Anupama Dayal enjoys creating bright colourful collections so it was little wonder that she called her Spring/Summer 2010 line Joie (French for joy). It was a happy floral look inspired by Himalayan blooms, modern cityscapes and shades of blue. The colours matched the title with blue in all tones from ice to electric and cobalt lavender, violet, nude and then onto tender green, burnt toffee, scarlet, crimson and fluoro pink. When it comes to fabrics, Anupama is very loyal to Indian textiles so there were Chanderies, chiffon, crepe, voiles, chikan, tissues and satins with ethnic and graphic prints; for day and cocktail dresses, long formal gowns, cropped and harem pants, tunics, skirts and one solitary sari.

The show opened with a layered mini dress in satin with graphic print layered with indigo chanderi and topped with fitted white chikan blouse, the petroleum blue satin fairaisle printed dress with a single pouch pocket and chiffon tie had extended side hems. The black satin slip with big diamond motif and printed graphic was ended with wooden beads and Pani Sequins, the sequined draped pants in gray were worn with a pashmina stole. The look was fresh, young and very western in shape.

For the late evening Anupama added porcelain and metallic flowers on yokes for a printed chanderi dress and kangaroo pouch pocket. Print placements were unusual, the silhouettes loose and easy and the long dress with a collage of metallic flowers running around the neck and back was the finale of the show. Some of the large contrasting pockets could have been eliminated and Anupama needs to pay a little attention to the hemlines which were at times uneven. Besides these small hiccups, the collection was fresh and easy on the eyes and will sell well in India and globally.

The theme of the collection was a bit complex – cyber games and a princess to be rescued, fighter girls with androgynous qualities and the idea of fantasy. Now with so many twists and turns in an idea it is difficult to get the collection into order. But Swapnil Shinde tried his level best and kept it utterly feminine with flowing shapes in fabrics like cotton poplins to silk, chiffon, organza, raw silk and printed chiffon in a long list of colours that started with Chinese white, black grape, dark purple, dahlia, light cerulean, aqua green, hot pink, yellowed orange, spruce, light umber, ultra marine and true blue. Putting all these elements together Swapnil’s aim was to balance two extremes like “sexy” without being cheap or crude and “elegant” without being boring or matronly.

The opening three white outfits were interesting with Swapnil also enamored by the zipper and used it with cutwork in all the most unexpected places as embellishments. But a very prominent zipper in the front of the dress or anywhere as an ornament has to be attached well so that it does not bulge or pucker. Unfortunately, in some of the garments it was a distraction. The line of gowns were elegant and made ideal resort wear with their interesting cuts like a half belt and a drape or a bias striped, one shoulder number or a black goddess gown with bands and the final black and white banded gown. Swapnil claimed he had reinvented the little black dress, the classic blazer and the pea coat. The first one was noticeable but were the other two reinventions a fantasy? In spite of the lofty inspirations, the collection could work with the trendy sexy crowd and it is now quite noticeable that Swapnil Shinde is on the right track away from those embarrassing Omkara days.

There was consistency and a link in the summer collection by Preeti Chandra. The colour story was limited to white, peach, ash, flesh, shocking pink, taupe, blue and subtle ombres and monotone for fabrics like twill, georgette, cutwork fabrics, lycra, chanderi, silk georgette, sequined fabric, stretch poplin, and silk. The embellishments were paisleys and floral prints which were very romantic and girly for short dresses, jackets, and a stylish dhoti dress.

Preeti opened the show with a white gown embellished with CRYSTALLIZED™ – Swarovski Elements and bell sleeves in georgette and gradually moved into a very young zany peach story for short ombre tops, some swinging gathered dresses, the one shoulder dhoti dress, a long drop shoulder dress, a candle tunic with large shimmering flowers at the hem, flowing gown with flower prints and then taupe dresses, ruffled pant suits followed by multi coloured prints and finally some shaded blue and white layered georgette dresses. Some of the embroidered layered garments had a marked alpine feel to them but could be ideal for summer because of their fabric choice. It was western wear that may not be very high on innovations since the styles were reinvented, but there was certain freshness about the collection that will appeal to the Indian buyer.

With a collection that is called “Avant Garde F’ck” one has to expect the unexpected from Kallol Datta who is known to think far away from the usual. He is anti bling and anti probably everything so his collections always carry his individual mark, which is very interesting as far as his inspiration and construction is concerned.

He believes in simplicity with a message. So the collection in kora, cotton, mul, voile and crepe had his specially created signature prints. This time it was bees, dragonflies and His/Her motifs which were all arranged artistically on the very simple but cleverly cut dresses. Colours are always muted for Kallol and very selective, so with yellow, jade, beige, brown, pink, orange and black, he told a story that spoke of oval silhouettes either on the midriff or at the hem, front wrap arounds, tie-ups, one sided winged hemlines, a delicate net over a jade shift look, and even a lop sided dress which worked rather well. Drop shoulders, loose cropped trousers, kimono sleeves and even a sari got Kallol’s touch with a 3D curve waistcoat that hung loosely over the drape. A bullet wound mini in jade with diagonal seams and full hem was great for summer. Kallol gave fullness to his dresses either in the front or back and sometimes in the middle or at the hem. But at all times the collection was comfortable summer wear, very striking in appearance and the fabric cleverly cut. It was quirky fashion but very wearable and practical, which one expects from Kallol Datta who likes to test his limits and make his buyers think.

When a designer decides to go a little off the beaten path it is noteworthy since it means she wants to experiment and test her skills. Rimzim Dadu decided to try out a bit of bling for her collection with hand burnt sequins new surfaces, metallic cutouts and cage like dresses. Cutouts have been a favourite with the designer since last season, but this time there was more confidence and experimentation. Blending matte with shine and using a lot of geometric shapes; Rimzim first started with a metallic floral dress cutwork over a pleated organza ombre tunic, then stayed on the metallic part for a textured layered gauze top and black shorts and moved to another metallic geometric swirl cover over a draped jersey dress. From then it was more interesting cutouts also in fabric and the final four creations had hand burnt sequins on a chiffon cut away shoulder dress and another drenched with bling and one with a cage like cover over a draped jersey dress.
The cutwork section had a pretty multicoloured-patch floral top over chiffon blouse with tie up and shorts and the beige striped nude zippered pleat dress was a good addition for day wear. There was an interesting trend in the designs and the look was young and fresh with some innovative ideas to bring in a little glitter on to an otherwise sober outfit. The base colour card of the collection was muted with crème, yellow, beige, black and a dash of red for a striking cage jacket and the metallic and cutwork effects almost gave the garments a lacey look since so fine was the finish. Her occasional innovations with little asymmetric shrugs were also most welcome. Just a few pieces but each one was worth more than one look to figure out how Rimzim Dadu had designed them.