his Mijwan show, including moments of him helping Alia Bhatt drape her chikankari saree.

"It's always the Backstage last minute final touches, the anxiousness, the model line up waiting to go on the ramp, the chaos, the feeling all of it has my heart #15yearsofMijwan," he wrote.

Other frames show his team making final adjustments to Alia's outfit and models preparing to walk.

Alia and Vicky on the Ramp

Alia Bhatt and Vicky Kaushal, who will be seen together in Love & War, were the showstoppers at the September 26 showcase in Mumbai. Alia wore a custom ivory chikankari saree, styled by Rhea Kapoor with a contemporary blouse and matching veil. Vicky complemented her in a midnight-blue and ivory sherwani.

The look was a striking contrast to Alia's glamorous cabaret first look from Love & War, unveiled just a day earlier.

Why It Matters: The Women Behind the Embroidery

The real story of the Mijwan show lies far from Mumbai. The Mijwan Welfare Society was set up in 1993 by Urdu poet Kaifi Azmi to empower people in Mijwan, his village in Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh. It aims to create jobs for local women and girls while reviving chikankari embroidery. Today it is led by his daughter, actress Shabana Azmi.

Manish's association with the society dates back to 2012, when he adopted its sewing and tailoring centre. The artisan base has since grown from around 40 women to over 600.

This year, the craft reached a global stage. Chikankari by Mijwan's women artisans featured in Manish's Paris Haute Couture Week Fall/Winter 2026 debut. When Alia walked in a chikankari saree in Mumbai, she was wearing the work of the same village artisans whose embroidery had recently been showcased in Paris.

A Tradition of Star-Studded Support

The annual Mijwan show is a fundraiser that has drawn some of Bollywood's biggest names over the years, from Deepika Padukone and Ranbir Kapoor to Amitabh Bachchan. Alia and Vicky's walk continues that tradition of using star power to draw attention to the artisans.

The Bottom Line

Manish Malhotra's backstage photos capture the rush before a show. But behind every chikankari stitch Alia wore is a story of rural women whose craft has travelled from a village in Uttar Pradesh to Paris and back to Mumbai's runway.

With inputs from IANS.