There's a particular kind of confidence that comes with wearing something that knows exactly what it is. No apologies, no overexplanation. Just structure, fabric, and the quiet authority of a silhouette that has outlasted every trend that ever tried to replace it.
Ranveer Singh understood this perfectly when he walked into the NMACC third-anniversary gala — and for once, the most daring thing he did was show restraint in his statement bandhgala.
A Look That Said Everything by Saying Very Little
The man who once showed up to an airport in what appeared to be a court jester's fever dream arrived at this particular pink carpet in a custom Anamika Khanna bandhgala, and somehow that felt more radical.
Deep, ink-black, fine pure wool. An open collar fastened with handcrafted silver-toned buttons. Matching structured trousers that broke at exactly the right point on polished brown leather shoes. Rimless gradient sunglasses. Diamond studs are catching the light just enough. A beard trimmed with the kind of precision that suggests either a very good barber or a very disciplined morning routine.
Styled by Eka Lakhani, the look wasn't trying to announce itself — and that's precisely why it did.
Fresh off Dhurandhar, where he inhabited two completely different men across the same film, Ranveer brought something of that same layered energy to his dressing. It felt less like a red-carpet outfit and more like a character study in fabric. The bandhgala as armour. The bandhgala as statement. The bandhgala as the rare thing in fashion that is simultaneously rooted in history and completely of this moment.
When Sidharth, Ranbir, Vicky, and Ishaan All Agree on Something — You Pay Attention
Ranveer isn't operating in isolation. Something is quietly shifting in Indian menswear — a collective exhale away from maximalism toward something more considered, more personal. And the bandhgala sits right at the centre of that shift.
Sidharth Malhotra made the case for navy — that endlessly reliable, chronically underrated shade that manages to feel both serious and warm at once. His bandhgala suit leaned into clean lines and left the rest to the tailoring, which is frankly all the tailoring needed to say.
Ranbir Kapoor wore red to the Red Sea Film Festival, which takes either tremendous courage or tremendous style confidence — and probably both. Against classic black trousers, the vibrant bandhgala jacket felt festive without feeling costume-y, a balance that's genuinely harder to achieve than it looks.
Ishaan Khatter went the opposite direction at Gaurav Gupta Man 2025, and it worked just as well. An asymmetric black velvet bandhgala with gold panther buttons sounds like it could go wrong in approximately twelve different ways. It went magnificently right. There's something almost sculptural about Gaurav Gupta's approach to the form — the bandhgala as architecture, the body as the building.
And then there's Vicky Kaushal, who has quietly built a reputation as one of the most elegantly dressed men in the industry by doing one simple thing: trusting fit over flash. His classic Manish Malhotra bandhgala asked nothing of you except that you pay attention — and once you did, you couldn't look away.
Why This Silhouette, Why Now?
Fashion is cyclical, yes — but not everything that returns deserves to. The bandhgala's revival isn't nostalgia masquerading as a trend. It's a genuine reckoning with what occasion dressing can be when it's rooted in something real.
The bandhgala originated in royal courts. It travelled through decades of Indian formal wear with its dignity intact. And now, in an era where men are thinking more carefully about what they wear and why, it offers something that fast fashion genuinely cannot: intention. Every button, every seam, every considered detail tells you that someone thought about this. That matters.
It's also remarkably versatile in a way that isn't always obvious from the outside. Navy for a winter wedding. Velvet for a big night out. Bold colour for a cultural event. Minimalist wool for something that needs to be impressive but not showy. The silhouette holds all of it without breaking a sweat.
For When You're Ready to Wear One Yourself
If you've been quietly convinced, the good news is that the options are genuinely excellent right now.
Aza's current edit of bandhgalas covers the full spectrum — from the Dolly J Verve Buttoned Bandhgala Set, which is the sartorial equivalent of arriving somewhere five minutes early (composed, put-together, effortlessly ahead), to the Payal & Rishab Midnight Heirloom Bandhgala, which looks like it was made for someone who just inherited a very impressive ancestral home.
The Philocaly plain blue bandhgala is for the man who has learned that a perfect fit is louder than any embellishment. The Char Chaand full sleeve plain bandhgala is its spiritual sibling — no frills, no fuss, just the quiet power of something that fits the way it's supposed to. And for those who want their bandhgala to do the talking before they do, the Design O Stitch butterfly motif bandhgala offers embroidered personality with enough restraint to keep it from tipping into costume territory.
Forget the Trend. Here's What Actually Makes a Bandhgala Worth Wearing.
Here's what no fashion article will usually admit outright: getting dressed well is less about the clothes and more about the relationship you build with them. The bandhgala works because it demands something of the person wearing it — a certain posture, a certain presence, a willingness to inhabit the garment rather than simply put it on.
Ranveer Singh gets this intuitively. So does Vicky Kaushal, in his quieter way. And so, it turns out, can you.
The bandhgala isn't back because a few celebrities wore it on a few carpets. It's back because it was never really gone — it was just waiting for the rest of us to catch up.
