Fashion designer and former supermodel Simar Dugal (55) died on August 12 after having battled cancer for a long time.

Several Bollywood celebrities, including Malaika Arora, Shweta Bachchan, and Sophie Choudhary mourned her passing. TV achor and radio jockey Roshan Abbas wrote on his Twitter page, "To an outsider in the fashion world as a compere there was always your reassuring smile and sweetness. One of the people who made me feel comfortable in my highly unfashionable clothes in my early RJ days. Always warm, always positive. RIP#SimarDugal." Calling her an elegant and compassionate person, designer Rina Dhaka said, "Simar was brave ...elegant and fought on with a smile bravely till her last breath. In loving memory of my beautiful friend. It’s not like I did not know this could happen any day but nothing really prepares you. Simar, every picture of yours I see, I’m flooded with memories. I remember long back we were doing a show of mine in London, and as we left the hotel to walk to Bond Street, you opened your hair, wore a red lipstick and voila, everyone was checking you out. Simar was brave, elegant and fought on with a smile bravely till her last breath. Her voice is still in my head. She epitomized complete compassion and love like no one else. I pray for her family, her son Arjan, Rajit, Radhika, her beautiful mother in their time of this loss. She has really shown a way of how to defeat death with love."

With immense sorrow, actress Malaika Arora wrote, "My eyes well up n I can't stop the tears .... my beautiful friend, my angel, my strongest, my most compassionate sim ... love u n miss u so so much .... rest in peace my friend." In an Instagram post, designer Ritu Kumar had mentioned, "She was special to me... We all travelled all over the world and she was particularly interested in history and content. On the ramp, she brought to the table a grace, attitude and intelligence, as well as beauty which was all her own and rare in the world of fashion. Her body language told a story which conveyed much more than the clothes she wore. She was highly intelligent, a wonderful human being and a friend as we shared a love for textiles. She fought a very difficult battle, for several years now, with cancer, and survived the years she lived ,with a brave face which was exemplary. For me her passing away seems as if an era of fashion in India has also gone, perhaps not ever to come back again in quite the same way.I have also lost a friend and a muse. She will be truly missed. My deepest condolences to her family, who have been pillars of strength through her tough journey to the end."