KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 9 — For Sherina Mahtani-Binwani, some of the best fashion finds have always happened away from home.

Born and raised in Jakarta and now based in Kuala Lumpur, the entrepreneur has spent years discovering designers and independent labels while travelling — the sort of pieces that inevitably prompted friends to ask: “Where did you get that?”

It was a simple question, but one she kept hearing.

Behind it, Sherina began to recognise something bigger: Malaysian women were increasingly looking for clothes that felt individual, beautifully made and, perhaps most importantly, not like something everyone else would be wearing.

That instinct became LuxuriAsia, the fashion and lifestyle platform she founded in 2024.

This September, it returns with LuxuriAsia Diwali Edit 2026, a two-day fashion experience at The Majestic Hotel Kuala Lumpur on September 29 and 30, from 11am to 7pm, bringing a curated mix of contemporary Indian fashion, occasion wear, jewellery, accessories and footwear to the city.

But while the timing taps into the festive shopping season, Sherina is keen for LuxuriAsia to remain an intimate, considered experience rather than a sprawling festive bazaar.

“The intention has never been to become a huge mass-market bazaar. I would rather keep LuxuriAsia carefully curated and have people genuinely look forward to it,” she said in a media release.

At the heart of LuxuriAsia this year is a shift Sherina has been watching closely: the changing language of Indian fashion.

Traditional dressing remains, but alongside it, a new generation of designers is experimenting with cleaner silhouettes, unexpected draping, contemporary embroidery, jackets, co-ords, capes and modern sarees — creating pieces that are no longer reserved for just one festival or an Indian wedding.

“A jacket might return for a dinner. A co-ord set could work for a cocktail party. A contemporary saree can move between cultures and occasions. Indian fashion has changed dramatically,” Sherina said.

“The styling is also much more relaxed and individual. Women today don’t necessarily want to look like everyone else in the room. That is the wave we want LuxuriAsia to represent.”

Curated, not crowded

Rather than filling the floor with multiple vendors offering similar products, she looks for brands with distinct identities and pieces that balance luxury with wearability.

“I don’t want twenty vendors selling versions of the same thing. Each brand should bring its own personality,” she said.

This time, LuxuriAsia has included names such as Archana Kochhar, Vikram Phadnis and Meeta Mulchandani, jewellery label Mystique Jewels, alongside fashion and lifestyle brands from India, Indonesia and beyond, as well as selected Malaysian names.

For Sherina, that sense of curation extends to the experience itself.

“It should feel more like discovering fashion while travelling than simply walking through a normal exhibition,” she said.

“That means being able to touch the fabrics, examine the workmanship, try something unexpected and potentially meet the people behind the brands — an experience that online shopping cannot quite replicate,” she further added.

What began with Sherina’s eye for standout labels while travelling is evolving into a platform bringing a wider world of fashion to Malaysian shoppers.

She hopes to grow LuxuriAsia with more designers, countries and collaborations, without losing the distinct character that defines it.

“If people remember LuxuriAsia as the place where they discovered an amazing designer before everyone else did, found a piece they absolutely loved, or simply spent a lovely afternoon enjoying fashion with friends, then I think we have achieved what we set out to do.”