Day 2: A mixed bag of emotions

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A model showcases a creation by Amit Aggrawal on Sunday. — Asian Age

The second day of the Willis Lifestyle India Fashion Week (WIFW) was a mixed bag of emotions that kept varying from bright playful shades to the darker hues of life. Even though the mood was that of a typical lazy Sunday morning in the beginning, it warmed up to a “hip” venue by the afternoon. The back-to-back shows by groups of five designers were too much to handle in on go. In the next show too, the only thing worth mentioning is designer Preeti S. Kapoor’s collection, which was aimed to paint a bright festive mood on the ramp with bright Pakistani truck art in her outfits teamed with blaring Bollywood music from Salman Khan movies. Next was a dramatic show by designer Samant Chauhan, whose collection “Rajputana” seemed a little lost between blending Rajasthani royalty with Victorian elegance. The designer picked up a sombre colour palette of beige, cream and ivory white and crafted dresses, angrakha style kurtis, crinkled skirts, voluminous gowns and tunics, which were accentuated by fine use of gold and metallic zardozi work at borders.
The collars, neck-line and hand cuffs were highlighted by the metallic hand embroidery. The core fabric in most of the outfits was Bhagalpur Tussar silk and in some ensembles he used fine diaphanous silk. Samant also showcased a few coarse silk sherwani’s and achkans teamed with red leheriya turbans.
The mood changed from royal to resort when designer Urvashi Kaur showcased her collection “Zikr” after Samant’s desert ride. The body-hugging jersey drape dresses and tulle one-piece swimwear by Urvashi were highlighted by metallic detailing. She used cream and ombre as her base colours and added a splash of vivid rainbow colours to her outfits. Next was designer duo Ankur and Priyanka Modi, who showcased a high-on-glam collection under their label am:pm. The satin dresses, printed jumpsuits, shorts and gowns in bright purple, red and beige colours looked sharp and sleek.
However, the most outstanding designer for the day was Amit Aggarwal whose label Morphe stood out. He showcased complex but highly well stitched ensembles made of fine organza and chiffon. Though the dark colour palette reminded of cold winters, the weightless fabrics did justice to the collection. His metallic moulded jackets, bolero and vests paired with tapered silhouettes looked beautiful on waif-thin models. The fine detailing in panelled shirts and inflated shapes popping out of the tubular dresses and mesh skirts were to die for.