The 31st edition of the Amazon India Fashion Week (AIFW) has dropped the grand finale, but designers don't think it's a big deal
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The 31st edition of the Amazon India Fashion Week (AIFW) has dropped the grand finale, but designers don't think it's a big deal. They are looking forward to the fresh approach and focussing on business at the fashion gala, which will begin on Wednesday here.
About 100 designers will showcase their autumn-winter collections that will either show the power of handlooms or give an ode to digital revolution or will simply take you on a stroll down memory lane. But there will be no glittering grand finale. "For the last three years, we have been experimenting with a new model like trying with 25 designers," Sunil Sethi, President of the organising body Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI), told IANS.
So, he sees no harm in trying out a new format. "People are coming to see fashion designers and their creativity on the ramp, and not just the grand finale. We are okay to let it go and concentrate on other things like improving the technology at shows," he added. Designer Madhu Jain says it's "no big deal".
"We are here for business. A fashion week is a great opportunity for brand building and meeting buyers and store owners," said the designer, who will present a line in biodegradable bamboo-silk ikat. David Abraham of Abraham & Thakore brand says the designers are looking at new ways of conducting the fashion week. "The general idea was that it would be a fresh approach. It will give every single day prominence rather than stressing on one," he said.
Designer Wendell Rodricks thinks it is a good move too. "This is more in line with international fashion weeks. It is also less stress on the organiser to do a gala show and instead focus on the entire week. The same with the sponsor. "They can look at the improvement in quality and quantity of the fashion week as a whole to benefit the industry, designers and the sponsor value addition," said the veteran.
Rina Dhaka, who was part of the grand finale last year, admits that the climax of the fashion week is exciting. "Everything is on a grander scale, but the economy has changed. It's a huge cost to the patron and with so many opportunities for fashion and its visibility on Instagram, YouTube, perhaps it is a good thing to give that a rest for the moment," she said.
So, what will the fifth day of the gala be like? "The lounges and food courts will be open, the MSAs (main stage areas) will be working from 10.30 a.m. till the last show at 8 p.m. However, what will not be there would be the designer stalls because that day is strictly kept for the young graduating designers of Pearl Academy," said Sethi. Are there more changes?
"You will see a lot of black and white dominance this time. This will be the decor. People who will bring in the colour will be our designers and their clothes, and the attendees," he said. But there is a lot more to look forward to. "We are opening the show with Pung cholom. Prathibha Prahlad has choreographed a special sequence using this dance form from Manipur," said Jain, who will emphasise on the need to move towards alternative fibre that consumes less water and is eco-friendly through her collection.
Dhaka will present a "'jump out of the bed' and not a planned look" with actress Rhea Chakraborty as the showstopper. Abraham & Thakore will get the flavour of Delhi streets to the ramp. "Everybody says street wear but it never echoes our street. It's always about street of some other culture. So we thought of looking closer to our street instead of London, Paris or Moscow," said Abraham. Schulen Fernandes for Wendell Rodricks will present a collection that is sensual, elegant, refined, embellished and sparkling like a sea foam in brilliant sunshine.
With minds delving into oriental artistic realms and physical experiences focussing on joyous holidays in the tropics, the Shivan & Narresh EdoMer Series dares a dream marrying dramatically opposite worlds with the language of design abstraction. The new series captures the 17th century Edo Art aesthetic and amalgamates it with elements from the Eden of the world - Seychelles, transforming it into a traveller's decadence.
Designer Diksha Khanna's collection will celebrate the co-existence of the organic with the industrial. "For our show, we have created a digital backdrop to help our consumers and store buyers, understand our season story in a better manner. The idea is to make our consumers an integral part of our design journey, which has been seemlessly woven with the help of technology. I think putting up of the LED screens for the show is a brilliant idea," she said.
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