After Manish Malhotra’s star-studded ode to 100 years of cinema on Day 1 of the Lakme Fashion Week, it fell upon the designers of Day 2 to keep the fashion flag flying high. And designers Anushka Khanna, Sougat Paul and Aartivijay Gupta seemed well suited for the job. Each of them had an inspiration of their own which was expressed in distinct statements on the ramp.

They also had a healthy amount of starry presence on the front row where spotted were Karan Johar, Siddharth Malhotra, Manish Malhotra and Varun Dhawan. Karan was there to support his cousin Anushka Khanna’s maiden show at the LFW.
The show opened with Aarti’s collection I Love India which was highly appreciated for its innovative use of Indian motifs, such as postal stamps, tiger, coal train and of course Mahatma Gandhi. Showstoppers Rohit Roy and Misti Mukherjee did justice to the kitschy clothes with Rohit donning a Gandhi motif white jacket while Misti draping the map as a sari. “I wanted to show India the way I see it and it goes beyond metal and heavy embroidery. I wanted to break the pattern,” she said at the post show conference. Anushka’s collection Looking Through The Window was a melange of prints and colours in comfortable shapes. The highlights were a skyline bordered midnight blue sari and a red knee-length jacket, perfect for resort evening wear. Anushka said, “I was inspired by the works of Rewati Shahani, a London-based artist. Her images of buildings and birds encouraged me to build this collection through digital prints, appliqués and beading.” Defending his shy cousin, an encouraging KJo said, “I am very proud of my cousin’s very poetic collection. And I apologise for her being media shy.” Sougat’s mastery in surface textures was prominent yet again in his show Labour of Love, But Love for Labour. The strong textural story was played out in fluid silks, crepes, chiffons and georgettes with permanent pleating as a constant in skirts and gowns.
Up next was Komal Sood in the afternoon who played by the high standards set in the morning. Her La Mirage was sensual poetry on the ramp through a glamorous collection of men’s and women’s wear. The colours were a mixed hues of blues, beige and slight shimmery gold and silver. The Grecian silhouettes floated on the ramp one after another drawing several appreciative glances from the front row. One shouldered togas, shimmery cigarette pants and a feathered mini created a lasting impression. The Gregian aura continued in Pia Pauro’s Grecian Goddess collection coloured in pleasing shades of white, turquoise, navy and yellow. The designer added a playful touch to the ultra feminine line through a solid gold embroidered frill bikini in yellow and turquoise. The Neptune print sun dresses with sequins were also a highlight. Among others, Nupur Kanoi’s embroidered jackets, pants and skirts in rich moss green shades were impressive.
Shehla Khan made a splash with pastel laces, nets and gorgeous beadwork in flowy dresses. Showstopper Karisma Kapoor added to the oomph in a gorgeous peach embroidered Venetian gown. Day two turned out to be a good day for men swear with Sanhay Hingu starting off with a celebration of colours, cuts and construction in his show. Piping was the highlight of his silhouettes as it appeared for collars, lapels, hemlines and pockets. The delicate bandhgala shirts were a subtle touch of elegance in colour play of pink and grey.
After that, everyone was waiting with bated breath for Kunal Rawal’s offering in menswear. Also the fact that he would be having Shahid Kapoor and Arjun Kapoor as his showstoppers, added to the excitement. And his show managed to live up to the hype. Kunal’s collection was all about being macho, with no room for soft touches.
In fact, even the models were heavy bearded men or men with lazy stubbles. Boys can wait.