As fashion celebrates its silver jubilee, what is clear now is —sustainability is the only way to go forward, and designers have already taken the lead!
By Asmitaa Aggarwal
It was a reunion of sorts, designers came in droves, some who had not been seen for over 20 years—Anshu Arora of The Small Shop to Raghavendra Rathore, Ritu Beri, Monisha Jaising, Nikki Mahajan, once doyens of their field, today reticent. FDCI X LFW got them together—after all it was the time of celebrations—25 years of the fashion world!
The Jio Convention Centre, Mumbai was where almost 300 people congregated—the most known faces, who have uplifted the barometer of design, innovation, and ingenuity—made a heady blueprint to go forward. Almost 33 designers recreated archival ensembles from 2000 onwards, with 60 models (Lisa Hayden to Lisa Ray), the biggest pool, with Indian-American actor Kal Penn as the host (Van Wilder, The Namesake, TV series House), who not only laughed at himself, but also asked an interesting question to Bollywood dreamboat Kareena Kapoor. “What do you think of fashion critics?” She candidly replied, “They are as important as film critics—they should keep designers on their toes.”
Manish Malhotra when asked about his jewels glimmering on his sherwani admitted it was a “hard sell” and someone rightly said, “All this madness is therapeutic I would have it any other way.”
Kareena confessed, “make and hair stylists the real stars as they make us look amazing. My darling brother Manish is here. Maybe I will come again on the catwalk not as size zero but owning my body completely”. For 25 seasons she walked as show stopper, once pregnant with her son Taimur, “most emotional moment for me, though my only hope is I don’t fall on the ramp, even if I do, I can get up with dignity. I also suck my tummy in a little,” she laughs.
The show had Ritu Beri (2006), Tarun Tahiliani (2000), Monisha Jaising (2002), Rajesh Pratap Singh (2012), Raw Mango, Anshu Arora (2004), Anamika Khanna (2004), Manish Malhotra (2001) outfits recreated, among others. “As I reflect on the 25th year of Lakmé Fashion Week, I am reminded of the incredible journey fashion has taken in India. I had the privilege of opening the very first Lakmé Fashion Week in Delhi in 2000. Looking back, it’s nostalgic to see how far fashion has come—from a time when we could barely fill a room to today, where we are overflowing with a passionate audience. Creativity now permeates everything—the way people dress, the way they express themselves, and the way fashion is embraced in everyday life. It is a testament to how the industry has evolved, pushing boundaries and shaping a more vibrant, dynamic fashion landscape,” says Ritu Beri who started in 1990. She was the first one to do a show in Paris, headed a French fashion house Jean Louis Scherrer, and in 2010 won the Chevaliere des arts et des Lettres award.
Though after 25 years one thing was clear—waste was gold now. Nagpur-based Shruti Sancheti, made hair bands, bags, scrunchies out of katrans, and has managed to get orders for it.
There is undoubtedly a stream of attempts to be sustainable –the value of the ensembles made from it was Rs 30,000, says Urvashi Kaur. “We create textiles out of fabric, trying to be zero waste, but the beauty is that we are able to craft one-of-a-kind pieces, the key is to be able to shift consumer behaviour,” says Urvashi. On this it’s kantha, and her undying love for tussars, all hand-woven wonders she works with as the market is showing renewed interest, buyers want to know about their garment and how it is made.
There seems to be a good churn happening, fashion weeks are a great platform for designers to express themselves visually. “We lost great design somewhere in the greed to keep selling, opulence and money wanting to show status. But the question is how do you contribute to a community. If your work does not hold meaning that money is not happy money. Young people are facing climate change, we have capitalist exploitative businesses, but we must find a way to keep our beautiful traditions alive,” she adds.
Bangalore-based Mani Shankar, believes the customer has also changed, each city has its own nomenclature– “Delhi loves bling, so I make it, I must survive also. But the Rs 30000 fabric manipulation linen kurta sells well too, it is our USP,” he adds.
“The last 25 years have been momentous in shaping what we now call the Indian fashion industry. Specifically, the last 10 have seen accelerated growth for many brands due to the various initiatives of the FDCI and the influx of corporatisation. I’m truly hoping the next decade is all about true growth, appreciative of all categories of fashion not limited only to bridal couture. I look forward to this next chapter,” says Ashish Soni.
For 17 years he has been in the business of fashion, and Nachiket Barve, believes fashion is evolving with more awareness. He has launched a new line of enzyme washed denims for Rs16000, admits he has understood the market better. “I adapted. Design is a dialogue between the customer and you, you can’t be stuck in time or resist change. I look within. We are going to do more business and growth. India’s biggest strength is craftsmanship and willingness to change which will hold us in good stead,” he adds.
Akshat Bansal of the experimental label Bloni, showed how he managed to do bio mimicry of a crocodile skin with Shibori, plus his additions of stainless-steel architectural materials on a tailored jacket. Some places you can also see ghungroos, as he sells the silk organza Japanese weave, with reflective properties for Rs 2,50000 lakhs. It comes with Savile Row tailoring, and a mix of various engaging techniques, custom designed. He is one of the bold, new designers who are taking fashion to the next level—see his silk felt raw fabric, it was waste that weavers had—he made a piece out of it.
The silk jersey fabric innovation feels like cashmere you can wear in summer. His organic tie dye with real crystals—Onyx, to his rose quartz sari is cool. “Fashion is getting clearer. We are not trying to decorate people. We are closer to the mission of respecting crafts and reinventing not preserving it. It has only been seven years for me but fashion is powerful– people won’t watch a documentary, but they will enjoy a fashion documentary,” concludes Akshat.