02 August,2011 09:07 AM IST | | Piali Dasgupta
Narendra Kumar Ahmed
10.30 pm
It's a delight to see Nari before his show. Unlike most in his league, the designer chills with a glass of cocktail with his model and choreographer friends. He doesn't get antsy even if he's bagged a grand finale show. It's only when you see his collection that you understand where that confidence comes from. At the grand finale, he showed a corporate wear collection inspired by Franz Kafka's The Trial.
Narendra Kumar Ahmed with Zarine Khan Pics/ Sanjay MD
The show opened with the steady sound of typewriters, although one could barely see the models sitting behind them. He didn't waver from the accepted workwear colour palette. So, it was a conservative collection when it came to the colour stories. But his work line is a perfect antithesis to Monday morning blues. There were a lot of fitted ankle length silk pants in off white for women, teamed with off white self work blouses.
For men, there were finely tailored tuxes and suits, the latter came with pocket squares, giving it a vintage feel. More men should wear pocket squares. After all, Gregory Peck always did. Most of his women were covered from head to toe - there were jumpsuits with a kimono-inspired neck. capris, stunning pant suits and blouses with chiffon ruffled sleeves that redefined femininity. The after hours line, was of course, zanier. Nari even knows how to work an insipid colour like tangerine. He made a gown with box pleats out of it and the city watched wide-eyed. The lemon gown with a feather top was the other scene stealer.
Other designers experimenting with feathers should take a cue from him. He gave the men lean trousers folded at the ankle for the after hours and sharp suits and shirts for boardrooms. The silhouettes were fuss-free and practical. The showstopper attire was a smokey brown fish tail gown with self work and hints of sequins that actress Zarine Khan did complete justice to. Just that her name wasn't even announced before she made a grand entry leaving quite a few aghast!
Ashish Sahani
4.30 pm
Even if you don't know Ashish, you can deduce that the Kolkata-based designer, an alumnus of NIFT, Kolkata, loves challenges. For, how many designers would dare to pick only one shade of a colour for their entire line? Besides risking monotony, it also tires the eyes, especially if it's an unexciting shade of bark brown in pure cotton.
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Designer Ashish Sahani with a model at his show
Of course, he also incorporated hints of beige to bring in some variation in the garments. The choice of colour did irk us in the beginning, but he completely won us over with his mature western line for women that largely consisted of shift dresses.
The only other constant in his collection was coconut buttons in all sizes with which he embellished his dresses. Kudos to Ashish for demonstrating as many styles, silhouettes and kinds of surface texturing as possible through the dresses.u00a0 There were inverted pleats, box patterns, cowl necks and pronounced side pockets that made the garments edgy yet simple. As bottoms, he made high waist pants and fitted bermudas making the collection one of the most functional ones in the week.u00a0 Itu00a0 also seemed like a very economical collection given that he used just two shades of the cotton fabric and steered clear of expensive embellishments. His clothes are for the thinking woman who has moved beyond the body con look.u00a0 Exceptional vision in his very first show. A star is born.u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0
Rupa G
5.30 pm
When Israeli-American designer Yigal Azrou l said it's easier to design for men, he probably spoke for his ilk. For, why do some designers who make perfectly tailored suave clothes for men don't treat women's wear in the same way? Take Rupa G's collection for instance.
The newbie showed well made cotton shirts in pastels (a soothing sky blue and a pleasant green) along with fitted trousers in her men's line. Agreed the shirts didn't really follow theu00a0u00a0autumn/ winter colour code, but they made for great separates. But the eve line, replete with embellishment, looked much like the cheap partywear that's imported from Bangkok and Hong Kong by unpretentious high street shops. The garments lacked finesse, imagination and even glamouru00a0-- something the designer tried so hard to achieve. There were a few that showed some promise though, like a black and grey blingless number or even a fishscale LBD with the right amount of silver sequins around the neck. But overall, it was disheartening to see a lack lustre party line which reached crescendo with the show stopper attire - a burgundy dress that had a suspended waist line, nets, shimmer and diamantes all in the same piece. You be the judge.u00a0
Lawman Jeans
7. 30 pm
Cat calls. Wolf Whistles. Hoots. And a lot of skin. The Lawman show seemed like a Bollywood potboiler. Men with bronzed abs and grease on their body wore the firefighter look and women in halters and loads of attitude walked the ramp in a show that screamed youth. Oh, and they allu00a0 wore denims.
The skinny walked next to the ripped, and the sandblasted raced with the folded hemmed. There were also short denim skirts on women and denims in almost all shades of blue including the very rare klein. A fun show it was.
