Indian Press Clearing - Riteish Deshmukh for Raghavendra Rathore

Bollywood showstoppers have become part and parcel of Fashion Week. Season after season, designers come up with that one individual name who represents their aesthetic and also turns out to be a veritable clotheshorse capturing the vim and verve of their train of thought. Internationally, Karl Lagerfeld has had muses like Lily Cole, Cara Delevingne, Rita Ora, Blake Lively, Keira Knightley, Lily Allen and Alexa Chung. Rosie Huntington-Whiteley has the been the most powerful soldier of the Balmain army and since Riccardo Tisci graduated from Central Saint Martins, Maria Carla has been muse to him. In the Indian scenario, yesteryear's ramp-scorcher Mehr Jesia Rampal was muse to many designers like Tarun Tahiliani and Rohit Bal. Sonam Kapoor is a muse to more than 10 designers in the country. However, today's muse soon becomes tomorrow's old news as designers look for new figures of inspiration who give them a new creative rush. With Lakmé Fashion Week kickstarted already, we take a look at this season's muses and ask designers to share their muse story.

WHY: Because of the natural relationship shared between us. He is a perfect muse because of his versatility and natural flair to crossover from an intense to an easygoing role as an actor. He is very comfortable in his own space and personifies elegance. He can carry off an ethnic bandhgala jacket and formalwear with ease. He's a perfect fit for the signature label Raghavendra Rathore and our to-be-launched ready-to-wear label Imperial India Company.