Asad Sattar Represents Bangladesh and Arka at BRICS+ Fashion Summit, Moscow
Asad Sattar, the founder of Arka Fashion Week and creative director of the Ami Dhaka label, is making his mark on the global fashion scene. He recently represented Bangladesh at the BRICS+ Fashion Summit and Moscow Fashion Week. His attendance at these events highlights a new direction for the country’s fashion industry: moving beyond simply making clothes to sharing its culture, creativity, and heritage with the world.
At a meeting with other international fashion leaders, Sattar spoke about his vision for Bangladesh’s future. He believes the country should add a creative and cultural industry to its strong manufacturing base. Today’s fashion world is about more than just clothes, and Sattar sees Arka Fashion Week as a platform for culture that connects with younger people by making fashion more accessible. To truly export fashion, he says, Bangladesh must share its culture, crafts, and stories in a modern way.
Sattar’s own label, Ami Dhaka, shows this belief in action. He calls its style “Heritage Futurism,” which means he updates traditional Bangladeshi craft techniques for today’s world. Each piece is handmade with great care, and even the size labels are hand-stitched to honour slow, thoughtful craftsmanship. In Moscow, Sattar wore unreleased Ami Dhaka pieces, a visual statement that means “I am Dhaka.” He says he wears the city’s history, present, and future and is proud to take that story to the world.
The BRICS+ Fashion Summit was a high-level event where delegates from around the world discussed the future of the industry. Moscow Fashion Week, which ran at the same time, showed a variety of designs, from luxury to contemporary styles, with international designers from countries like China and Brazil. Sattar was impressed by how Russian heritage and modernism blended on the runways. He feels Moscow Fashion Week is becoming a major global fashion capital.
This trip to Moscow strengthened Sattar’s belief in the importance of international collaboration. He sees Arka Fashion Week as a bridge for Bangladeshi designers and creatives to connect with fashion weeks around the world. The platform also plans to welcome international talent to Dhaka for a real cultural exchange. This vision fits with the BRICS International Fashion Federation, which was launched in Moscow in 2024 with members from over 50 nations.
Sattar and his team are now preparing for the next Arka Fashion Week, scheduled for December 4 – 7 at the Aloki Convention Centre in Dhaka. The fourth and largest event will celebrate Bangladesh’s artisan and craft heritage, updating it for a global audience. Arka Fashion Week was built without big investors and has quickly become the country’s largest fashion platform. It is a community-driven, not-for-profit event focused on building culture. Sattar’s main goal is to firmly place Dhaka on the global fashion map as a hub for creativity, youth culture, and South Asian fashion.