03 August,2024 07:05 AM IST | Mumbai | Shweta Shiware
Tarun Tahiliani and his team take a bow following their Otherworldly, bridal couture 2024 showcase at India Couture Week on July 30 at the Ashok Hotel in New Delhi
Hyundai India Couture Week, in association with Reliance Brands, an initiative by Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI) held from July 24 to 31 in Delhi, showcased the 2024 collections from a roster of designers. By the end of the event, we had seen over 500 looks - an overwhelming variety of lehengas, celebrity cameos and social media content. We flagged moments to revisit: some stuck with us because they made us smile, others sparked mixed reactions. Despite designers playing it safe and doubling down on their signature styles, there was still plenty of excitement. Here, we present six collections that show bridal couture with stories and shine, and explore what they can add to your wardrobe.
First, Tarun Tahiliani addressed the relentless scrutiny of his "mediocre" attire for the Indian Olympic contingent, explaining that the design was intended to be simple, easy and cool, and in line with the tricolour. "It's not a couture show, nor a wedding," he argued.
Then, amid the swirl of the news cycle, a fresh headline emerged: a runway show creates history at India Couture Week showcasing not once, but twice in one night. "The bouncers were unpleasant, leaving many important guests who came to see the show unable to get in. They were left pleading and shouting to be admitted. On the plus side, everyone got a front-row seat, and we repeated the show," Tahiliani told mid-day. "Next time, I will opt for an afternoon show slot."
Straddling the tricky space between comfort and couture, Otherworldly showcased Tahiliani's greatest "India Modern" hits in the grandest sense. Literally. He created a TT universe with an extensive array of over 100 garments for all sexes and genders, blending the brand's ongoing dialogue of drapery and corsetry with traditional kashidakar, mukaish and chikankari, complemented by the creamiest ivory shades. While variety is never a bad thing, the rapid changes and their impact on the overstimulated brain suggest that a more streamlined edit of ideas might be worth considering for next time.
What sets Tahiliani apart is his meticulous attention to detail: the back of a garment is as striking as the front. The ensembles spoke for themselves, without the need for a Bollywood showstopper, proving that only a showman like Tahiliani could bring such thrill to a single evening.
On February 1, 2017, Amit Aggarwal's Seamless collection made headlines with its use of upcycled Banarasi sarees. By repurposing sarees sourced from the Waghri community, which trades old garments for utensils, the collection symbolised a new approach to couture. It was fashion's ultimate emotional zinger: the reviews were rapturous.
On July 28, 2024, Aggarwal once again demonstrated that raw authenticity and wonderful spirit of creativity with the Antevorta collection. He deconstructed pre-owned heritage textiles, and rearranged them with a sweeping grandeur that felt both vintage and futuristic. By adopting a more restrained volume to create elongated, edgy, ankle-length cocktail gowns, he offered a nuanced perspective on female charm.
While Aggarwal sometimes leans towards maximalist and conceptual, this collection highlighted his focus on the complex collages of drapes and pattern cutting - the technique, method and craft. "Metaphorically speaking, the stars aligned for me with this collection," Aggarwal feels.
A concept emerging in fashion involves garments that dematerialise or transform into something entirely new. Gaurav Gupta seems to have explored this notion with the Arunodaya collection, inspired by the Sanskrit term for the first light of day breaks the darkness.
If anyone understands the cult of individuality, it is Gupta. He introduced a variety of silhouettes that aren't your typical wedding lehengas. For example, the baller high-shoulder jackets and pantsuits that dissolved into metallic zardozi and cage embroidery, pearls and crystals on a crepe (100 per cent polyester) background, with shawl collars cascading from the shoulders.
This was a formidable display of a rebel attitude, tailoring and more significantly, how to translate audacious ideas into wearable clothes, almost like a modern-day armour. Best suited for Gupta's celebrity clients Cardi B, Lizzo, Janelle Monae, Jenna Ortega and Beyoncé.
It is always exciting to see Rimzim Dadu push the boundaries while staying true to her core. This season, she explored new fabric and texture techniques, moving beyond the linear silhouette, and her collection was all the better for it.
Be it through exploring airy materials and the interplay of light and shadow, integrating circular design lines and zero-waste laser-cutting or using pop colours like burnt orange and rust to add magisterial concepts to couture. "Each piece is a reflection of my journey over the past 18 years, a blend of craftsmanship and avant-garde aesthetics," Dadu says.
Trying to convey the full-on sensory experience of Stucco, a nod to Baroque influences, through photos of the collection or live-streamed videos doesn't quite tell the story. But one section where the designer's skill could be appreciated was the rejigging of her signature cord and metal filaments pleated and laser-cut to cull new narratives.
The blend of matte and shiny textures achieved through thousands of cord beads, created a fluid, organic movement in pieces like shift dresses, lehengas and sarees. This sleek and sophisticated collection was a lesson in craft innovation and editing; one that other designers could learn from.
Maximalism is the hallmark of Falguni Shane Peacock, a brand that thrives on a kind of timeless overload of upbeat prints, fine layers of tulle, precise spacing of marabou feathers, and careful loops of embroidery. Meanwhile, their collaboration with Swadesh Online - a platform dedicated to India's handlooms - marks the brand's foray into Indian woven textiles since its inception in 2004.
At the India Couture Week finale show, the designer duo unveiled a capsule line as part of Rang Mahal, featuring showstoppers Vicky Kaushal and Rashmika Mandanna. Central to the collection were Kanjeevaram silks, celebrated for their rich texture, woven with real gold and silver zari. Crafty slogans not included, thankfully.
The range highlighted a focus on quality over quantity, showcasing craftsmanship through Banarasi brocade and chikankari.
"Each piece is marked by the FSP monogram woven into the borders of the sarees and dupattas, adding our own twist to the traditional textile narrative," Falguni told mid-day.
Having made a name as the first Indian designer to show at Paris Couture Week with his craft-led, three-dimensional dreamscapes, Rahul Mishra adapted those ambitious, red-carpet concepts for his Indian bridal couture collection, titled Nargis.
Rahul and Divya Mishra's decision to introduce Lisa Ray - an actor, activist, author and cancer survivor - as their showstopper accompanied by the Afreen Afreen soundtrack, was a refreshing one. This stood out, especially after Bollywood actors Janhvi Kapoor and Ananya Pandey walked at their Paris shows.
Ray had previously starred in the mid-1990s music video for Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, which has since become a pop reference. Reflecting on this in a post-show press conference, Ray shared, "I filmed that video 25 years ago and was a different person - young, not very confident and uncomfortable in my skin. Walking to Afreen Afreen gave me a new opportunity to embrace a new version of myself."
As shows have turned into spectacles of designer flex, Ray's presence brought a beauty rooted in inner confidence, authenticity and grace - exactly what the event needed.
Jayanti Reddy brought a personality to the OTT theatrics and viral clickbait gimmicks that have proliferated in bridal fashion. The Hyderabad-based bridal couturier, who often draws on Nawabi influences, showed a seamless blend of traditional textiles and techniques with a very fashion-forward palette of nude tones in her Threads of Legacy collection. This understated, neutral approach emanating a quiet confidence, felt like the perfect antidote to the growing urgency of today's world. Memo to celebrity stylists and brides everywhere.
Reddy presented 40 investment-worthy pieces, including little cropped jackets, capes and corsets, saree-gowns and lehengas, with a focus on handwoven silks like Banarasi, and zardozi embroidery. The styling of the brand's signature Khada dupattas with bandhgalas, sherwanis and kurtas for men was both cheeky and clever. Proof that fashion is more exciting when it breaks the rules rather than follows them.
