Nature always inspired him. The clean blue water of ocean drew him deeply. Like many others of his ilk, designer Sunil Mehra always endeavoured to create designs that showcase serenity of nature. For years, he had been harbouring this desire to make an entire collection solely dedicated to the beauty of Nature.
“Nature has always fascinated and inspired me. I have endeavoured towards creating garments which celebrate all the blends and patterns that nature offers,” says Mehra.
Launched as an ode to Mother Earth on the occasion of Earth Day today, his latest collection delves into ethereal and vibrant attributes of ocean with unmatched abundance.
“The elements of earth have tickled my creative nerve since childhood. Which one of the earth's elements should I concentrate on was my only dilemma,” he says. Then a year back, he came up the idea of doing a collection taking ocean as a central theme. He wanted to make designs that show both positive and negative attributes of water.
“Water is an essential element for life. Even a single drop is enough to save a life, but when it comes with force, it can cause massive destruction and deaths, and this is what I wanted to experiment with,” he says. “To combine the hues and splashes of oceanic colours with the taste of the men of today took around six months,” says Mehra.
The results were marvellous. Just like ocean’s blue colour holds a charming allure and a calming feel, so do the pieces in this collection. Mehra has used this colour in both, formal and ethnic wear (blazers and kurtas) as well as essential accessories like limited edition pocket squares, ties, cufflinks and scarves.
The ethnic wear has been made in silk and silk blends and Western pieces have been done in linen besides silk and silk blends. The shoe collection, from a daily wear loafer to the ones that can be worn on red carpet events, made of Italian leather accentuates the deep mysteries of aquatic life. Mehra has designed some shoes embossing fish scales liberally on them. “Blue is a versatile colour. Besides the colour, the renditions of oceanic waves are painted on the shoes and blazers in a novel way,” he says.