The Real stories of 5 Top Bridal Celebrity Designers

Fashion is the economy's high-wire act, and its designers are the odds-defying trapeze artists of the industry.

The top fashion designers -- whether they're focused on haute couture Bridal wear or ready-to-wear -- anticipate trends, assume great risk, and flout convention.

Remaining at the top in the fashion industry has always been a daunting challenge, which makes the achievements of the most influential designers all the more impressive. And if they happen to court controversy, the ensuing media buzz only helps them build their brand.

To acknowledge the accomplishments of fashion's change agents, Hans India has selected 5 of the most influential fashion designers of all time. We drew on fashion industry sources to determine our list.

MRUNALINI RAO

Hailing from Hyderabad - a city that emanates culture and elegant ethnicity, Mrunalini Rao is an accomplished and talented designer who seamlessly infuses a fun, youthful and colourful vibe to her Indian line of clothing. Her collections incorporate creative drapes, delicate embroideries and contemporary cuts.

Rao strongly believes that unspoken expression of thought creates design and this reflects exquisitely in her masterpieces. She specializes in curating Indian wedding wear.

"I have always enjoyed art and craft. Growing up, all my work had an element of design in it.. My love for playing dress-up as a kid propelled the creative person in me to actively dabble and sketch fashion illustrations and elaborate gowns. In school, I was also very intrigued by the human anatomy and its physiology. I believed that my interest in science must be pursued professionally. I was in a constant tussle between my passion for design and my interest in science. However, I followed my intuition to learn design and pursued my undergraduate studies in Design at NIFT. And that was it! The four years at NIFT transformed my understanding of design! I thoroughly enjoyed learning and loved the growing sense of belonging in the school of Design. I mastered several crafts during my undergraduation and I was duly recognised as "best academic performer". It was an honour receiving an award from an eminent Indian designer, JJ Valaya.

I had always dreamt of further studying fashion in London – the fashion capital and my most favourite city. While I had secured admission in University of Arts London, I was already employed over a year as an assistant designer. However, I was young, ferocious, restless and had a burning passion to start my own label! I wanted to bring a new art of clothing to life and that was the genesis for label 'Mrunalini Rao', launched in 2014. Ever since, it has been an incredible journey!

I believe that a design is made with art, craft and love. I love Indian wear: it's dramatic silhouettes, large flares and huge surface area to work on. The diversity in Indian crafts and cultures have inspired me to choose Indian wear as my main stream of design. My strength lies in surface design and I like to challenge myself to include contemporary elements into Indian wear. I weave tradition with modern aesthetic to discover a new design statement for every collection and that has become the Brand's Identity. Every design is intricately handcrafted from a white fabric to a fully finished product. The label offers a range of artistic, elegant and comfortable clothing in Pret, Fusion and Bridal Wear." - Mrunalini Rao

SHRAVAN KUMAR

For Shravan Kumar, the journey into the fashion world began at the age of 17, when he took a bold decision to stop attending medical college and instead start a career in fashion with just two tailors and a master.

Who was supposed to be a medico,"whose passion for 'reincarnating' vintage saris has brought the sari back into reckoning as a fashion wear among the urban elite, and is also helping hundreds of traditional weavers who work closely with him.

"I had secured 363rd rank in my medical entrance test and got a seat in Gandhi Medical College, Hyderabad. On my first day to college I saw a lot of dead bodies at the anatomy class. That day I decided I wasn't going to be a doctor," says Shravan, who went on to do a designing course from NIFT, Hyderabad, and began his tryst with haute couture.

Shravan became enamoured with vintage saris and started studying the weaves of saris belonging to his mother and grandmother - some of them as old as 100 years. His passion led him on a hunt for saris from a bygone era and soon he stumbled on some priceless saris dating back to the 18th and 19th centuries.

His prized possession is an 1823 garment that he acquired from a royal family in Hyderabad. He has also sourced garments from the royal families in Jaipur, Patiala and Gwalior.

Once the saris are acquired, he begins the arduous work of recreation. "I first study the kind of weaves used in the saris," says Shravan. He then sets out to recreate the saris with the help of traditional weavers who have expertise in the same genre of weaves.

"At least 26 days go in preparing the design and 60 to 90 days to complete a single sari. It takes four weavers to make a single sari," he shares. "The saris are not mass produced. We don't even go for a limited edition, but just one sari per era."

He has 100 designers interning with him at any given time of the year and is working with 800 weavers from around the country, constantly innovating and improvising on his weaves.

Actors Anushka Shetty, Nandita Das, Shabana Azmi, Nayantara and Huma Qureshi are his regular clients as are the families of superstars Kamal Haasan, Rajnikanth, Mammootty and Chiranjeevi.

In 2013, Shravan launched 'Aalayam - Temple of Weaves,' a 1,000 sq ft showroom located in the plush Jubilee Hills modelled after the famous Guruvayur temple, to showcase handloom saris procured from weavers from across the country.

The Aalayam collection includes a wide range of silk saris like Kanjeevaram, Banaras, Kanchi, Kerala, Phulia, Gadwal, Bengal Cotton, Mangalagiri, Dharmavaram, Madhavaram, Salem, Jamdhani, Paithani, Gadwal, Pochampally, Uppada, Venkatagiri, Chanderi, Coimbatore and Kalamkari.

Aalayam strives to keep alive and restore various weaves of the country, which are rapidly losing their significance.

A major portion of the store's profit goes to the Weavers' Association of Aalayam Society. The weavers mass produce handloom saris that are displayed in the showroom. His limited edition handloom collection titled "Bygone Era" is inspired from the Banarasi ethnic wear made in pure silk and zari in the period between 1939 and 1956.

Shravan says he is focusing on "timeless and classic" pieces because fashion for him is a religion. "I don't follow up something which is called a 'fad', but follow that which remains 'eternal' that can be passed on from one generation to the other. When I make an outfit for my client, I make sure that it accentuates their look."

Shravan went to London School of Fashion Designing and specialized in color psychology. He also holds an MBA degree.

In addition to participating in fashion shows across the globe, Shravan has been designing the costumes for Femina Miss India South. He uses his fashion shows to raise awareness of the need to support handloom textiles and traditional craft.

SASHI VANGAPALLI

Being Black She Rejected by 42 members for Marriage Proposal. She is depressed and she wants to do something other than that. From college days to Cubicle, She got a lot of appreciations for her Design works by her Friends, Colleagues, family members. She got an idea to start the Boutique, she left the IT Job and started her Label "Sashi Vangapalli Label" in the year 2012.

Soon she gained popularity and acceptance through the Social Media Now she serves her designs to Normal Functions to Lakme Fashion Week. Now She gave Employment to 100's of people. Another Pride is she is invited by Prestigious 70th Cannes Film Festival in 2017 to showcase her Designs. tapsee, Kajal, Regina, the famous heroines are the customers of Mughdha Studio (Sashi Vangapalli couture ). That's the way She Overcomes all her hurdles and become a successful Fashion Designer.

NEETA LULLA

The only designer to have won four National Awards, Neeta Lulla began her journey with one kaarigar and a single sewing machine. Today, she is the most sought-after designer for fashionistas worldwide.

Neeta Lulla, the young jeans-and-t-shirt crusader, was entranced by fashion in the most organic manner — flipping through the summer and fall issues of magazines that showcased the chemistry between Bollywood and fashion. The love affair that ensued was pristine; and the career that spawned from it was everlasting.