Even if a certain section of Indians take pride in sporting a Roberto Cavalli or a Versace, even if the retailers stock their space with creations of these names or a small segment of young crop of designers draw inspiration from the fashion Gods of the West, Raghavendra Rathore will hold on to his reputation of being an Indian by birth (of course) and, more importantly, by actions.

We introduce him as the one who promotes designs of India. “I am a designer who makes simple efforts to keep the DNA of Indian fashion intact.” Instead of referring to his collection or designs, he explains the ‘DNA factor’ using an example that matters to all Indians. “The symbol to denote the Rupee has the essence of India, yet it has universal appeal. It will represent India throughout the world, as the character has been taken from the Devanagari script.” And he too indulged in a lot of doodling for the design of the Rupee!

Raghavendra prefers to stick to the basics, which once again he do by presenting the collection comprising kaftans, band gala jackets (also his forte), achkans and lehangas at his show. “The Indian costumes have been rendered a fresh look by selecting a few elements from the designs of middle- east.”

And it’s not an obsession with the craft of India, but a justified approach to present before people the classic Indian fashion. “How will people abroad realise the artistic value of the classic and royal fashion of India, until we do? It’s in fact our USP or a foolproof strategy gifted to us by our embroiders and designers.” He adds that people buy Indian creations because of the embroidery on them. “And if we stop doing that just because it’s the old Indian design, we will end up confusing customers and losing them.”

Raghavendra views Chandigarh as an important market that has strong influences of traditional crafts. “Don’t people still love to flaunt a phulkari here on special occasions? A trousseau might have a creations from various brands but a phulkari, which doesn’t even bear the name of the artist, finds respectable space.” It comes as flattery when he says that it is only for Chandigarh and Hyderabad besides the metros, that he designs a different collection altogether. “Only because cultural influences are so deeply imbibed in people here,” he says.

Against replacing the Indian designs, he feels the designers here need to do away with the age-old strategies of selling creations. “A fashion designer needs to work as a corporate house does. Research before deciding upon the themes, colours and fabrics is very important. There should also be management strategies to retail and price the creations well. It’s high time the dynamics of fashion changed from entertainment to economic.”

Raghavendra believes that the future of Indian fashion industry is sound, “Only if the Gen-next sticks to the aesthetics of Indian designs and uses contemporary means of advertising Indian fashion rather than experimenting with the First World’s fashion.” Sounds like ‘Brand India’ promotion campaign!

ashima@tribunemail.com

There is no such term as new fashion or trend, for fashion has a cycle and there are no end points. We had bell-bottoms in the 70’s and then again in the late nineties. “But there was a difference in terms of fabric, silhouettes and cuts. That is what fashion is all about, revamping old designs,” comes the definition of fashion from the designer duo Rahul and Gunjan.

Eight years in the industry and they have seen it evolve. Ask them the most important change they have observed and they share the one that’s even easy for a layman to understand. “It’s not only on the ramp that Bollywood celebs flaunt designer wear, they do it in films also, which in a way promote the creations.” Prateek Babbar and Chitrangada Singh will be sporting their collection in their upcoming movie, ‘Sufi’. At the show here, they will be presenting collection of cocktail wear meant only for Indian women. “We titled it ‘Jewels’ because Indian women have an emotional connect with the jewellery and we wanted them to feel the same for these creations,” says Rahul. Indian designers now have tough competition in the form of international brand Zara that is opening retail stores in all the metros. “It would compel Indian designers to review the fashion scenario. Pricing and branding have to be analysed again to match up to the standards of Zara. In fact, this would make the designer wear more affordable,” they say. Hope to see more Rahul and Gunjan, Satya Paul, JJ Vallaya creations in social circles! 

Couture for the fashionistas and couture for the elite - when fashion has to cater to the combination of both, it has to offer more than the Swarovski bejewelled creations by best of the designers, a display by A-list models and choreographers. Even more than the Bollywood biggies on the ramp! Precisely, like it did at the recently concluded Delhi Couture Week or Tarun Tahliani’s show, which was grand, extravagant and ostentatious.

A Swarvoski-laden elephant at the entrance of the Emporio mall, a ‘mandap’, mannequins as ‘baratis’, and garlands set the stage for Tarun Tahiliani’s fashion show, titled The Procession. The ramp for Rohit Bal’s show extended to the swimming pool at the Aman Hotel. Victorian grace was reflected at Pallavi Jaikishen’s show through clothes and the backdrop. Every fashion show had something special about it to make the couture week special and who minds doing the extra bit, when not just the creations, the entire paraphernalia wins accolades for the designers. “Presenting the designs on the ramp without a suitable backdrop at the couture show would be similar to selling a solitaire wrapped in a waste paper,” says Pallavi, who recreated the magic of Venetian fashion. So, the backdrop was conceptualised and given tangible shape in a month’s time before the beginning of the couture week. She gives the details, “I commissioned a painting for the show. Placed in the backdrop, it was blown up using projector and lights that rendered a look as if trees and arches were also used on the set.”

Grill for the staircase was imported from Paris. Also there was a dining table and chandeliers to complete the picture.

Jai of Parvesh Jai designer duo, alumni of NIIFT views the recent trend of elaborate sets as a step towards matching international standards. He adds, “Couture is a piece of art. It comprises creations that have fine detailing, are hand-crafted and meant for those who know, and appreciate fashion. Presentation enhances the grace of the collection and people have always welcomed frills and freebies.” He says that the shows by Pallavi and Tarun remind him of the one by Karl Lergerfield at the Paris Fashion Week, where models walked the ramp after climbing down a fifty feet high staircase and horse carts.

Albeit Rohit Bal didn’t use any set for his show, he created the ambience for his theme Khakasrtari —colours of ash rising with a light and sound show. “A fashion show is about selling a concept. It’s promoted and sold better when you create an ambience that complements the collection,” says Rakeysh Aggarwal, an ace fashion designer. He has reasons for selecting Rohit Bal’s show as his favourite, “The concept of playing with lights in different colours was fresh, innovative and drew attention towards the collection. The way the clothes spread in water added to the beauty of the designs.” What makes the backdrop as important as the collection is the term couture itself. As Pallavi says, “Couture is meant for the classes who are well aware of the international fashion standards. To please them, we aspire to maintain the standards not only through clothes, but also the stage. It also projects the fashion scene of India in the fashion capitals of the world and can provide impetus to the Indian markets.”

Designer Nandita Raipurani, who has studied fashion from the city says the second India Couture Week and Tarun’s show has been a success for the creations and the way they were presented. “Tarun Tahiliani and Pallavi Jaikishen’s collection caught immediate attention of the fashion connoisseurs due to the extravagant arrangements they made to showcase it. Similar experiments are expected in the future to market the designers and their creations better.” Couture and creativity sure goes beyond fabrics, colour scheme, silhouettes and designs!

ashima@tribunemail.com

Anil Kapoor's first home production, produced by his younger daughter Rhea and starring his elder daughter Sonam, is lavishly mounted but has a brittle heart. The story is unbelievable and the chick-lit fare is un-engaging. Despite being a solo release this week; this one is more likely to fall right off the screens in the first few weeks itself!

Film: Aisha

Director: Rajshree Ojha

Cast: Sonam Kapoor, Abhay Deol, Ira Dubey, Cyrus Sahukar, Amrita Puri, Arunoday Singh and others

Rajshreee Ojha's Aisha, driven by familial love, has very little to offer to the film-going audience. A luscious home production from the Anil Kapoor branch, Aisha seeks to retro-rewind Jane Austen's Emma in order to play-up to the 'clueless' gennext. Aisha (Sonam), an elitist delhite, is a meddlesome matchmaker from hell who tries to forge matches out of mismatched pairs.

She thinks she is a social worker of sorts…She takes it on herself to find a match for small-town girl Shefali (Amrita Puri), sets her up with Randhir (Cyrus Sahukar) who appears to be more in love with her than Shefali. The next one on Aisha's list is Shalini whom she seeks to match-up with Dhruv (Arunoday Singh) and then the next one. But childhood friend Arjun Burman (Abhay Deol) is not amused by her interference and tries to scuttle all her efforts. The film is fashioned with a lot of care and a great deal of money. Considering it's a home production with sister Rhea, playing producer, one would have expected a more meaningful and interesting take. But that was not to be. The costumes are fabulous, beautifully accessorized and becomingly colour co-ordinated. But it's all so superficial and meaningless as the story appears so unreal.

Elite Delhi is not the same as 19th century England. The milieu and the character compulsions of those days in England are so different from what it is today in modern India, that most of what transpires on screen here stands out in unflattering detail. The aesthetics are all wrong here. One can understand a meddlesome friend doing the honours of matchmaking but allowing someone so unrelated and head-up-in-the-clouds like Aisha, force find a match for anyone, appears mostly improbable. What makes her an expert? Why would she be so obsessive about an ability that she doesn't possess? We never get to understand her reasoning. It is all just forced down our throats and therefore becomes cause for a great deal of discomfort. Arjun becomes the counterpoint but his presence is more hindrance than believable. His childhood friend act, one who suddenly appears to spark a love-interest in Aisha, is just not happening onscreen. There is zero chemistry between the two actors. They appear more likely to be good friends than passionate lovers. Also everything that happens on screen is imminently predictable and unsurprising. Slim, pretty and exquisitely turned-out Sonam, in her early twenties, appears most unlikely as a retrofitted modish Emma. Clothes definitely don't make a character. In this instance they mar it. Devika Bhagat's story is untenable while Ojha's narration merely exploits the chic content. Sonam's performance is likeable but her range is still suspect. Abhay Deol is natural as usual. Amrita Puri makes a good impression and Ira sparkles to best effect as Aisha's buddy Pinky. The experience on the whole, though, is way short of satisfactory!

Part of her is the observant kinds, looking around unassumingly for things, patterns on the wall, colours of flowers vases, dress of a passerby that could fit into her inspiration pattern. Designer Asmita Marwah from Hyderabad admits that the designer in her never switches off. “This is how I have trained my sensibilities,” she smiles.

Showcasing her collection Mediterranean Knots, the designer brings in her free spirit into the collection. “Maya, the free-spirited world traveller, bohemian at heart, dreams of the world without boundaries. And the only accessory that she ‘carries’ is a 60-ft Yatch,” she laughs. Creativity is what we simply term it as. “I can never cease to imagine, otherwise I would cease to create,” she avers. Presentation is the new buzzword in the fashion industry… Rohit Bal and lotus display in the latest couture week. “It is great, fashion is also visually appealing. The presentation, the background score, everything adds to the appeal,” says Marwah. — Jasmine Singh

Bridal Affair-2010 opened to a jam-packed crowd on Saturday morning at The Taj-17. The exhibition offers mehandi wala, sehra, juttis, bride and groom apparel, jewellery and almost everything to set up a home.

Sanghi's, named after a village in Haryana, offer a rich variety in saris - cotton, silk and chiffon, suits and lehangas to choose from. Edge, from Patiala, present men's traditional wear embellished with swarovski, stones and zardosi.

The special jewellery arcade offers all diamonds, gold, kundan, polki from established names like SS Jewellers, Celeste and Anmol Diamonds. It seems to be swarovski's season, as one finds Glass Palace's latest collection of furniture adorned with huge swarovski pieces and gold leafing.To embellish your home, Studio Europa has brought some of the finest vases in glass customised from Portugal .

Saltt has offers to tantalise your guest's taste buds with their exquisite array. "Our USP is the customised menus and dazzling presentation that we give to fantastic food," says Sammir S Gogia, the man behind Saltt. Magic Moment promises to record and store your precious memories with their high quality videos and albums in as many as six patterns. With a starting package of Rs 95,000, they offer their services anywhere. Kuoni Holidays are there to plan your honeymoon around the world.Chocolates, bedspreads, trousseau packings, handicrafts, bags, shoes, linen, Bridal Affairs is brimming with stuff and interested buyers!

(On till today)

Actions speak louder than words — is what celebrated designer Abdul Halder and his stunning creations testify. Having almost all celebrated fashion weeks in India as well as abroad to his credit and distinction of creating an ensemble for Pop King Michael Jackson for the album Ghost, it was but natural that his trousseau collection at Bridal Affair-2010 was a huge hit.

"We specialise in pre as well as post marriage wear meant for the times when a new bride or groom is making a new image," says Abdul who comes across as a humble soul dedicated to his passion - designing.

"To maintain high standards, we do everything from yarn-dyeing, embroidery; making and setting of a piece in house," he shares. It sure shows on the stunning suits, lehengas, saris as well sherwanis that he has brought for the city folks. Exquisitely embellished saris, beautiful suits and gorgeous lehengas in spectacular silhouettes…each piece stand for its own. And if you thought, it's only women who get a piece of creativity, then that's not the case. "Our key selling pieces are the achkans," he shares.

Supposed to be the only designer in the world to showcase at United Nations headquarters in New York, Abdul has designed for the royal families of middle-east to Kathleen Kennedy'and Tracy Fedrick (Obama's sister-in-law) as well.

Presently focussed on Prêt e Porte, Paris, world's biggest extravaganza, Abdul is busy attending his city clientele on his own. "You can pick up the 10-12 pieces that you are going to take along in your new home," he suggests to a wannabe bride in his soft trademark style.

The part of collection that he's brought to the city from his rich repertoire, including ethnic, western wear for both men and women in haute and prêt lines, starts from Rs 10,000.

mona@tribunemail.com

Here’s doing away with the misconception. The ‘no make-up look’ doesn’t mean a face minus concealers, blush ons and other cosmetics that you count as make up. The ‘no make-up look’ uses the maximum make up to render a nude look to the face. 

“It’s only when the celebs say that they haven’t used any make-up, that it’s true they haven’t. But when they talk about the ‘no make-up look’ that means they have layers of cosmetics on their face to give them a natural look,” says Ambika Pillai, a famous make-up artist.

Ambika has to her credit changing the ‘make-up look’ of the brides. “Honestly, brides used to look like cartoon character. People realised late that a bride need not use just everything. The make-up should be such that she should look prettiest on her marriage.” — TNS