R|Elan™, the next-generation fabric brand from Reliance Industries Limited, joined forces with Indian fashion label HUEMN for a runway showcase at Lakmé Fashion Week in partnership with FDCI, held at Taj Palace, New Delhi, on 16 October 2026. It was the second collaboration between R|Elan™ and HUEMN at the platform, and it brought advanced textile innovation, traditional craftsmanship and HUEMN’s provocative design language together in a new take on elevated athleisure.

The evening was also a milestone for R|Elan™, which entered its eighth year and unveiled a renewed brand identity reflecting its evolution across fashion, performance and sustainability.

Beauty and Terror

At the heart of the collection was beauty and terror, a recurring duality in HUEMN’s design philosophy. The label is known for drawing on the social, political and cultural landscapes of the times, and it turned that contrast into a collection defined by archival craft techniques, original prints, experimental surfaces and contemporary sportswear silhouettes.

Through the collaboration, HUEMN explored where performance, craftsmanship and high fashion meet, taking athleisure beyond its usual codes. The show also reflected the label’s 14-year design journey, offering a contemporary wardrobe in which functionality and visual expression carry equal weight. Each look paired HUEMN’s creative approach with R|Elan™’s advanced textile technologies, showing how material innovation can shape both how clothes are built and how they look.

Seven R|Elan™ Fabric Technologies in One Collection

A key highlight was the use of seven R|Elan™ fabric technologies: Kooltex, GreenGold, Cotluk, EcoTherm, AllClima, EcoGold and AirTherm. Between them, they brought different dimensions of breathability, comfort, adaptability, thermal functionality and responsible material development into the clothes, so performance-led textiles became part of HUEMN’s design vocabulary instead of an add-on.

The Standout Pieces

Among the standout pieces was an oxblood denim jacket made with R|Elan™ EcoGold and lifted with intricate Chikankari embroidery. It set a traditional Indian craft technique against contemporary construction, which sums up the collection’s play between heritage and innovation. HUEMN also introduced an original snakeskin print, adding another layer to its interest in texture, visual contradiction and unconventional design.

Experimental silhouettes defined the runway too, including a distinctively draped “mummy top” made with R|Elan™ Kooltex. Inspired by the wrapped and layered forms of Egyptian mummies, it turned an unexpected visual reference into a contemporary fashion statement. Kooltex also appeared in a hand-illustrated dusty-print jacket, which paired HUEMN’s graphic sensibility with the fabric’s performance qualities.

The cargo pants extended the collection’s focus on function. Made with R|Elan™ EvaSoft, a next-generation fibre engineered for a soft touch, enhanced moisture management and superior wet strength, they and the other pieces offered an approach to everyday dressing in which comfort, movement and craftsmanship sit alongside contemporary design.

A New Identity for R|Elan™

Beyond the collection, the evening saw the unveiling of R|Elan™’s renewed brand identity, a new chapter in its eight-year journey. Reflecting the brand’s commitment to innovation and its aim of developing smarter, more purposeful textile solutions, the refreshed identity was introduced through HUEMN’s creative lens. The collaboration showed how advanced fabric technologies can go beyond function and actively shape the visual language and creative possibilities of contemporary fashion.

What Reliance, HUEMN and Reliance Brands Said

With R|Elan™ × HUEMN, textile technology, traditional craft and contemporary design came together in a collection that challenged how athleisure is usually seen. With its renewed identity and continued focus on material innovation, R|Elan™ reinforced its commitment to new possibilities in fashion, while HUEMN offered its own view of modern dressing, where performance, comfort and creative expression sit side by side.