Social media feeds have been in overdrive as an Indian NYU graduate turned model finds herself at the center of global fashion buzz after opening Chanel’s latest show in the New York subway.
For Bhavitha Mandava, the moment was surreal. No one can say exactly what ran through Mandava’s mind when she learned she would open The Chanel Métiers d’Art 2025–2026. And the runway unfolded in the very station where Matthieu Blazy noticed her just a year earlier, sparking a career she never imagined and now placing her on one of the most talked-about stages in fashion.
Mandava, 25, grew up in India before moving to New York to pursue her master’s at NYU, long after completing her architecture degree back home. Modeling was never part of the plan. But somewhere between classes and subway commutes, her life shifted. One ordinary day on a New York City train, she caught the eye of Matthieu Blazy, or someone from his circle, then at Bottega Veneta. That brief encounter led to an unexpected suggestion that she try modeling, quietly setting the foundation for the moment she now finds herself in.
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Within days of that chance encounter, Mandava was on the runway for Bottega Veneta and soon appeared in one of the brand’s campaigns. What followed was a rapid climb: shows for Dior, Courrèges, and a return to Blazy, this time at Chanel. She debuted in his first collection for the Paris house, and now, by opening the Métiers d’Art show, she’s stepped firmly into the spotlight as one of fashion’s most compelling new faces.
Since her runway moment, social media hasn’t been able to look away. Even at a time when anti-Indian sentiment has been flaring online, Mandava has become an unexpected point of pride. Immigrants and brown communities are celebrating her rise, seeing it as a shift in how they’re represented — no longer the background characters, but the ones leading the room. The internet has responded in its own way too, flooding timelines with memes and jokes about brown visibility and this rare moment of collective acclaim.
A clip of Mandava’s parents reacting to her walk on the Instagram has only added to the momentum online. In the video, her mother is seen tearfully calling out her name while her father watches with unmistakable pride, a moment that quickly went viral and deepened the wave of support around her. “Can’t put into words how much this means to me. Thank you @chanelofficial @matthieu_blazy,” she captioned while sharing the clip.
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Mandava now holds a milestone of her own: she is the first Indian model ever to open a Chanel show. And in the fashion world, that position carries real weight. The opener and the closer set the emotional tone, they are the faces that shape how a collection begins and how it’s remembered. For Mandava to take that spot signals just how much the industry sees in her.
What to know about the first Indian model to open a Chanel show beyond fashion glam:
Mandava grew up in Hyderabad, India, where she immersed herself in academics before stepping anywhere near a runway. She completed her architecture degree at Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University and eventually headed to New York to further her studies. At NYU, she focused on assistive technology and human-computer interaction, carving out a path that had nothing to do with fashion, at least until the city rewrote her story.
Looking ahead, moments like this cut through the noise of hostility often directed at Indian immigrants and immigrants in general. Mandava’s rise and the emotion surrounding it, has become something deeper than a fashion milestone. For many, it stands as a reminder of resilience, of what it means to push forward despite bias, and of how one person’s win can offer a sense of hope and belonging to communities that are too often sidelined.