Rajesh Pratap Singh is an emotion. You watch his collections, mesmerised by its austere discipline and minimalism. Yet, when it all wraps up, the impact is maximal. Utterly spellbinding and flawlessly magical. That the master couturier is shy, adds to his enigma. In a day and age of social media-induced exhibitionism, Pratap’s proclivity to stay in the background is rare and pure.

Much like his art and craft. That has always spoken for him. He was a jubilant soul after his finale show at FDCI India Men’s Weekend 2025, presented by Chivas Luxe Collective Perfumes, at the Diggi Palace in Jaipur. Backstage, he was the man of the hour. Everyone wanted to congratulate him. Pratap was happy to smile and say a humble ‘thank you’.

FDCI India Men’s Weekend 2025

The audience too had a ‘thank you’ on their minds that translated in the post-show praise. Pratap’s collections have a way of evoking emotions very deep. As the engines of the Royal Enfields died down after revving up the mood for the entire duration of the show, Jim Morrison’s ‘We live, we die, but death does not end it’, as quoted by Pratap in a show note, summed up the sentiments.

Mentors and inspirations came to mind in a jiffy. Those who left their indelible mark in our lives and minds. Much like John Singh and Ram Pratap Singh Diggi who Pratap celebrated. A “tribute to the spirit of freedom on two wheels and always on two feet... it was purity in motion, capturing the essence of living boldly, loyally and a symbol of deep friendship” read the press note. “The bikes were always beautiful. When we grew up in Jaipur, motorcycles were a big thing,” Pratap told t2, minutes after the show.

FDCI India Men’s Weekend 2025

A masterclass in tailoring and fabric innovation, every garment was marked by the Pratap school of sophistication and dare. So hot! Zero embellishment and strengthened by pure mastery of the medium.

Pratap thanked Anu Ahuja for the show production and Gaurav Raina, Karsh Kale, Samandar Manganiar and Gautam for the music. “He weaves his own fabrics. It was all Rajesh Pratap. He has the most incredible ideas. I was not aware of the whole ‘Diggi Puri Ka Raja’ being an urban myth. He told me about how they grew up on motorcycles. It’s a collaborative thing, but most of the ideas came from him. The lenses (on the models) made everything look spectacular. It wasn’t an easy show to mount... but when it’s Rajesh, you want to give him everything,” smiled Ahuja.

As Diggi puri ka raja played in the closing notes, the crown firmly belonged to Pratap.

Pratap later decoded the mood of the collection for t2.

First of all, how did the theme come to you? When and how did you conceptualise it?

We don’t think so much! Basically, see, a couple of things. I was already doing research work on leather, on khadi being coated in resin, which looks like leather. And, motorcycles have always been a part of our thing. I knew it’s going to be in Jaipur, which is a personal thing for me. And Diggi Palace is a place where, you know, we’ve grown up... right next to it. Motorcycles were basically part of our growing up. So horses and motorcycles are something in Jaipur... for young kids, teenagers, at least in the ’80s and early ’90s were a big thing for us, even ’70s, they tell me. And then there were these bunch of boys who we really looked up to, which included my older brother and Ram Pratap Singh Diggi of Diggi Palace... all bunch of seniors from school who had great bikes. I mean, for us at that time, were great bikes... basically Royal Enfield, which is a perfect bike. It was just things we remember as a kid. John Singh started a brand called on Anokhi. These were figures we looked up to, our heroes.

What memories of John Singh do you have?

I mean, as a kid, we didn’t even have the guts to talk to him. He was a mythical figure for us. He was so much into music. He was somebody we really looked up to. Later on in life, I did obviously meet him and spoke to him, and told him all this, and it was a joke... I was lucky enough that he asked me to do one of my first shows in Jaipur. He’s no more, unfortunately.

When did you leave Rajasthan?

I did my schooling in Jaipur. We still have a home. I go there once a week, or once in 10 days. I was born in another part of Rajasthan, a place called Sri Ganganagar. That’s my ancestral place. But I lived most of my life in Jaipur, and Jaipur has been part of our DNA. It’s our safe place. Right after school, I went to Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC), in Delhi. And then after SRCC, I went to NIFT, Delhi.

What of Jaipur has remained in you?

So for me, it’s still home. I mean, Delhi is not home, Jaipur is home. I’ve taken a lot of references from Rajasthan (for the collection). I live in Delhi but I feel like I’m still in a boarding and home is still Jaipur.

Tell us about the resin-coated pieces a bit...

It’s basically hand-spun, handwoven cotton, which we are kind of doing this coat of resin on and some other things, so it feels like leather, but it’s not leather. We have used leather in this collection. Leather is something which we have used in the past too, but slowly from leather, we are moving into alternatives of leather. So we are really looking and working with people who can give us options. Leather is beautiful, but you know, if I get an option which has the same natural beauty of leather, I would switch right away.

Are you a Jim Morrison fan?

Yeah. I mean, it’s nursery rhymes for us, you know. This is music which we acquired from my elder brother. So on one side, you grow up with Rajasthani folk music. And then I mean classic rock bands like The Doors... it was almost like beat poetry. I think it was not just with me, but everybody around us was listening to The Doors, The Rolling Stones and even some part of The Beatles.

How do you weave this magic every single time?

I mean, these are easy things. I don’t know why people are blind, they can’t do it... these are very easy things!