The Kolkata Fashion Week (KFW) began akin to an awards ceremony, with Ritu Kumar facilitated for her work with the crafts of West Bengal. Her collection — featuring dresses, jackets and long tops with tights — had interesting elements of rural motifs on them. It was great to see Ritu innovate what with the Western tinges that she gave to each outfit. The rest of the collection was very Ritu Kumar (i.e. bling, saris, bright colours and bridal wear), some of which we have seen last year at the Couture Week. Giselle Monterio was her showstopper.
Designer Leena Taneja mistook the theme of ‘earth couture’ as lingerie. She did make a sincere attempt to salute Audrey Hepburn, but we are sure Madame Hepburn is twisting in her grave at this moment. Nothing in her collection brought the iconic actor to mind. The dresses were crafted in fabrics that looked like they were straight out of Santacruz market. There were jaded prints and confusion in the length of the maxis.
Hallelujah! The Sun came came out with Zubair Kirmani’s collection showcasing both mens and womenswear. There were muted colours — plum, peach and beige in straight, tighter and well-fitted silhouettes. Zubair is one of those designers who creates for the understated, yet successful person. He brings out beautiful detailing through his ensembles.
This time around, it was his exaggerated shoulders that caught our eye. There was an extra curve at the shoulders and in some ensembles even a cut at the elbow.
It was bridal bling for Rocky S. Saris and crush blouses failed to create much magic on the ramps. But something tells us they will fly off the racks.
We saved the best for last! Wendell Rodricks struck gold with his ‘The Earth Goddess’ collection. And yes, this time there were no whites, but colours such as khaki, grey, red-brown and even a hot pink used as a lining. Fabrics like cotton viscose, lyrca, knit and net just about emphasised the drapes and structured look of the garments. The viscose knit sari with a built-in choli gets our nod of approval. The paloo split in one section and gathered at the halter neck. The other half looped into a ‘kimono sleeve paloo.’ We’ll say it again, he struck gold!
