While the West is struggling with trade wars and cooling demand in China and the US, Chanel is sending a clear signal: the future smells of saris, saffron, and tens of millions of young Indian fans. The appointment of actress Ananya Panday as the first-ever Indian ambassador is more than just a cute gesture of diversity—it's a strategic bet on a market that, according to Bain & Company, could triple its luxury spending by 2030.
Just a few years ago, European fashion houses mainly viewed India as a manufacturing base for silk and embroidery. Then came the pandemic, the slowdown in China, US tariffs – and priorities shifted. In a country with more than a billion inhabitants, the middle class and the number of dollar millionaires are growing rapidly; iconic weddings such as Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant have shown how much networking and spending power the Indian elite can generate. The numbers speak for themselves: €25-30 billion in annual luxury spending by 2030 means oxygen for Western brands at a time when old markets are gasping for breath.
Why Ananya Panday?
Chanel has a knack for finding the right faces, as it once proved with K-pop. At just 26, Panday has several trump cards up her sleeve: 25 million Instagram followers, a rising career, and a face that speaks to Generation Z as clearly as it does to traditional lovers of haute couture. Her participation in the SS25 show and on the covers of Indian fashion magazines tested the audience's response in advance. And it was overwhelming. For Chanel, it's an elegant way to reach young shoppers in the global south as well as those on TikTok in Paris or Los Angeles in one fell swoop.
Bollywood as a cultural megaphone for luxury
Hollywood may still set global trends, but Bollywood has something that the Western Atlantic is losing. Mass enthusiasm and local stars with an extremely loyal fan base. When Deepika Padukone became the face of Louis Vuitton and Alia Bhatt became the ambassador for Gucci, it was clear that the Mumbai film studio could provide the brand with both credibility and instant access to hundreds of millions of households.
With this move, Chanel confirms that the most interesting things in pop culture today are happening far east of Hollywood. Dior has already shown a fashion show in Mumbai, Vivienne Westwood has opened a retrospective, and Reliance Industries is signing a contract with Shein.
It seems that the monsoon of new money and cultural influence cannot be stopped: young India wants luxury—and luxury needs India. Ananya Panday thus becomes not only the face of Chanel, but also a symbol of the moment when the center of gravity of the fashion world is quietly shifting from Paris and Milan to Mumbai and Delhi. If this move pays off, Chanel won't be alone for long. The next time you see a sari paired with a tweed jacket on the red carpet in Cannes, remember: it all started with one name and two intertwined Cs.
