Deepak Perwani, Khaadi, The Pink Tree Company, Wardha Saleem and Sana Safinaz come together on 26 September for a site-specific showcase opened by an archive exhibition from Tapu Javeri.
KARACHI, SEPTEMBER 25, 2026: LAAM Fashion Week (LFW) will bring LFW Presents to Karachi for the first time this Saturday, 26 September, with Kaleidoscopic Karachi: a five-designer showcase set within the historic Nusserwanjee Building at the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture (IVS). Marking the format’s second edition and its first outside Lahore, the evening will feature Deepak Perwani, Khaadi, The Pink Tree Company, Wardha Saleem and Sana Safinaz, opening with an immersive archival exhibition by photographer Tapu Javeri.
Karachi has never had a single language. Its identity shifts like a kaleidoscope, where every turn unveils another composition of colour, culture and character. The city has been shaped by old neighbourhoods and new skylines, inherited craft and restless modernity, quiet ateliers and crowded streets, by communities, cultures and creative voices that have spent generations leaving their mark on the landscape. It is a place where contrasts do not compete. They coexist, collide and somehow belong.
Kaleidoscopic Karachi is built around that plurality. Across the evening, the participating labels will move between the polished and the artisanal, the inherited and the unexpected: a fashion portrait of Karachi with no single point of view.
Speaking about the vision behind Kaleidoscopic Karachi, Maheen Kardar, Executive Director Designer Experience and Curation, LFW Presents, describes a city that can only be understood through its many layers,
“I wanted Kaleidoscopic Karachi to feel less like a fashion showcase and more like stepping into the city itself — layered, restless, colorful and full of contradictions. I pictured five designers, five distinct interpretations, each revealing a different fragment of Karachi, until those fragments come together to form something larger than any one perspective. That is the beauty of a kaleidoscope: every turn gives you a new image, yet somehow, you always recognize the city.”
Before the silhouettes take the stage, Tapu Javeri, one of Pakistan’s most influential fashion photographers and a defining visual chronicler of Karachi, will open the evening with Four Decades of Fashion Through the Lens of Tapu Javeri, an immersive journey through his archive of Pakistani fashion and Karachi.
“Karachi is where I live and breathe. It’s also a part of my creativity. The exhibition I am doing for Kaleidoscopic Karachi is a sort of a walk down memory lane,” said Tapu Javeri.
And then, as fashion takes over the runway, the kaleidoscope turns.
For Deepak Perwani, Karachi is woven into the designer’s own history: a Sindhi Hindu heritage, decades of couture built in the city, and a career that has carried that story from Karachi to international fashion platforms, including recognition in Bulgaria’s top-ten fashion awards, Milan and Miami. His contribution brings the city into cocktail hour: sleek, modern and deliberately restrained.
“This collection comes from what I’ve always loved doing, sexy modern Western wear. I am always excited to show that less is more. There will be a lot of fun and excitement, but not a lot of colour. After all, it is Cocktail Hour,” said Deepak Perwani.
Khaadi brings the energy of Karachi’s streets into the picture: colour, print, movement and a beautiful little chaos. From a single Zamzama store in 1998 to an international retail presence, its story reflects the city’s instinct to take what is familiar and make it travel. For Kaleidoscopic Karachi, Saira Shamoon plans to amalgamate the Khaadi and Chapter 2 lines into the collection.
“It’s an explosion of colour, print, chaos and a bit of glamour. Karachi is a mix of a lot of things, a lot of contrast and friction; that’s where the inspiration starts from. It’s almost as if nothing matches, but everything kind of belongs,” said Saira Shamoon.
Karachi’s relationship with craft takes centre stage with The Pink Tree Company. Led by Mohsin Sayeed, whose entry into fashion grew from journalism and cultural commentary, the label has built its identity around preserving the city’s textile traditions, while his and Hadia Khan’s work explores ideas of resistance, culture and the voices that shape Karachi, making it a distinctly craft-first presence within the city’s fashion landscape.
“The Pink Tree Company’s collection depicts the beauty of Karachi: modernity blended with tradition. In this presentation, we have used a variety of fabrics, block print techniques and colours we absolutely love. I love breaking the rules,” said Mohsin Sayeed.
Wardha Saleem returns to the stage at the very institution where her creative journey began. An IVS graduate and former textile design teacher, her Sindhi roots run through her work, from the Jhirki line, named for the sparrow, to hand block printing and motifs drawn from Thar, Hyderabad and Sindhi folklore. Her return to IVS brings her journey from craft to classroom to runway full circle.
“In this collection there are a lot of embroideries which are very distinctive to us. A lot of fabric manipulation, modern silhouettes. It’s very earthy, very craft-oriented,” said Wardha Saleem.
Sana Safinaz brings with it a fashion legacy deeply woven into Karachi’s story. Founded in 1989, Sana Safinaz has spent more than three and a half decades shaping Pakistani fashion, from pioneering designer lawn to influencing the way women dress far beyond the red carpet. With a long list of Lux Style Awards, its imprint on the country’s fashion landscape is unmistakable. For Kaleidoscopic Karachi, the label presents Mastaani, a 20-piece heritage collection.
“Our Mastaani line is a heritage line. We are inherently modernist. It’s a lot about textures, a lot of handwork, a strong strength of colours. Also, it’s very cinematic,” said Sana Hashwani.
The showcase will take place at the historic Nusserwanjee Building at the Indus Valley School of Art & Architecture (IVS), Karachi. Rich with the city’s architectural, cultural and Parsi heritage, the building itself tells a story of preservation and reinvention. Built in the early twentieth century, it once stood in Kharadar. What followed was extraordinary: the historic structure was carefully dismantled, its stones carried across the city and rebuilt piece by piece at the IVS campus by the school’s architecture students. A fragment of old Karachi, given another life in a brand new setting. Today, its walls carry more than history. They hold the memory of a city that has always evolved by carrying its past forward.
On Saturday, Karachi will not be reduced to one image. It will be seen in fragments: through a photographer’s archive, five fashion perspectives and a heritage building that has itself travelled through time.
About LFW Presents
LFW Presents is LAAM Fashion Week’s year-round, invitation-led showcase format, created to move fashion beyond the traditional seasonal calendar and into distinctive cultural spaces. Each edition brings a singular designer or curated group into a site-specific setting, giving the fashion, venue and creative direction equal weight in shaping the story. Kaleidoscopic Karachi marks the format’s second edition and its first outside Lahore.
Leadership
Behind LFW is a leadership team bringing together technology, fashion business and creative direction. Arif Iqbal, Co-Founder & CEO of LAAM, leads its technology-driven vision and global reach. Amir Iqbal, Co-Founder & COO of LAAM, oversees the operational and supply-chain infrastructure supporting international e-commerce. Saad Ali, Founder & CEO of Design651 and Co-Founder of LFW, brings extensive experience in fashion business, manufacturing and industry development. Maheen Kardar, Executive Director Designer Experience and Curation, LFW, leads creative curation and designer relationships, bridging traditional craft with the demands of contemporary fashion and retail.
Partners
Co-Founders: LAAM and Design651
PR and Strategic Communications: Talking Point
Event Director: Nubain Ali
Production Team (with Nubain): CKO Event Architecture
Hair & Makeup: Nabila’s
Models & Talent: ZINC Talent
Photography & Videography: Prime Productions