Shashank Saurabh

For years, eyewear in India lived rather quietly in the fashion hierarchy. You bought a pair because you needed one, replaced it when it broke and rarely thought of it as a serious expression of personal style. But fashion has a way of turning the functional into the desirable… and eyewear is having its ‘style’ moment. Frames are getting bolder, silhouettes more sculptural, colours more expressive and, increasingly, a pair of sunglasses is being chosen with the same deliberation as a watch, sneaker or statement accessory.

At the centre of this shift is Shashank Saurabh, Co-Founder and CEO of QUE Universe, a fashion-premium eyewear brand attempting to change the way Indians look at… and look through… eyewear. Rather than competing purely on functionality or price, QUE Universe is building its proposition around trend-led design, rapid innovation, premium collections and creator-driven storytelling. With over 150 styles spanning everything from aviators and wayfarers to sculptural, oversized and expressive frames, the brand is treating eyewear less like an optical necessity and more like a fashion language.

And there is a larger idea behind the frames. Shashank believes consumers today don’t simply buy products; they use them to communicate who they are. That is particularly visible among younger shoppers, for whom style can shift with mood, occasion, travel plans or even the feed they’re scrolling through. QUE’s distinctly Indian vocabulary… names such as Tatva, Sukoon, Shunya, Rahi and Saanjh… adds another layer to that proposition, marrying Indian references with contemporary design and a global ambition.

With Shikhar Dhawan as its brand ambassador and a growing presence across D2C and major marketplaces, QUE Universe is betting that the future of eyewear belongs somewhere between fashion, identity, technology and self-expression. And perhaps the most interesting question is no longer “Which sunglasses should I buy?” but “What does the pair I choose say about me?”

In this exclusive interview with Sumita Chakraborty, Founder & Editor-in-Chief, TheGlitz, Shashank Saurabh, Co-Founder and CEO of QUE Universe, talks about Que Universe, turning eyewear into a fashion statement, decoding Gen Z, predicting the next big frame trends, building a premium Indian brand with global ambitions, and why the right pair of eyewear may change not just how the world sees you but how you see yourself.

Over To Shashank Saurabh, Co-Founder & CEO, QUE Universe

Eyewear has evolved from being a functional necessity to becoming an extension of personal style and identity. What inspired you to build QUE Universe as a fashion-first premium eyewear brand, and how do you see the category evolving in India over the next few years?

Shashank Saurabh – Eyewear in India was largely treated as an accessory that you bought once and wore until it broke, but as consumer behaviour has changed dramatically and across categories, products have increasingly become extensions of identity; eyewear was yet to make that transition fully. For me, the opportunity was quite simple: sunglasses were being treated either as a basic utility or as a luxury purchase, and there was a gap in between.

So we started QUE with a simple question: why should a pair of sunglasses feel like every other pair? We wanted people to look at a frame the way they look at a sneaker or a watch, as the category is moving in that direction, and consumers now love to explore eyewear around style, mood, occasion, and personality, alongside comfort and protection.

⁠Today’s consumers, especially Gen Z, don’t simply follow trends… they create them. How has this new generation influenced the way QUE Universe designs its collections, communicates its brand story, and engages with its audience?

Shashank Saurabh – Gen Z wants to explore products in a way that feels personal, and that has influenced how we structure QUE. We have more than 150 eyewear styles across different shapes, styles, occasions, and perspectives, giving customers a wider choice to find something that feels like them. Someone looking for an aviator can explore QUE Nazar or QUE Saanjh, while a wayfarer buyer may find QUE Gulaal or QUE Taraash. The same frame can also sit within a broader occasion such as City, Everyday, Road Trip, Travel, or Work. That makes the experience closer to how people actually shop fashion today.

QUE Universe is known for its rapid product innovation and trend-led collections. Could you take us behind the scenes of your trend-forecasting process? How do you identify what’s next before it becomes mainstream?

We track two things in parallel: what’s moving on global runways and what’s actually converting on Indian feeds and marketplaces. Our catalogue gives us useful signals across aviators, wayfarers, clubmasters, round, rimless, and cat-eye shapes, with styles ranging from minimal and classic to bold, retro, oversized, and sleek. In 2026, oversized and sculptural frames are getting more attention, while aviators continue to evolve. Names such as QUE Tatva, Sol, Aranya, Sutra, Prith and Raga bring Indian references into contemporary eyewear, and our Sports category explores TR90, UV400, semi-polarised lenses and performance-led designs.

⁠With a growing presence across your own website, Myntra, and Amazon, how important is an omnichannel strategy in building a premium lifestyle brand today? Do different platforms cater to different consumer mindsets?

Shashank Saurabh – People today do not really shop on a single platform, they may discover a pair of sunglasses on Instagram, check it out on a marketplace, and then come to the brand website to explore the collection before making a decision. So Myntra and Amazon serve according to different buying behaviours and are equally important because omnichannel growth helps us by making the brand easier to discover and buy while keeping the product and experience consistent.

Someone coming to queuniverse.com, spending more time exploring the brand, collections, and stories. That is why our current growth plan is focused on strengthening D2C and expanding across major marketplaces.

⁠Shikhar Dhawan is a strong brand ambassador for QUE Universe. Beyond celebrity associations, what do you believe truly builds long-term brand loyalty in today’s highly competitive fashion and lifestyle market?

Shikhar Dhawan is the Brand Ambassador of QUE, and his belief in movement, individuality, and creating your own path fits naturally with what we as a brand stand for, but long-term loyalty still depends on what happens after the first purchase. Fit, comfort, design, protection, and quality are the basics we keep looking at through customer feedback, reviews, and repeat purchases. Today, creators, influencers, and celebrities are choosing QUE and we have more than 100,000 people who love QUE, which gives the brand a meaningful base of real consumer interaction to learn from. We believe that long-term loyalty comes when the next product still feels relevant to the person who bought the first one.

Fashion is seasonal, but style is timeless. How do seasonal trends influence eyewear buying behaviour, and what colours, silhouettes, or design directions do you believe will define the next big wave in premium eyewear?

Shashank Saurabh – Seasons change, but the right pair of eyewear can stay with you for years. Summer, travel, holidays, and celebrations can influence when people buy sunglasses. In premium eyewear, I see the next wave moving towards stronger silhouettes with more attention to proportion and detail. Oversized and sculptural frames will continue to have a place, while refined aviators, geometric shapes, and expressive cat-eyes can add variety. Materials, lightweight construction, and lens technology are the features people look at while purchasing eyewear, and it is increasingly influencing how premium eyewear is designed and experienced.

As an entrepreneur, what legacy do you hope QUE Universe will leave behind? Beyond creating beautiful eyewear, what larger impact do you hope the brand will have on the way Indians perceive fashion, confidence, and self-expression?

I want QUE Universe to change how Indians think about eyewear as a category, from something functional you replace reluctantly to something you choose deliberately the way you choose an outfit and see other fashion accessories. What you wear doesn’t just change how the world sees you, it changes how you see the world; this idea sits in the heart of our brand.

Even the names we give our frames, like Rahi, Sukoon, Tatva and Shunya, draw from Indian words, emotions, and experiences, while the designs remain contemporary. QUE was born in India, takes its perspective from here, and has a global ambition. If we can make eyewear feel more personal and expressive, that is the legacy worth building.

THEGLITZ TAKE

The interesting shift in eyewear isn’t just that sunglasses are getting bigger, bolder or more fashionable… it’s that we’re finally treating frames as style changers with hinges. Shashank Saurabh and QUE Universe get that. In a market obsessed with what we wear, eyewear may be the one accessory that literally changes the way we see ourselves.

TheGlitz says: stop buying sunglasses to hide behind them. Buy the pair that says exactly who you are.