PREDICTING fashion trends is serious business in the West where styles are determined up to a year in advance. In India, the exercise usually begins around September-October when designers gear themselves for the festival and wedding seasons to follow.

So around this time, every year, the fashion industry breaks into a flurry of activity with countless shows and launches vying for media attention. What emerges, however, is an exhibit of a lot of copycat styles and straight rip-offs from the pages of western design catalogues.

"We don’t seem to realise that fashion is 99 per cent research and 1 per cent creativity," says Harleen Sabharwal, a professional trend forecaster, who has been critical about the repetitiveness of styles on the Indian ramp.

"We see a broad uniformity in colour, fabric and technology amidst diverse brands, simply because fashion trends come to India directly from Paris and Italy. The only thing that matters is who introduces these trends here, and that designer then capitalises on the newness."

However, away from the glare of popping flashbulbs and champagne corks, there is a fast-emerging breed of young designers who do their homework, taking into account social and environmental influences as well as New Age factors like advertising while launching a collection.

Names like Madhu Nair, Radhika Tarapore and Anuradha Vakil may not ring a bell as yet, but they could well turn out to the most decisive forces to influence fashion trends in years to come by virtue of sheer creative energy and originality of designs.

Madhu runs the Leela Studio in Mumbai and directs her designs at young working women. For instance, she recently came up with an exquisite Chinese crepe collection that is at once chic and affordable. "The fabric comes in grey from China and is then dyed, printed and embroidered in our studio," she says.

From fun stuff like wraps, kaftans, beachwear and kimonos, Nair offers some interesting mix-‘n’-match options such as simple, collarless black and white printed crepe jackets, beige embroidered crepe blouses and black silk drawstring trousers.

An ornate cut-work blouse can be worn over a flesh-coloured camisole with a beige chamois satin saree or teamed with an elaborate calf-length skirt or even a conventional lehnga with a matching dupatta. Embroidered jackets and kurtis are other alternatives she offers in place of the cut-work blouse.

In western wear, there’s Jay Ramrakhiani who makes two or three pieces per style and never repeats himself. "We use the best fabrics, buttons, lining, fusing from Selfridges and Marks and Spencers," he declares about his top-of-the-line business suits.

There are also elegant black dresses with matching belts and lovely silk scarves, sleeveless tunics having oriental buttons and teamed with black self-designed trousers and an exquisite jute collection of sleeveless dresses and shirts, worn with black pinstriped trousers.

There’s also Anuradha Vakil from Ahmedabad who has earned a reputation for her "revivalist mission" working on forgotten craft traditions from different parts of the country. She has merging them into modern fashion wear.

"I do these mix and matches from different states and then implement the designs in my fabrics," she explains. "For instance, my focus on vegetable dyes takes me to Madhya Pradesh where bagh printing is superb. I will marry this tradition with the kalamkari works of Andhra Pradesh!"

Radhika Tarapore also makes suits and coats, but unlike others, embellishes them with hand-embroidered zardozi. That she is able to create the most fabulous silhouettes out of commonplace fabrics like chiffon, georgette, crepe and satin, sets her in a class by herself.

But when it comes to predicting design directions, the general consensus is that loose, free-flowing coordinates would replace the tailored look, while on the colour front, pastels will make way for baby blues, beige, lilac, golden and other vibrant shades.

"Very soon we will have beautiful Indian and jungle prints with gold khari work," says Tarapore. "Go for a coordinated look with loose flowing kaftans, robes, tie-up shirts and drawstring pants. These would go very well with the right accessories — bags, caps and sun glasses."

Among jewellery options, antique pieces are getting back in fashion, according to Indira Bhojwani, who owns Mumbai’s famous Chikadashi Store. But then, these would not be restricted to Indian designs alone, but include a good deal of "east-west fusion" styles.

Her necklace collection is particularly sensational. It includes a breathtaking piece of uncut Colombian emeralds in deep green perfectly graduated with four carved gold pieces as well as another, with five strands of African rubies having Vilandi clasps and Basra pearls.

"Much of conventional Indian jewellery is jadhav (studded filigree work) with precious stones and minakari (enamel) work at the rear," she explains. "With uncut diamonds, rubies, emeralds and Basra pearls, these age-old designs will acquire a new character." MF