Sonaakshi Raaj is a Mumbai-based designer. She is a sister to Malvika Raaj and niece to Anita Raaj. The designer recently tied the knot with Nikhil Merani in Thailand. All pictures: Sonakshi Raaj's Instagram
Updated On: 2020-02-19 09:30 AM IST
Sonaakshi Raaj is a Mumbai-based designer and her style is synonymous with opulence. With an intention to create glamorous ensembles catering to women's couture wear that is distinctly feminine and refined, she combines tailoring with drapery.
The designer is an elder sister to Malvika Raaj who played the role of Little Poo in the movie Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham. Given their Instagram posts, the two seem quite close to each other.
Sonaakshi is a graduate from SNDT University and holds a degree of B.A.in Apparel Manufacture and Designing. Sonaakshi has been a winner of the CMAI APEX NATIONAL AWARD for the best upcoming designer of the year. The Label retails her couture line from various multi-designer stores across India and overseas like Europe, UK, US, South Africa, Canada and UAE.
Raaj made her design debut in 2012 as part of Lakme Fashion Week in Mumbai with garments priced between Rs 20,000 to Rs 50,000.
The designer debutante went the traditional route and chose a celebrity showstopper: dancer and actress Isha Sharvani.
Sonaakshi's work has been very popular amongst our Bollywood celebrities who have sported her creations many a times such as Deepika Padukone, Sonam Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Shraddha Kapoor, Kriti Sanon, Bipasha Basu, Kareena Kapoor, Malaika Arora Khan, Shilpa Shetty, Kangana Ranaut, Priyanka Chopra, Madhuri Dixit & Sushmita Sen, to name a few.
Raaj became familiar with Bollywood fashion after working under Manish Malhotra for a year and a half before launching her own label. Now she retails from Aza in Delhi and Mumbai, Studio 8 in Dubai, and Galleria Graffiti in Italy.
The designer has been named as the Sari-Gown specialist by Vogue India and rated as one of the top 25 young designers by Vogue'S radar. She is a pioneer in her field with her highly popularized Sari-Gowns and contemporary Indian wear for the new age women.
Sonakshi Raaj found love in restaurateur Nikhil Merani, who runs a popular salad bar and an Asian eatery, and a European-style café in Juhu, among other casual dining spaces.
Sonaakshi and Nikhil are family friends. Since their families would often get together for dinners, the duo started meeting regularly.
Nikhil proposed to her on a mini getaway to the Maldives. The couple made it official on May 11, 2019.
The star couple kick-started their wedding celebrations with a star-studded cocktail night at Estella, Mumbai. Kriti Kharbanda, Sajid Khan, Raveena Tandon, Nushrat Bharucha, Sophie Choudry and Karan Wahi amongst others were present to grace the evening.
