Sabyasachi sets the tone for couture week

New Delhi - Delhi based designer Manav Ganwani who is showing at ICW's final day, also took to social media, but to moan about his show's limited seating, saying: "When you wake up shaken up bcoz all that you have worked for the last 6 months is 6 days away.

 The second half of the year sees the annual fashion season in full swing. Paris Couture Week just wrapped up earlier this month, and now India prepares to stage its own version.
Glamming it up in Delhi from July 20 to 24, the Fashion Council of India (FDCI) has been conducting the couture week for eight years now. So as far as fashion weeks go, this is still an emerging and young event (the first Paris Couture Week was held by the French Fashion Federation back in 1973).
But since couture is all about bridal in India - it is estimated that Indian weddings are worth in excess of $25.5 billion now - established designers tend to show at this week. Opening the event is Manish Malhotra, one of India's best known names in fashion and also Bollywood's favourite designer. Walking the ramp for him is the current queen bee of Bollywood: Deepika Padukone.
Also showing are Kolkata's Anamika Khanna, Tarun Tahilani, Rohit Bal, and Gaurav Gupta. But managing to stage a sort of couture coup was Sabyasachi, who, for the first time, is not showing at India Couture Week (ICW). Instead - on Monday night - just two days before ICW, he unveiled his couture collection on Instagram. He is not the first Indian designer to do this (Masaba Gupta has also done an 'Instagram fashion week' as the opening event for Mumbai's Lakme Fashion Week last year) but Sabyasachi's timing is clever, and acted as a prelude to ICW.
With Sabyasachi's Instagram videos receiving over 14,000 views, he opened up his couture show to the larger public. Haute Couture literally translated means "high sewing" and couture clothes are all about the art and craft of fashion, and always accompanied by expensive price tags. Which is also why couture shows are normally the most exclusive of fashion shows.
Delhi based designer Manav Ganwani who is showing at ICW's final day, also took to social media, but to moan about his show's limited seating, saying: "When you wake up shaken up bcoz all that you have worked for the last 6 months is 6 days away. And you realise you have almost 150 seats less that your previous shows."
In a contrasting light, Sabyasachi's move gave couture a new, more democratic feel, and he managed to become the talk of the industry without showing at ICW. "Doing a show on Instagram does not mean we will short change the exuberance," the designer said.
His 2016 couture collection is called 'Firdaus', and coats are the choice of silhouette on top of Sabyasachi's mind. Featuring intricate Parsi thread embroidery and velvets, this is a decidedly decadent collection. With some coats taking the work of 69 artisans and over 2,800 hours to produce, Firdaus really espouses the concept of "high sewing".
Thus, the highly regarded master craftsman has set the tone for ICW showcasing heritage and a vintage feel with a modern twist. Sabyasachi maybe not be showing at India Couture Week, but he has set the style standard for its duration, one that should be full of beautiful 'Make in India' handmade craftsmanship.
Sujata Assomull is Khaleej Times Fashion Editor
sujata@khaleejtimes.com
 

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