How memories and motifs inspire Onam 2026 collections
Fashion designers are incorporating cultural nostalgia and sustainable practices into their new collections for the Onam festival. The focus is on versatile, repurposable garments that move away from traditional festival consumption habits.
Why it matters
The shift toward sustainable fashion during cultural festivals reflects a growing consumer awareness regarding environmental impact and conscious consumption.
A classic Malayalam film song, a fleeting Onam memory, the flowers that suddenly fill up our courtyards, the comforting feeling of being at home ... designers are spotlighting fresh perspectives and imagery related to Onam in their new collections.
Designer Sreejith Jeevan of Rouka calls the collection he has launched for Onam Pulari , which means dawn in Malayalam. Inspiration was the Malayalam song Thiruvona Pulari , by Vani Jayaram, but of course, the collection has the signature Rouka ‘quirk factor’ or, as Sreejith calls it, “nostalgia with a quirky interpretation.” So the collection has the Kerala landscape, backwaters, coconut palm-lined roads, among other elements, apart from the fauna and flora of the State.
From Rouka’s Onam collection, Pulari | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Although the collection has come out around Onam, he makes a point about conscious consumption, because festival shopping tends to get a tad mindless.
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