Simar Dugal is a model turned designer, dubbed ‘India’s first supermodel.’ She is an Indian model who broke stereotypes by walking the ramp after getting married and giving birth. After quitting modeling, she started her own label ‘Simar Dugal’. With stunning heritage inspired designs, she has carved a niche for herself in the Indian fashion business. His designs have been worn by various Bollywood celebrities. The Indian fashion industry remembers her timeless beauty, and her charismatic ethnic designs.
Wiki/Biography
Simar Dugal was born on Monday, 20 May 1968 (age 52 years; at death). She grew up in Amritsar in Punjab, India, with her friend Ritu Kumar, a famous Indian fashion designer. Simar belongs to a conservative family that does not support her desire to pursue a career in modeling. Eventually, the family moved to New Delhi. Simar studied at Jesus and Mary College, Delhi University.
Physical appearance
Height (approx): 5′ 8″
Hair Color: Dark Brown
Eye Color: Black
Family & Caste/Ethnicity
He belonged to a Sikh family from Amritsar.
Parents & Siblings
Simar Dugal’s father died at a very young age. Simar Dugal’s mother, Rita Sawhney is a landscape photographer. Simar’s brother’s name is Parmeet Singh Sawhney. Simar’s widowed mother raised her two children with perseverance.
Rita Sawhney with her children Simar Dugal and Parmeet Singh Sawhney
Simar Dugal with her mother Rita Sawhney
Simar Dugal with his brother Parmeet Singh Sawhney
Relationships, Husband & Children
Simar Dugal was married at a very young age of only 19 or 20 years to Premjit Dugal, CEO of Quest Merchants. Simar has a son with Premjit, Arjan Singh Dugal, who is a menswear designer. They divorced, and later, Simar started dating Rajeet Nabha, Managing Director at Arzai Capital.
Premjit Dugal
Simar Dugal with his son Arjan Singh Dugal
Simar Dugal with Rajeet Nabha
Career
As a Model
Simar Dugal started her modeling career only after getting married and becoming a mother. Although her first assignment was a rather naive shoot at Ritu Kumar’s showroom, it was a photo shoot by renowned designer Suneet Varma, which gave her her first professional break. The glorious picture was also featured in his book titled ‘Suneet Varma’ published by Niyogi Publishers.
Simar Dugal’s first professional photo
It was around 1993-94 when Dugal made his ramp debut. She did her first ramp show at the Craft Museum in Delhi, choreographed by Mehr Jesia, an Indian supermodel. After that, Dugal went on to become one of the most prominent faces in the Indian fashion industry. Apart from Ritu Kumar, she also worked with Tarun Tahiliani around 1995. She walked many ramps as a bride. Later, Dugal also became the model for Kumar’s book ‘The Costumes and Textiles of Royal India’, and ‘Tree of Life designs’.
As a Designer
Later, Dugal quit modeling and started designing and manufacturing clothes for the Indian market and leather goods for export. He started his own label ‘Simar Dugal’. Her stunning works are heritage inspired with a hint of sparkle. His designs have been worn by several Bollywood celebrities, such as Malaika Arora, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Athiya Shetty, Shilpa Shetty and many more.
Death
Simar Dugal died on Wednesday, August 12, 2020, at her mother’s home in Delhi. He had a long battle with cancer, which spread from his pancreas to his liver. A friend who met him two days before he died, said
I met her as she sat in a wheelchair, wearing a kaftan, waif-like but beautiful. There is no blemish on the porcelain skin.”
His last design collection that he worked on was ‘Chakori Collection’
Facts/Trivia
- Dugal is famous for breaking stereotypes and walking the ramp even after getting married and having children.
Childhood photo of Arjan Singh Dugal with mother Simar Dugal
- Dugal is a keen golfer. It was during her late teens when renowned designer Suneet Varma spotted the stunning model at the Delhi Golf Club and was mesmerized by her beauty. In an interview with The Times of India, Suneet said,
“I met Simar when she was 17 years old, at the Delhi Golf Club and I remember just being stunned by her beauty and her equally beautiful mother.
Simar Dugal at Delhi Golf Club
- Despite being tall, slim-framed, and having her own chiseled features, Simar doesn’t believe in conventional ideas of beauty. When asked “What makes a woman beautiful?”, he replied,
Physical appearance is not enough. Beauty runs deep. It is the overall personality that makes a person stand out. Look at Chandralekha (dancer) and Shabana Azmi, for example. They might not fit the conventional idea people have of beauty, but I think they’re amazing.’
- While mourning the death of Simar Dugal, Ritu Kumar said,
For me its departure, as if the era of fashion in India has also passed, may not return again in the same way.
Categories: Biography
Source: SCHOOL TRANG DAI
