Prabal Gurung

Early life and education

Gurung, a Nepalese American, was born on March 31, 1979 in Singapore to Nepali parents and then raised in Kathmandu, Nepal. He went to St. Xavier's School, a reputed Catholic Jesuit school in Kathmandu, where he finished his high school education. Prabal then went and did his Hotel Management from the National Council of Hotel Management, Catering Technology and Applied Nutrition, Dadar, Mumbai. Post his Hotel Management, Prabal began his designing career in New Delhi, India. While studying at New Delhi’s National Institute of Fashion Technology, he apprenticed at several local production and fashion houses and designed with Manish Arora. In Melbourne and London Gurung assisted stylists for fashion shows and international publications.

Career

In 1999, Gurung moved to New York City, where he interned for Donna Karan while attending Parsons School of Design. In his first year, he was awarded the “Best Designer” title at the annual Parsons/FIT design competition. After Parsons, Gurung spent two years with Cynthia Rowley’s design team and then became the design director at Bill Blass. Following five successful years at Blass, Gurung launched his own collection, PRABAL GURUNG, during New York Fashion Week in February 2009 at the FLAG Art Foundation in Chelsea. For Fall 2010, he staged his first runway show in the Tents at Bryant Park.

Gurung's designs have been worn by Oprah Winfrey, Michelle Obama, Marion Cotillard, Catherine, The Duchess of Cambridge (Kate Middleton), Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lawrence, Demi Moore, Emma Watson, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kerry Washington, Jennifer Hudson, Kara Hayward, Diane Kruger, Elettra Wiedemann, January Jones, Kate Hudson, Scarlett Johansson, Selena Gomez, Jessica Alba , Poorna Jagannathan, Zoe Saldana, Deepika Padukone, Katrina Kaif, Alia Bhatt, Kajol and Priyanka Chopra.

Awards and honors

In 2010 he was the recipient of the Ecco Domani Fashion Fund Award and received a nomination for the 2010 CFDA/Swarovski Womenswear Award. He was also chosen by prominent fashion editors, retailers, designers and business people for the CFDA Fashion Incubator for 2010-2012. In November 2010, Gurung was runner-up for the 2010 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund.

In popular culture

Gurung worked with the artist Rye Rye, who showcased his collection in the video for her 2011 single "New Thing."