Every setback in life kind of teaches us, for Sushant it was his brother’s sudden demise, he used the pain to pay homage to his memory keeping it alive each year. At the FDCI Denim Edit he gives the resilience of denim an interesting twist with hand painted leather.
By Asmita Aggarwal
It was a happy surprise to be part of the FDCI Denim Edit for Sushant Abrol, Countrymade, and a perfect fit as 50 per cent of his collection for a recent Paris trade show was crafted out of this sturdy material. “Trail Dust” conjures images of a dust cloud you leave behind, while driving on rugged terrain, it seemed to be in sync with what Abrol has been doing for the last five years-a sort of continuation. Thus, the dust cloud is an analogy of the essence of our journey, a bit like how with our travels we bring back memories.
Denim for the show has been captured in its rawness, as it exudes resilience, much like the sole of shoes we wear, which get worn out, or our jeans which wrinkle over time, the fabric folds, crumples, these are the effects given by Abrol to show the veracity of time. “We don’t embroider tigers or leopards, or sequin birds, thus crumpling is our embroidery,” he smiles, adding, “lines play a very crucial role in denim—cracked, folds, we have worked with selvage denim, 100 percent cotton, we do not use stretch. Denim is inherently strong, and can play with many techniques, experiment, unlike something like Chanderi which may tear if put under pressure-as it’s delicate.”
The label started as an homage to his older brother who passed away in 2019- Squadron Leader Samir Abrol died during a training sortie in a fighter jet crash. Abrol studied from NIFT, Mohali, in 2010, he wanted to join the armed forces passed the entrance for the Service Selection Board (SSB) but was not selected after the group discussion. His brother wanted him to start his own label, he was a class topper, but his life was cut short. The label never forgets him—somewhere Abrol keeps his aura alive.
Though he is not showcasing it, he has a line of denim ecru, unwashed, with patchwork, camouflaging, applique, his signature looks along with frayed denim, in tandem with his military inspirations, a signature. The fraying for him depicts the journey of the “aged soldier” coming back from war brimming with experiences—the hues rang from black, indigo, and navy, screen prints of dust particles, splattered, bullion knots stitched unevenly-it was a show that brought out the concept together beautifully.
“In menswear structure gives confidence, we add artisanal techniques, to make it interesting, but denim is no longer casual. We have constructed blazers, almost making it semi-formal, you can wear it for an intimate evening out,” he confirms. This season he has Safari suits, vests with leather accents, hand painted leather, which has already been picked up by stores in the Netherlands and Beverly Hills, US.
The beauty of a Countrymade show is its music—which is written by Abrol himself, this time inspired by an Irish pub song, titled “Rocky Road to Dublin” by the High Kings. It became an anthem for workers who after a hard day’s work unwind singing about their day. Writing poetry, he has added all his collections names till now, almost ten, (Homecoming, Band of Brothers, No Man’s Land et al) in the song and composed it in the Irish lyrical style. “The idea is to enjoy the moment, also celebrating the perseverance of not giving up, to come up every six months with collections,” he concludes.