Anamika Khanna’s India Couture Week (ICW) opening show in Hyderabad and Rahul Mishra’s finale in Delhi offered a glimpse of high fashion’s dual goals – spotlighting Indian creativity on a global stage and seizing the commercial opportunity at home, in centres outside Delhi and Mumbai.At ICW’s inaugural showcase, Khanna’s models walked the runway in pieces adorned with embroidery from Barmer and Kalighat paintings, at the Taj Falaknuma Palace in Hyderabad, a city with a growing number of ultra-rich individuals where she also opened a new store in 2025.In a first for ICW, the inaugural show occurred in a city outside of Delhi, highlighting the growing significance of centres such as Hyderabad, which boast of high-spending and discerning clients. Meanwhile, Rahul Mishra’s finale was an expansion of his Paris Couture week showcase, with added signature embellished gowns, saris and skirts, which will easily find takers at lavish Indian weddings at home and abroad. Mishra forayed into Hyderabad with a new store in Banjara Hills in 2024.From pearls, to the khada dupatta and majestic jewels of the Nizams of Hyderabad, high fashion isn’t new to Hyderabad. The city also has its own crop of designers, such as Jayanti Reddy, Anushree Reddy, Aisha Rao, and Suhani Pittie, but some of India’s top designers have only recently started to expand their physical presence in the city, helped by investments from Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Brands Limited (RBL) and the Aditya Birla Group, besides the allure of a growing class of wealthy individuals.According to Knight Frank’s 2026 wealth report, 80% of India’s ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs), those with a net worth $30 million or more, are concentrated in five cities – Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai, with the capital of Telangana accounting for 6.3% of the uber rich.While Mumbai and Delhi continue to be key markets, Indian fashion and luxury is seeing notable growth from consumers outside of these centres. “Now, aspirations are exactly the same everywhere,” says Neelesh Hundekari, partner and head of fashion and luxury for Asia-Pacific at Kearney, adding the comparatively lower cost of venues and related services means wealthy consumers can dedicate a larger share of the wedding budget to jewellery and designer clothing.