Day One of the Lakmé Fashion Week
Winter/Festive 2012 season opened with a great show by the Gen Next designers
who displayed to an applauding audience their creations featuring innovative
and unconventional fashion. These great finds by Lakmé Fashion Week will once
again give the Indian fashion industry the bright young stars to watch out for.
Aniket Satam – A New Fashion Beginning
Calling his collection “Aarambh”
(New Beginning) Aniket Satam’s creations came to life for the designer while
reading about the Mayan myth of 2012. Celebrating a new beginning in fashion,
Aniket’s layered silhouettes had elaborate tactile texturing to present a
creative collection. Shades of milk, ivory, cobalt and ink were splashed on
sensuous viscose georgette, cotton jersey, raw silk and velvet. Aniket added
embellishments that ranged from hints of gold foil to ghungroos, which
highlighted the very unconventional abstract embroidery with splashes of
colour.
Asa Kazingmei – Immortal Fashion
Presenting his collection titled
“Immortal” Asa Kazingmei was inspired by the beauty of the Naga Tribe’s
textiles of Tngkhul. Unconventional thread work and weaves of the fabrics were
highlighted by the creativity of Asa. Interesting lattice work on black and
maroon sheaths and stunning abstract prints for asymmetric hemline dresses were
the eye-catching additions to his range.
Using the beautiful shawls –
Raivat and Chonkhom, Asa transformed them into amazing couture creations with
unbelievable cutting and construction techniques. The opening asymmetric dress
in chiffon and hand woven fabric was a stunner; followed by the two piece dress
with a wired hemline in fiery red. Each piece was a show stopper as sensational
stand up collars and wired curved and asymmetric skirts dazzled the audience
with the colourful weaves of the Manipur region.
Astha Sethi And Sidharth Arora – A Stylish Androgynous Look
Displaying a cute but quirky
androgynous collection, Astha Sethi and Sidharth Arora had a fun line of
women’s wear. Shoulder emphasis, sharp constructions and colourful play of hues
were used for a line of clothing that had hints of seduction with touches of
unconventional style. Calling their collection “Comical Fellow” the designers
worked with only blue, yellow and black. The fabrics choice was Lycra,
georgette, satin, tulle and organza with an added touch of solid acrylic for
collars, shoulder pieces and even capes. The figure hugging pants, the moulded
jackets, the jacket dresses, and gowns with corded bodice were a brilliant
piece of imaginative fashion and style. For visually arresting glamour, the
“Comical Fellow” was a collection which will evoke only accolades.
Kavita Sharma – Intricately Embellished
“It’s a Beautiful Life” was the
collection that Kavita Sharma showed on the ramp which displayed touches of
elegance and simplicity. Keeping true to her theme, the inspirations were
simple and naive like a telephone booth, children’s park, zebra crossing, ice
cream parlour and clock tower which were used for the intricately crafted
embellished dresses, long skirts and seductive tops.
Richa Aggarwal – Street Art to the Fore
Street Art in fashion came alive
in the collection by Richa Aggarwal. Bringing in a marked touch of desi
styling, Richa’s inspiration was definitely rustic as her ideas were drawn from
the kitschy colours and style of slum dwellers in the country. The vibrant mix
of fabrics and hues of the street was evident in her designs as multi patterned
pants, stylish waist coats, cool tops and colourful capris revealed some
traditional textiles and crafts.
Sneha Arora – A Fashionable Shift
Sneha Arora’s collection called
“Paradigm” was inspired by her former corporate life, so the designer’s shift
to fashion encouraged her to present an interesting line of women’s wear. From
cute comfy dresses, to skirts, tops and then onto crisp jackets, trousers and
striking dresses; the collection revealed a fresh and stylish take on comfort
wear for the busy working women.
Opening the display with a face
printed dress with box pleat detail at back and a shoulder zip, Sneha continued
with the same print for dresses teamed with pleated back skirt, added cubic
prints for shirts and poly viscose for sharply cut blazers then moved to poly
wool for dress, a grey blazer and ended with a stunning black backless dress
with cube detailing and imposing collar. Here was a perfect line for the
stylish woman who wants to make a great sartorial impression.
Mehak Pruthi, Kanika Seth And Ankit Sharma – Dramatic Construction
Inspired by the fabulous 3D film
“Avatar”, Mehak Pruthi, Kanika Seth and Ankit Sharma presented a collection
called “Clandestine” that was a visual treat on the ramp. Highly stylised with
dramatic construction, the clothes aimed to project a new personality for the
wearer. Stretch fabrics, deep tones of purple, acid green and black came to
life for body contouring leggings and moulded tops.
The
look was almost futuristic with hooded pullover for men and crafted Banaras net
jackets with EVA sleeves teamed with net hipsters for women. The EVA effect
appeared for double breasted suits, crepe maxi with shoulder blades, tunic with
embossed hood and the show ended on a high note with a net maxi dress. For a
look that will cause a stir at any event, the designers gave the “Clandestine”
collection the arresting detailing.
