Co-founder and designer of clothing brand Huemn, Pranav Kirti Misra uses a poetic metaphor to describe his SS’26 collection that was unveiled in Mumbai on November 15. “Like poet Rainer Maria Rilke said in one of his works, it is not just enough to have memories. One must be able to forget them, until they have turned to blood within us, to resurface as something else. And that is chikankari for me,” he says.
The traditional hand-embroidery makes an appearance in the collection, in intriguing ways that too — on denims and woollen suits. “I am from Lucknow and I have grown up around chikankari. I have seen my mother embroider her saris with precision and pride, and my father wear kurtas with tone-on-tone detail, But somehow, it never appeared in my designs,” he adds.
Chikankari on denim
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Special Arrangement
On wool suiting and denim, the same craft behaves differently. “At first glance, the work looks traditional, and when you look closer, you realise what it is made of. Technically, a thicker, coarser material takes more time to embroider, but the result feels both Indian and global,” says Pranav, whose design aesthetic is propelled by the socio-political and cultural landscape. “So, for me now, it is about syncing with my roots and finding who I am,” he says, over the phone from Mumbai.
Dream team
Huemn returned to the runway with its SS’26, collaborating with the new Tata Sierra, at Mukesh Mills, a heritage building in Colaba, reinvented as a performance space. A 300-metre runway cut through the length of the mill and opened out to the sea, adding to the drama. “For many of us, the Tata Sierra is something we grew up seeing on the road. The pieces in this capsule come from the same place of structure, confidence and memory working together.” It took the team about three weeks to put the collection together.
A jacket from the Heumn x Tata Sierra collaboration
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Special Arrangement
A cap from the Heumn x Tata Sierra collaboration
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Special Arrangement
The limited-edition capsule, with over 100 styles, features a cap, T-shirt and jacket. The T-shirt features a horse snout, carrying within it a cartographic print of the factory, etched in Sierra’s signature yellow. Layered terrains — forests, oceans and winding roads appear along with the Sierra Nevada peaks.
Harmanpreet Kaur, the showstopper
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Special Arrangement
Indian women’s cricket team captain Harmanpreet Kaur was the showstopper, who carried the final look curated under the collab — a jacket, showing a horse mid-gallop with the Sierra yellow as the backdrop.
What’s new?
Known for oversized streetwear and textured surfaces, Huemn, which was launched in 2012, has been termed “androgenous”, “luxe” and “streetwear movement” across collections, but with the new season, it moves into deeper precision tailoring, intricate embroidery, and sharper cuts. The spotlight is on sculpted jackets, tailored drapes, and new structure. Apart from chikankari, aari, dabka, zardosi, and French knots also appear through the collection.
“The thing about fashion is that one needs to reinvent time and again. When we started out, we didn’t know anyone in the industry. But we stayed afloat, and far away from being boxed into a particular bracket. We are an artisanal brand, playing freely with contemporary art and aesthetic,” says Pranav.
The one-piece stitched sari
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Special Arrangement
After its double-pallu, pre-stitched sari that met with roaring success in 2021, the sari finds a new pattern evolution. “This is a one-piece stitched sari, which can be worn in under 57 seconds. One doesn’t need an entire team around to help wear the sari, because it has completely eliminated the complications,” says Pranav. This sari has done away with the blouse entirely and comes in an edgy silhouette, complete with pockets. Designed for the modern woman, it holds softness and structure together.
Through its journey Heumn has collaborated with brands and artistes; the last one being with cricketer Shreyas Iyer, resulting in a collection incorporating elements from his personal wardrobe.
As far as fashion weeks and runways are concerned, Heumn was a regular. But after the pandemic, the brand adopted a different approach. “We didn’t want to look at the runway as an annual obligation. We have a show only when we have something new to say,” says Pranav, who is also a poet, who believes fashion and poetry are his creative tools, the alternating yin and yang that keeps him humble.
“Across 13 years of Heumn, I have seen it transform. I describe it as a progressive sceptic — it is never the same for too long. This is a new chapter. We are a brand built on contrast. There is beauty and death in the same conversation. Pain and joy. Love and betrayal. You see that in silhouettes, textures and prints throughout the collection,” says Pranav.
Published – November 17, 2025 06:48 pm IST
