Chanel To Vogue: Supermodel Bhavitha Mandava Has The World Looking Her Way

Bhavitha Mandava is living the life most Indian girls dream of. An architecture graduate who rose to become a supermodel - not just any supermodel, the first Indian woman to open a Chanel show - she is shaking up the global fashion world. Now, she is back in headlines as the cover star of British Vogue’s March 2026 issue, marking a landmark moment that has people around the world talking about representation and beauty norms.

So who is Bhavitha Mandava?

Bhavitha is a 25-year-old from Hyderabad. She did not grow up dreaming of being a model. In fact, she studied architecture in India at Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University and later moved to New York to pursue her master’s degree. Her focus was on education and building a career in design.

Her life changed unexpectedly when a modelling scout noticed her at a subway station in New York. Talk about bragging rights! Within weeks, she was seen walking for the luxury brand Bottega Veneta. Soon after, she got the historic opportunity to work with Chanel.

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That one opportunity changed her life. When designer Matthieu Blazy, who had first chosen her for Bottega Veneta, later became the creative head at Chanel, Bhavitha continued working with him.

She became the first Indian model to open a Chanel Metiers d'Art show. The moment gained huge attention online, and a video of her parents watching from Hyderabad, emotional and full of pride, touched many people across the world.

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On Beauty Standards & Home

British Vogue's March 2026 cover interview, released on February 11, dives deep into the meteoric rise of the NYU graduate. While Bhavitha’s walk through the Chanel Metropolitan Museum of Art set in New York in December 2025 was a triumph, the model reveals that the weight of the moment didn't truly hit her until she saw the global reaction

In her British Vogue interview, Bhavitha addresses the double-edged sword of her visibility, noting the contrast between Western and Indian perceptions. "In the West, it touched on this question of who gets to be included in the idea of beauty and whether Indian women are even allowed to be seen as traditionally beautiful," Bhavitha told interviewer Chioma Nnadi. 

"In India, colourism is really so deep-rooted. “People said I looked like ‘any girl on the street’ because fair skin has often been treated as the default. I don’t think it’s really about me, it’s culture renegotiating itself."

Why It Matters

Bhavitha’s success is bigger than fashion. For many South Asian women, it is still rare to see someone who looks like them on major global runways and magazine covers. The industry has long followed limited beauty standards, often leaving out diverse skin tones and features.

Through her rise, Bhavitha challenges those old ideas. In interviews, she has spoken about beauty standards in both the West and India, including issues like colourism and narrow definitions of attractiveness. Her presence on global platforms shows that beauty is not one fixed image and that representation truly matters.

Views expressed by the author are their own.