Raw Mango Launches ‘Once Upon a River - Festive 2025,’ A Dream-like Celebration of Unions of Different Kinds

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Bengaluru: Arriving just in time for the festive season, the latest collection from Raw Mango explores unions of different kinds. Once Upon a River presents a dreamlike vision of celebrations and unions. Filmed at a heritage palace in Santrampur, the campaign for this collection delves into ritual and symbolism depicting themes of union, change and departure. Built by a private lake, the Santrampur Palace dates back to the 1920s, echoing hints of Art Deco architecture. Located at the crossroads of three states (Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat), the environment provides a fitting milieu for the story being told.

The coming together of crafts, individuals and symbols is mirrored in the environment: the land meets the sea, fish and birds converge, and lovers appear…

In the saturated world of festive fashion, Raw Mango has once again charted its own course. The label, founded by Sanjay Garg, has built its reputation on a quiet, intellectual questioning of Indian textiles. Its latest collection, “Once Upon a River,” arrives not with a bang, but with the eerie, magnetic pull of a half-remembered dream.

The collection’s campaign, a surreal “fever dream” shot by Ashish Shah, immediately establishes that this is not just another bridal edit. Filmed at the Shri Joraver Vilas, a 1920s Art Deco palace in Santrampur, the visuals are steeped in ritual and symbolism. The palace itself is a potent metaphor. Built by a private lake, it stands at the cultural crossroads of three states—Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh. This physical confluence is the perfect setting for a story about unions.

But the collection’s core theme of “convergence” is not merely symbolic; it is a technical achievement. In a move that pushes the boundaries of handloom, Garg has engineered the coming together of two traditionally independent crafts: bunai (weaving) and kadhai (handwork). Layers of intricate ornamentation and zardozi are not simply applied to the surface but are woven into the very structure of the Varanasi brocades. Threads of real zari, referencing everything from archival Ashavali textiles to Ottoman velvets, flow through the garments like ripples on water.

This technical union of crafts serves a larger narrative. The collection explores “unions of different kinds”—the coming together of crafts, of individuals, and of symbols. In the dreamlike world of the campaign, the land meets the sea, fish and birds converge, and lovers appear in multiples, all set in a location that is itself a cultural meeting point. As Garg has noted, the theme feels particularly resonant in a time that feels “fragmented.”

This collection is a quintessential chapter in the Raw Mango story. Since its inception in 2008, the brand has been pivotal in creating a new design lexicon for contemporary India. It has succeeded where many have tried, making handloom a vital, desirable part of the modern wardrobe by investigating its possibilities rather than just revering its past.

With “Once Upon a River,” Raw Mango presents an invitation for brides, grooms, and their families “to take their own form.” It is a collection that feels both ancient and utterly new, a testament to the brand’s unwavering commitment to craft, community, and the constant, elegant questioning of tradition.

“Once Upon a River” is now available online and across all Raw Mango stores.