Here was a line that was true to the season it was supposed to show. Atsu Sekhose brought on to the runways a collection that was contemporary, clean cut and minimalistic. The designer sought his inspiration from classic men’s tailoring that was effectively worked around to represent a strong yet feminine persona sans gimmickry.

Double breasted jackets and blouses, lace corset, cropped pants, beaded pants, front pleat pants, shirts and skirts, tie-up shirts, trench, tube dress, a wool shirt with lace sleeves worn over beaded pants, woollen fur jacket worn over a tie-up shirt and teamed with yellow wool pants, skirts with single thread embroidery so fine that it gave a graded dyed look. The colour palette stayed wintery with assorted greys and browns that got the dash of colours like ochre, mustard and red. Lace, pom poms in embroidery, tufted fur, beading, embroidery were used to provide subtle highlights to the garments that were made up of men’s suiting fabrics, silk, wool, lace, Mongolian wool, chiffon, mock suede, jersey etc. A silk lame dress teamed with a double breasted jacket looked good. Skirt hems swung around the knees, sometimes a little below or a little above. A red chiffon dress with a bellowing silhouette, a tie-up collar was the showstopper.

A well styled, fool proof line.

‘Change one thing, change everything’ , a butterfly that metamorphoses, the theme of decline and revival of concrete jungles and flower fields – Rahul Mishra presented a well thought out collection that stayed true to the theme ‘Butterfly Effect’. The story line was played out through intricate and extensive hand embroideries that moved from 2-D to 3-D on flared skirt, sheer wraps, dresses, gowns, reversible jackets.

The designer let the sheerness of ‘chanderi’ or organza work for the garments which were worn over sleeveless or spaghetti strap dresses. Intricate hand-made ‘aari’ embroideries were exquisite in their neat finish and presentation across all kinds of apparel. Long or short reversible jacquard jackets, with show buttons or quilted, in dupion silks, worn over knee length dresses or slim trousers, even reversible dresses made of jacquard, off shoulder gowns, bustier dress, cap sleeves, baby tucks, ruffles. Other fabrics used were double weave organza, satin, linen wool for trousers. The sole black double breasted jumpsuit sans embellishments was perfect.

The colour palette was predominantly white or black with reversed combinations for embroideries, same motifs in purple, green in a jacket or the omber shades on double weave organza.

So when a budding designer has bagged every kind of design award along the way, he could be forgiven for getting complacent. But not Rahul Mishra, whose passion and creativity stayed undiminished and shone bright in a line that was immensely desirable and wearable across occasions and Indian seasons.

Flamboyant fruity colours and firmly fluid silhouettes marked the women’s wear collection for Autumn Winter 2010. A contemporary western look, semi formal and sportydistinctly reflected South East
Asian style and spirit. Ranna’s colour palette revolvedaround solid
flat colours like emerald green, cobalt blue, wintercoral, chocolate,taupe, purple,fuchsia, and berry tones.

Effortless and comfortable assortment of a wide range of long and short dresses, tunics, sporty blouses, boxy jackets, easy fitting blazers over fluid pants, peg skirts, a symmetric necklines, in easy care fabricsoffered a super wardrobe solution for fast pace city life of contemporary women. Fabrics used for the collection were also easy care like heavy weight synthetic jerseys, silksandblends sourced abroad. Patchwork, braiding details, sequins, and embroideries were some of the surface embellishments besides cartridge tucks, ruching, pleating and layering, flamboyant psychedelic prints,tie-dyeeffects andbrocade patchworkapplied in discreet measure.

The collection was high on commercial viability, was hugely functional and practical but certainly lacked distinctive identity and profoundness a designer collection should reflect.

This time around Ritu Beri paid her tribute to the Indian Army by designing her collection for A/W 2010 incorporating the visual ostentation of the armed forces and its paraphernalia be it the military band, the marching boys, the colour red, military stripes, flags including little champs in combat gear etc. The show unfolded with a marching beat with soldiers and live band taking the centre stage followed by models in crisp military inspired coats and double breasted jackets peel off to reveal seductive and feminine dresses draped in stretch and soft materials.

Pretentious alright , the collection was classy, smart and feminine certainly a great ward robe option for women in the forces. The silhouettes were distinctly western and contemporary juxtapositioning structured masculinity with sensual femininity. The first collection reflected sartorial elegance in animal prints , black and brown fur elements, while the second collection was contemporarized with denims, the third collection was hot in bright red, fuscia and black and the fourth collection was in camouflage. Colours like military green, khaki, black, blue and red were predominant amongst solids . Fabrics used were supple and luxurious like cashmere wool, silk jersey, fake fur, stretch velvets, suede and denims. The collection was accessorized with badges, medallions, medal tapes, ornate trims to accentuate the military mood. The show stopper for the show was Ritu Beri herself in a red /white velvet dress outshining the professional models on the ramp who displayed her collection. However the pompous tribute to the Indian Army ended on a poignant note with ‘Aye mere vatan ke longo, zara …..by the Indian nightingale.

The JJ Valaya show on day 06 marked the closing of the WIFW for A/W 2010. We have seen in the past how JJ thrives on drama, opulence and showmanship. After voyaging with famous French cartoon character ‘Tin Tin’ a couple of years ago this year he zooms back to his own lesser known traditional culture of story-telling by the Indian courtesans through art and dance and music.

It was a contemporary Indian look for the Indo-files. The collection was arranged into four groups on the basis of colour and each group comprised of a classic range of elegant sarees , pyjama kurtas, long coats, short jackets, skirts, tights and blouses with understated opulence by JJ’s benchmark.

There was fine embroidery, CRYSTALLIZED™ Swarovski Elements beads, tassels distressed foils, digital printing, appliqué work, laser cut outs all in controlled measure. Jersey, Dupion silk, Georgette, fine velvets and chiffon fabrics were used as the base fabrics. All black chic and elegant ensembles were followed by the tone on tone purity of ivories gradually moving into potent reds and ending off in cold metallics.