KOLKATTA FASHION WEEK – SEASON II

The Indian designers are no longer confined to the domestic fashion and apparel market. With India is becoming the latest fashion hub for the fashionistas, the DESINGERS are gaining recognition and fame from all over the world.
One of the major platforms that provide the Indian designers to showcase their talents is through the fashion shows. Kolkatta Fashion Week is one of the most popular fashion show celebration of India where the talents of already established and upcoming designers are showcased.
TRICITY CALLING took a tour to the Kolkata Fashion Week – Season II or KFW 2009, which began with the ace designer Ritu Kumar’s who paid a tribute to rich Bengali traditional designs and craftsmanship, while got concluded with the grand finalé of Manish Malhotra’s show.

This feast featured:

Ritu Kumar, Bibi Russel, Manish Malhotra, Wendell Rodricks, Rocky S, Narendra Kumar, Mandira Virk and many more. The five day fashion extravaganza was held from September 9 to September 13 at the ITC, The Sonar, Kolkata.
Star cricketer Virender Sehwag, sarod maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, Director Rituparno Ghosh and film actresses Riya Sen, Nitin Mukesh and Irrfaan Khan was among the few showstoppers, who were a part of the event.
This event was a fashion celebration laced with lots of glamour and national as well as international media coverage, wherein many high profile designers as well as famous Bollywood celebrities were part of it.
Actor Neetu Chandra, who was walked the ramp for designer Soumitra Mondal, said, “I’ve been busy shooting for the Tamil version of Bachna Ae Haseeno. But when I got an offer to walk for KFW2, I immediately agreed since I’m in love with Kolkata’s vintage appeal and the city’s connect with all things arty. Though being a showstopper is a nerve-wracking act”, added the all excited Neetu. For Neil Nitin Mukesh, it’s both a love for Kolkata and Nari’s sensibilities that’s making him walk the ramp. “I love Nari as a human being. This translates into his work too,” he said. Meanwhile, walking for Mandira Wirk was Sophie Choudry’s way of strengthening her ties with Kolkata, a city where she had spent her holidays.

Collection by Some of the Designers:
Anita Dongre
Showstopper - Rimii Sen
With her love for Luxury and Lifestyle, Anita launched her one of a kind couture line, ANITA DONGRE TIMELESS. The label catered to custom made occasion wear. Be it a bridal trousseau or a red carpet stunner, ANITA DONGRE TIMELESS is termed as a luxury outfit you’ll desire to own and have forever.
The collection made ingenious use of traditional weaves and silks all over the country to create styles that are classis, feminine and eternal. Each ensemble, delicately handcrafted by adept craftsmen, is precious, luxurious and opulent enough to be considered as rare pieces for heirloom.

Aarti Vijaygupta
Her work was all about ‘breaking the compromise’. Merging old with the modern, creativity with practically. The box pleats, pyramid cones, quilted yokes yet feminine to the contours- classy, wearable and realistic yet affordable, this summed up her USP.
Collection
The Spring Summer 10 collection alternated the signature austerity of the label with more creative inputs. Her collection into the fold ’, inspired by Japanese art of Origami she felt is self explanatory of her collection. Her main objective was to fuse the traditional with the more topical. She tried to do so by blending of linen fabric in earthy colours with sophisticated cuts, which she believed, certainly will enchant the modern feminine world.
The color palette evoked metropolitan shades of grey, offset against purple softened by the matte of linen, broken by beige, brown and sand tones, and greens have a dry, olivey patina.

Aditi Jaggi
The designer Aditi Jaggi Rastogi is an alumnus of S.O.F.T, Pune, and has won the sobriquet of the ‘most commercially viable designer. A thorough experience under designer Rina Dhaka, a stint @ SSL, and designing for Mallika Sherawat etc. are the laurels that prove the strong foundation of the label.
Collection
This collection was an attempt to add to the grace n persona of a bride who considers comfort and value for money as her priorities, yet she wanted to indulge in a bright colorful collection for her trousseau, picking a mix of ensembles for all occasions. There was ample use of brocade from grandmas’ closet in the form of appliqué delicately highlighted with tiny beads and colorful stones. There were lehengas, saris, anarkalis, churidars and also a wide range of tunics. In short there was a mix of all that a newlywed bride wants in her wardrobe. Being spring summer 2010, the fabrics used were very easy chiffons and cotton blend silks.

Narendra Kumar
Showstopper: Neil Nitin Mukesh
Narendra Kumar was part of the first ever graduating class from NIFT in 1990, when it was still being run in conjunction with FIT, New York and Trent Polytechnic, UK. The NK line for both men and women is based on modern cuts and silhouettes but integrates the luxurious aspects of specially woven Indian fabrics and hand-crafted detailing to maintain a couture feel to the line.

Abhishek Dutta
Showstopper: Irrfaan Khan
Winner of Smirnoff International Fashion Award and an award winning student of Wigan & Leign College, Abhishek Dutta believes in creating garments with a difference. He specializes in various ancient embroideries with futurists cuts. His label AD Normal gives immense choice to people for casual clothing whilst his other label Abhishek D creates exclusive couture ensembles. Apart from formal wear his casual wear comprises of tops, trousers, jackets, skirts, etc. at a very affordable price. The inspiration for AD Normal line of clothes comes from the very sporty attitude of youth.
Collection
A futuristic collection was rolled out on the ramp from the Abhishek Dutta stable. Cuts and not surface embellishment dominated the ‘creative patterns’. Off-white, orange and khaki were his chosen colours for this structured western collection.

Swati Srivastava
The ‘Swati Srivastava’ label, incepted in the year 2007, has already been making weaves in the industry. A swirling mix of urban contemporary influences in heady creative style, ‘Swati Srivastava’ is a tour de force in Indian fashion. ‘Swati Srivastava’ the label is available at locations across India at stores in New Delhi, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Chennai.
Collection
The Delhi-based designer was showcasing an Indo-western line. The collection included lehengas, saris, draped tops, tunics and short jackets brought alive by textures, bamboo work, terracotta and cane work on net, khadi silk and Dhakai silk.

Manish Malhotra
Actors Amrita Rao, Ronit Roy, Raima Sen, Riya Sen, director Rituparno Ghosh and footballer Bhaichung Bhutia was among the celebrities who walked the ramp at the finale of Kolkata Fashion Week-II, when Manish Malhotra showcased his collection.Amrita Rao did the show stopping catwalk draped in a red lehenga. Ronit walked the ramp in a grey and black striped sherwani that had embroidery work. Bhaichung was seen in a grey sherwani.
“My label is known as couture clothing. I think my clothes are wearable. For example, I feel the sherwani is a lot more textured than most embroideries. For women it has a lot of net. It’s more clothes than jewellery,” said Manish.
This was his first show in the city, where he exhibited bridal clothes.