BENGALURU: Playful designs, bold colours, and a lot of experimenting marked the first two days of the 22nd edition of the Wear.Style Bangalore Fashion Week. Despite the location of the show being at Electronics City, crowds slowly trickled in during the evening hours on Friday. The afternoon began with designs being showcased by The Indian Institute of Fashion Technology, followed by luxury couture by Tulsi. Designers like Bengaluru-based Michelle Salina and Ganesh Nallari from Hyderabad were busy with fittings and the works.
Nallari, who was preparing to showcase his Spring/Summer 2020, Madhyamaka, explained that his designs, an Indian-fusion collection for both women and men, is a “middle way between realism and idealism that embraces all duality into one.” The fabrics used are Banaras Kora (organza) tissue, linens, Ajrakh prints on Mashru and Modal silk, cottons, lace, nets, chiffons and georgettes. “The fabrics and colours infuse heritage and tradition with a colourful youthful update. I believe I’m a story teller – as a designer, painter, dancer and an actor. The colours I’ve used convey a sense of confidence with ease. With an element of natural sophistication and versatility, this season’s core hues – lark, navy, brilliant white, ash, silver and gold – serve as a foundation for playful colour contrasts,” Nallari says, whose showstopper was Akkai Padmashali, transgender activist who received the Rajyotsava Prashasti.
New to the world of fashion, Divya Samal, who was displaying her “dreamy” collection for the first time. “So, the idea is to begin the show with light and airy colours – which represent happy dreams – and then move on to darker shades of navy blues and reds to represent nightmares,” says Samal, who has been working on her collection since November. “This being my first time, I’m getting a true idea of what goes on behind the scenes to put together a show,” says Samal, who is focusing on illusion bodice.
Devi Muthukumar’s collection, ‘Ballads of Fusion’, is an attempt to portray the feeling of being you. “We are bringing ethnic vibes in its natural temperament. Contemporary fashion will be revamped to fusion-wear with change in style essence,” she says. The weekend will see designers Jattinn Kochhar who will celebrate 30 years of being in the industry, Sounak Sen Barat from House of Three showcasing his works, with the highlight being Chitrangada Singh, who will walk the ramp for designer Abdul Halder, on Sunday