The iconic toy retailer Hamleys at Regent Street, London, may at first sound like an unlikely setting for a style present. But for designer Anamika Khanna’s label AK|OK’s debut at the London Fashion Week on September 22, the venue gave the impression to be the proper alternative.
Models stroll the runway at the AK|OK SS26 present throughout London Fashion Week
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Special Arrangement
AK|OK’s debut assortment had fashions sashaying previous cabinets of toy vehicles, plushies and more. It delves into nostalgia, honours the designer’s endeavour to look at India with a contemporary lens and celebrates the nation’s textile and craft heritage.
“I have always felt that there was a need to push the boundaries when it comes to presenting India anywhere in the world. And when I started thinking about this collection, specifically what we were going to show at London Fashion Week, I thought of this cool Indian London girl,” Anamika says. “This girl has roots in India because she has Indian grandparents, and when she visits them, she discovers a few pieces. I thought about what she would do with these pieces when she got back, and this is where the collection story started,” the designer says.
Anamika Khanna attends the AK|OK SS26 present throughout London Fashion Week
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Special Arrangement
The assortment consists of flowy capes, slouchy trousers, lengthy coats, and outsized shirts that includes parts of reimagined conventional craft. Chikankari embroidery, for example, options on lengthy coats, and silver parts referencing Indian jewelry function on denims, skirts and boots. Working with nuances resembling the Indian churidar or angrakha silhouettes on this assortment and to look at them from the lens of a foreigner, Anamika says, had been issues she personally discovered very thrilling.
“I am so proud of my heritage. This is where I come from. I want to derive from here and yet make clothes that neither look like a costume, nor are unapproachable and unwearable. This becomes a challenge, as to where to draw the line. So, all of this together was something I had to keep in mind,” Anamika explains.
Sonam Kapoor at the AK|OK SS26 present throughout London Fashion Week
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Special Arrangement
After eight reveals in India over the final 4 years, for AK|OK, Anamika says the London debut solely felt pure given how the metropolis is style ahead, experimental and accepting.
“AK|OK, since the time of its inception, always had global ambitions and the potential to be a brand out of India that is relevant in terms of ready-to-wear fashion. Obviously for that, you need your clothes to be showcased and you need people to see them in a certain way which is why I felt like London as a platform became really important, given how it is very receptive to different cultures.” she says.
Jacqueline Fernandez at the AK|OK SS26 present
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Special Arrangement
With the London debut being a pivotal level in AK|OK’s journey, Anamika says that the model continues to evolve each single day. “It is like a whole universe, and not just about fashion. It is about a lifestyle, it is about a mindset — either you are AK|OK or you are not. It is about a way of life where you allow ease, and it starts with the way you dress,” she says. More and more folks, she says, are getting the model’s ethos. “If you make a mistake, it is okay. If you are not perfect, it is okay. If you’re wearing the wrong mix and match, it is okay as well,” Anamika says, encapsulating what the model stands for, in style and in any other case.
This yr, Anamika branched out in the direction of South India together with her first flagship retailer in Hyderabad, designed Isha Ambani’s MET Gala outfit, and opened Lakme Fashion Week together with her assortment, Silver Collar. “It has come to a point where the more creatively I am challenged, the better it is. I am in this mindspace… fashion is like that,” she laughs.
About what else this yr has in retailer for her, Anamika says, “We have also just finished shooting for our couture collection, have bags coming up, and I am looking forward to the opening of another Mumbai store.”
Published – September 23, 2025 03:31 pm IST
