India’s most legendary designer, transformation figure Rohit Bal, passed away of a heart attack on November 1, 2024. Only weeks prior to his death, Bal made a huge return to the Indian fashion scene at Lakme Fashion Week by revealing his latest collection and thrilling viewers with his very own blend of traditional Indian craftsmanship and contemporary aesthetics. A master of creative vision, Bal celebrated India’s rich cultural heritage, which he so beautifully interwoven into modern designs to global acclaim.
Filmmaker Karan Johar expressed grief through the photo-sharing app Instagram. He posted pictures of himself wearing a breathtaking Rohit Bal sherwani, mentioning how the designer is extra-ordinary talent and what he has done for the fashion world. “I saw Gudda’s collection and show and as always marveled at what a stunning artist, craftsman, and fashion legend he is,” Johar wrote. About him, “This I say with my heart full and present tense for his art and invaluable gift to fashion lives on now and evermore.”
”I remember dressing up in his designs one night, I had done photographs in that sherwani, when I went to my car, where he broke it to me. He is a pioneer and a bona fide legend who will be missed by everyone whose lives he touched,” added Johar, concluding with a heartfelt “Rest in peace, Gudda,” he added.
Rohit Bal was seriously ill for a long time. In November 2023, he was hospitalized in Gurugram due to heart problems that caused him to lose consciousness. The well-known designer Rohit Bal has been suffering from grave health issues and was in a poor state of health for long. Since the massive heart attack in 2010, his condition became worse with the complication of pancreatitis. He had undergone emergency angioplasty after having his second heart attack in February 2010. Over the past months, he was hospitalised numerous times with his worsening medical condition.
Rohit Bal will be remembered in the fashion world not just for his dazzling designs, but for how he could put together tradition and modernity into a beautiful form that had left an indelible mark on the Indian fashion world.
