Water irony

Show-stopper Kareena Kapoor Khan with designer Gaurav Gupta. Pic/Shadab Khan

Guests sat on the front seats of their respective cars rather than traditional front rows. The sprawling 37,000 square-foot space at Bandra Kurla Complex's (BKC) Jio World Convention Centre featured a 28-foot high waterfall pattering down on the 30-foot long transparent acrylic hexagon diamond-like tunnel, with a staircase. Against the backdrop of an AV playing underwater footage and the sound of lapping ocean waves, models paraded their way through the scaffold tunnel and onto the diametrically 100-foot circular catwalk, stapled with glossy plastic sheets, stomping above four-inches of water in their heels.

Such was the "showmanship" set designed for couturier Gaurav Gupta's aquatic-themed Lakmé Absolute Grand Finale show held on October 10. But the fact that it took 90,000 litres of water to pay a literal homage to the marine creatures at a 26-minute spectacle adds to the sustainability question. Its organisers, RISE and Lakmé shared a joint statement with mid-day: "The water used on the set during this season's grand finale is planned to be consciously diverted for reuse after recycling. The water is being treated at the sewage treatment plant on site for it to be reused for the purposes of flushing, landscaping, and horticulture."

Xerxes Antia, co-partner and COO at 70 EMG, headed the team behind the titanic-scale set design. His company has worked on 15 shows for the fashion event, and says creating the oceanic set was both memorable and challenging. It took almost two months to conceive and implement Gupta's idea into reality, and seven hours to erect the set by a team of 50. "That was my main concern from the beginning," says the couturier about using 90,000 litres of water. "But after multiple conversations with the organisers, we made sure that the water [used] would be diverted the next morning for plants." The collection itself, Gupta says, was a commentary not only on destructive effects of ocean plastics but also the possibilities of using sustainable fabrics made from recycling wrappers of crisps and biscuits, and plastic bottles. "About 50 per cent of the collection is made from recycled ocean waste. Communication is important; [establishing] the fact that it is possible. I hope to take orders on these clothes," says Gupta.

The just-concluded FDCI x LFW season heralded a return to a few traditional runway shows along with digital presentations after a long and unsettling 19 months. We are at a critical crossroads. The pandemic is still very much a reality, and so are the conversations about fashion weeks offsetting the climate crisis and carbon emissions. According to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, textile production uses around 93 billion cubic meters of water annually - the equivalent of 37 million Olympic swimming pools.

To some bemused observers, the dramatic irony that Gupta's show, designed to make a point against environmental pollution and plastic, revealed itself using 90,000 litres of water is not totally lost.

Choosing to show at a venue closer to a natural water body could have made a grander statement on reducing water footprint. To wit: in September at the London Fashion Week, designer Rejina Pyo's show opened with Team GB athletes plunging from the diving board at the London Aquatic Centre. "For obvious sustainability issues, I don't want to build a set for a show that gets dismantled and thrown away the next day, so I was looking for somewhere that had water and also a sense of drama," Pyo had told Guardian. Every action has a consequence, but the key is balance, Gupta reasons. "In a way, I am happy that the water is going to be used for plants. I can sleep well knowing this."