By Puja Gupta
New Delhi, July 26 (IANS) As the India Couture Week (ICW) 2019 has reached halfway, shows are getting bigger and better.
The fourth day of fashion festival, organised by the Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI), on Thursday saw ace designer Sulakshana Monga and designer duo Shyamal and Bhumika showcase their annual couture collection.
Bollywood actresses Malaika Arora and Kriti Sanon walked the ramp as showstopper for Monga and Shyamal and Bhumika, respectively.
Monga's collection titled "The Cultural Cascade" was inspired the vivid colours found on the ghats and streets of the holy city Varanasi -- with a global free-spirit appeal added to it.
The designer has used Indian silhouettes to play with patterns with interesting use of frills, raffia, sequins and feather on fabrics like georgette, organza and soft silk.
Beautifully embroidered evening gowns and lehengas with intricate embroidered floral baskets, swatch and elements taken from the ghats of Varanasi comprised the collection that ranged from different hues of red, green, yellow and pink.
Painted hues of Indian deties, faces of sadhus by the Ghats and the colours of the festivals became the palette of the menswear collection comprising bandhgalas and flared kurtas, among others.
Speaking about the collection, Monga said: "We wanted to innovate with the Indian culture and play with the colour opulence. We tried to show that through two ways -- one which is true to Indian culture and the other as a global version of the holy city of Varanasi. Our collection was divided into two segments that I think reflected our idea."
Shyamal and Bhumika presented their collection titled "The Renaissance Muse", which took the audience back to the grandeur of the Renaissance period. The collection was inspired by old-world elegance, laced with a touch of modernity.
The designers have heavily used aari zardosi, sequins, glass pipes and resam thread embroideries on fabrics like raw silks, velvet, organza, crepe, georgette and translucent tulle for Indian silhouettes.
Their signature cutwork edging and painted florals motifs gave the collection a romantic feel. Detailing inspired by the 17th century was prominent in the garments.
There were lehengas with peplum blouses and tulle dupatta, kurtas with dhoti pants, anarkalis and sarees, in colours like wine, blush pink, watermelon, grey, powder blue, muted olive and vintage cream.
The men's collection comprised jackets, bandhgalas and flared kurta with straight pants and intricated hand-embroidered dupattas.
Bhumika said: "We travelled to Florence recently and that's where we conceived the idea of this collection. You will see a lot of floral paintings from that era, decorative pillars, panels and patterns of the Renaissance period on the garments. We have tried to give it an Indian touch with modern sensibilities."
The ICW 2019 is on till July 28.
(Puja Gupta can be contacted at puja.g@ians.in)
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