Louis Vuitton presented its Spring-Summer 2026 Men’s Collection in Paris, revealing a body of work by Pharrell Williams that is strongly influenced by modern Indian sartorialism.
Titled “Paris to India”, the collection explores global contemporary fashion through the lens of traditional and urban Indian aesthetics.
The show took place at Centre Pompidou, reimagined as a life-size game of Snakes and Ladders by Studio Mumbai architect Bijoy Jain. The concept highlighted themes of nature, play and philosophical reflection.
The collection integrates Indian nuances through colour, textile and tailoring. A focus on weathering and wear is present in pieces that are sun-faded or brushed, including garments with mismatched stripes. Shades such as purple and bleached tones are used to reinterpret the colour responses of urban landscapes.
A standout feature in the new collection is the reintroduction of the motif from Louis Vuitton’s 2007 collaboration for The Darjeeling Limited. This motif appears across bags, accessories and garments.
Bags include Monogram Pigment and Deep Dye styles in calfskin, as well as crocodile mini shoppers and aged Steamer Workwear designs.
Tailoring centres on instinctive silhouettes with lived-in elegance. Waistcoats, suit shirts and blousons support the “Dandy Lines” concept, while mountaineering elements inspire refined outerwear and hiking boots. A brown denim story offers an alternative to indigo, using coffee-bean tones and woven rather than dyed fabrics.
The “Zoom In” section of the collection brings a super-refined approach to menswear, introducing garments with hand-embroidered stones, lace and micro beads. Footwear includes new iterations of the IV Jazz lace-ups, derby loafers and sandals like the IV Flip flop and the IV Bubble derby.
Jewellery, including sterling silver pieces, is detailed with filigree and guilloché and set with semi-precious stones. Sunglasses feature metal corners resembling vintage trunks, finished with colour gradients faded by the sun.
The soundtrack was curated by Pharrell Williams and produced by Voices of Fire and l’Orchestre du Pont Neuf, with music direction from A. R. Rahman and others. Tracks such as “Miracle Worker” and “Get Right” accompanied the show, enhancing its themes of creative travel and cultural convergence.
