Recently, The Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI) and Lakmé Fashion Week (LFW) came together for a united fashion week front last week, headlines read “the meetings of two giants” and “the importance of collaboration”. This was after all, its first joint show in 15 years. While some designers like Rahul Mishra and Tarun Tahiliani chose to sit out the six-day ‘phygital’ event, there were enough highlight moments to keep the conversation going for the industry. Starting with a drive-in style front row for the event held in Mumbai, headliner shows by Manish Malhotra, Anamika Khanna and a brave Ruchika Sachdeva of Bodice celebrating the label’s 10th anniversary mid-pandemic. True to the new norm, the week stayed season-free. We scoured through the six days of fashion week to give you the top trends that will make room in your wardrobes, courtesy the design talent in our country.
1. Athleisure
At Masaba, her perennial prints were given a bomber jacket approach. And in a breath of fresh air, what was once considered an anomaly, there was a plus-size model opening the show, a transgender model making a case for the sari, and hijabs were very much a part of several shows including at Masaba and Bodice.
2. Colour blocking
At the closing show of FDCI x LFW’s joint fashion week, Ruchika Sachdeva celebrated 10 years of her contemporary Indian label. All the Bodice bedrocks were there: pleats, pleats, and more pleats. But in a more playful approach to design, Sachdeva gave us pops of colour within those knife pleats, playfulness in the silhouettes that included saris, but also cropped tops and ruched T-shirts. It was uniform dressing for the grown up girl—a more self-assured woman, much like Sachdeva herself.
3. Sequins
It is only March, we’re far from the party months, but Bloni, Siddartha Tytler and the OG King of sequins, Suneet Varma, believe a little sparkle is all we really need.
4. Summer layers
#HotGirlSummer done right by Arpita Mehta. Think barely there bralettes, block-printed capes and off-the-shoulder dresses. This one’s for all the holiday-hungry, getting on the next flight out to Maldives, Sri Lanka, and Seychelles, a.k.a anywhere with a beach where bare minimum coverage is dress code.
5. Handloom focus
While this was an underlying theme throughout, Payal Pratap brought the focus to handwork like none other. Smocking, cross stitch, intricate embroideries on buttons—Pratap, along with Taneira and The Spotlight winner P.E.L.L.A, among others spotlighting of the karigar was unfiltered.
Source: Vogue India
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