It was Alfred Lord Tennyson’s poem the “Lotus Eaters” that inspired Anupamaa Dayal. The designer used the flower motif to embellish skirts, dresses and pants to achieve a look where the orient met the occident in a fusion for the ensembles and saris.

The design of the Persian textiles, the Faberge eggs and gardens in Delhi also gave Anupama further impetus to create the line for the coming season. The colours were vibrant and more suited to summer as amber, topaz, alexandrite, garment, rube, sapphire, turquoise, emerald and lapis lazuli wove their magic on Banaras brocades, jacquard, chiffon and georgettes, lurex, satin, Dupion silk for dresses that moved easily from day to cocktail wear, some cropped and long harem pants, tunics, skirts and saris.

Fabrics were crushed, crinkled and embroidered with bead work on yokes or with gota dots. A mix of prints, solids, colours and fabrics came together for a single garment; proving that this treatment is a favourite with Anupama which she continues to use in every collection.

However the line had interesting high points like the mock patchwork printed dress with red chiffon sleeves, the long bias cut fuchsia dress with brocade and gota fitted sleeves, the giant cuffs that periodically appeared on sleeves of flared dresses and the tiered long dress in shades of blue with an Afghan graphic print border. The sari trouser with lotus print was an interesting addition while the two traditional saris followed the theme of fabric mixing.

Anand Kabra works around some really unusual themes. Last season his collection was called Wabi Sabi and he had giant roses emblazoned in print, paint or embroidered on his resort style garments.

This season he surprised everyone with a quirky title and theme “And the Mirror Crack’d” a line of starkly tailored jackets, dresses and Jodhpur trousers in black which was the basis of the collection with touches of grey, yellow and teal adding to the story.

The fabrics were strong in structure with organic silk and stretch jersey adding to the grace of the silhouettes. The theme of the collection came alive in the filed and cut mirrors and bead work which were the only two forms of embellishments used for the garments.

Starting with a sharply but cross-over black asymmetric collar jacket teamed with wide pleated pants, Anand moved to an asymmetric closure sheath, sarong drape, Jodhpur pants and then gently added the mirror work and beading to shoulders, insets and even leggings and trousers.

The saris in neutral shades of beige net carried through the theme of mirror and bead work either on the fabric or on the cholis. Teaming satin and knit for sheaths or rouched dresses with rear mirror inset, waistcoats that reflected the cracked glass theme all over or accented the exaggerated shoulders of dresses; there was a design consistence in the collection that brought it into a focused line of creations.

Restricting his colour palette to indigo and burgundy, Sabyasachi Mukherjee created a wonderful mix and match line where the rural and urban story came together in perfect harmony.

Calling it “Neela aur Bagardandi ki Kahani” it was the fabrics – mainly cottons and khadi with a touch of tulle and silk - that gave the garments that wonderful rustic character.

There were some interesting experiments that Sabyasachi attempted and which could turn into popular trends. The first was the ‘chottu sari’ just calf length especially woven short in different fabrics and prints with some having intricate contrast godets and insets in the pleats with tulle petticoats swirling under them.

The other fun look was the vizer dupatta that resembled the odhna of the villagers but now in net draped over the head. The tiny shimmering gilets, the khadi Tees, the kanjaris with layered side insets, the sheer almost invisible black net shararas pants teamed with layered tunics and the cropped salwars had a fresh and funky look.

The fabrics were the best handlooms from Bengal, Bihar, Andhra and Madhya Pradesh and Orissa which proved that a collection can be a showstopper without the use of chiffon, georgette and satin.

Promoting organic cotton in a big way, men’s wear designer Digvijay Singh created an interesting and very practical line for the label Bhusattva. Working with eco friendly fabric and natural herbal dyes, the men’s wear line had subtle touches of ethnicity with the look being very western.

The colours were rustic and earthy with orange, rust, beige, ecru and brown coming together for colour blocking on a single garment but with some interesting construction detailing. Adding on a touch of drama to the ensembles, Digvijay had woven hoods either attached or separate to make the garments more relevant for the coming season. The overall silhouettes matched the current trend of lean and slim for both the Jodhpur trousers and the bundgala jackets.

Tunics often looked interesting with asymmetric two tone subtle patches, while the bundi with slit pockets worn with a patchwork Jodhpur trouser made a trendy statement. The contrast cuffs on narrow pants, the half placket slim kurti, the four button V shape opening two tone waistcoat, the taped narrow pants and the one button unconstructed jacket with large bellow patch pockets were great casual wear options.

The finish and tailoring of the garments was good while the colour combinations like orange and beige made good tonal sense. It is encouraging to note that designers are now pushing the concept of organic cotton and when the fabric is styled into contemporary styles, the package makes a great fashion statement.

There was a live band and a running narration about Joseph and his father Jacob from the Bible throughout the show around which Krishna Mehta’s collection was apparently woven. But it was also mentioned in the press note that it was Day Zero that she envisions in Fall 2009. The connection of the two was difficult to fathom with the collection that was seen on the ramp. Except for the line of kaftans that vaguely resembled the Jewish robes or the Egyptian togas, the rest of the men’s wear line was all kurtas, shirts and a few sherwanis all with churidars.

The silhouettes were repetitive with minute detailing that could nearly be missed by many unless those with sharp eyes. But the fabric and weave story in silk was rich with the colours ranging from shades of wine, and chocolate to beige, jade, navy and mixes of all the above. The patterns were almost Art Deco in name with lots of geometrics like horizontal and vertical lines and abstract forms.

Layering was favoured with two kurta lengths – one calf, the other knee length worn with a third garment - a shirt - and all completed with churidars and lots of rugged dupattas, shawls and scarves. The kaftan line was very summery in form and style with asymmetric hemlines. Tiny V insets were discreetly placed at the nape of the shirt collar, while embroidery on cuffs, yoke and placket was toned down. A bit of contemporary touch was given with high collars and zipped necklines of kurtas.

Men’s wear has very little to offer by way of silhouettes and garment options but there are designers like Troy Costa who can pick one segment and turn it into a full collection. The theme of the show was tuxedos which are the ultimate luxury item in a man’s wardrobe. But if it is the conventional black with shawl collar version one is thinking about, then Troy proved them wrong. The collection primarily in black and grey nearly bordered on the dandy Beau Brummell style but was not as theatrical, but instead quite practical.

For impact Troy opened the show with a tuxedo and an attached red hood then moved onto a shorter option as a waist coat, added some diagonal woven striped shirts and even turned casual with long sleeved knit pullovers. Some of the knits suitable for the coming season were hooded jackets with lapels and double breasted knitted sweaters.

Blousons made an entry in the wet look material or with zippers. The finale was a collection of tuxedoes with shawl, peak or notched lapels some with double contrasts. The fabrics were matte and shining with brocade, velvet and silk adding to the drama of the evening wear line with a few checks added for colour. Tuxedo shirts were rather bold while the jackets often had piping on the lapels. Keeping the silhouette lean, the jackets had one or two back vents and one to four buttons and were worn with flat front trousers.

Here was adventurous men’s wear that could appeal to those who want to stay in tune with trends.

It was a men’s wear show of tailored formals but after every few entries, long floor length gowns in the colour theme of the collection – black and white - were alternating with the jackets and denim trousers for men. It was a good idea since watching a men’s wear show could get a little monotonous. But Narendra Kumar Ahmen Couture line was interesting, very innovative and a trifle flamboyant with the black and white graphic embroidery on shirts and jackets as well as the heavy piping on the trousers and lapels.

But the tailored jackets and knitwear were impeccably finished along with the sporty tux, the formal denim trousers, the cabin jackets, mac and short coats. Each garment had some bold detailing like black insets along plackets, pin tucks, blind tucks, pleats, piping, cording satin insets and contrast embroidery. The denim jeans to be worn with the tux were sharply tailored and went very well with the white tux shirt.

Bund gala sports jackets with tux trousers, white pleated shirts, knitted sweaters with details, shawl collar embroidery black waist coats, black linen tux with pin tuck shirt, denim embroidered trousers, velvet shawl collar jacket with denim trousers with satin details and the final gold linen trousers and silk jacquard jacket were eye catching and bold.

Slim silhouettes for the jackets, trousers and even the silver satin Mac gave a uniform line to the collection. It was a look that Narendra Kumar Ahmed had worked very hard on, with many strong fashion directions that one can hope will turn into trends in the coming season.