Hyderabad got a heady dose of fashion and glamour last weekend with three international designers showcasing their collection on Saturday at HiTex to a packed auditorium. What made us more excited was that these designers, who have dressed several Hollywood and Bollywood celebrities, chose Hyderabad as the first city in India to show their collections of evening wear.
Joao Rolo, a Portuguese designer who has worked in the global fashion scene for 30 years, designs everything from clothes, home decor and jewellery, but his favourite, he admits, is the evening gown. He likes to design impactful gowns with European sensibilities, and perfection is must. “I cut and do the fitting for the dresses myself. I pay great attention to details and like the finish to be perfect. Glamour and sophistication are very important for me.
Given his love for dresses with drama, it is no wonder that he took inspiration from the Russian empire for this collection called ‘Czarina’. “This is a dramatic and opulent collection mainly in gold colours. 80 percent of my clients are from Middle East and Africa. I have showed this collection in Spain and Pakistan. I have used royal colours – navy, burgundy, black, gold, green and fuschia. I also like feathers and have used them in this fall-winter collection.”
Rolo, who has Bollywood actress Esha Gupta among his clientele, has also dressed celebrities for the Red Carpet in Cannes. “Last year, my dress was featured in the top 10 dresses in the film festival,” he said. “My designs are very popular in India and I receive over 100 calls from Indian stylists every day.”
Echoing this love for Indian influences, designer Ellie Madi admitted that he was a big fan of the saree and was even designing a wedding gown which was inspired by the Indian six yards. Madi has dressed A-list songstress superstars Carrie Underwood, Katy Perry, Jennifer Lopez, Paris Hilton and many more. The dress that Underwood wore in the 2015 American Music Awards had undertones of metallic gold with sequins, and had a cape to add that dramatic effect. It was an instant favourite among fashion circles.
Metallic influences are what we see again in this exclusive collection of evening wear by Madi. “This collection of 28 dresses is inspired by metallic colours like gold. I get inspired by everything – trees, roads flowers. I like Indian-style work of beads and saris,” he said.
The Lebanese designer, who has dress Bollywood diva Kareena Kapoor, works from Kuwait, Los Angeles and Lebanon. Talking about his pet peeve in fashion, he said: “I do not like minimalism. A dress should make a statement.” He added that he found the Indian body shape very beautiful, and he makes dresses for women of all shapes and sizes. “Every woman has her own beauty,” he said. And we do agree!
Apart from these designers, Furne One of the Amato Couture was here too for his first show in India. For him, this collection called for double celebration as his fashion house completed 25 years this year “It’s my 25th anniversary and it’s a celebration. So this collection is representing celebration.”
Launched in 2002 in the UAE, Amato (beloved in Italian) is the brainchild of the much-awarded Furne One, who partnered with textile expert Rashid Ali, to build this avant garde label. Furne, whose design philosophy is not to be afraid of the dictates of fashion, has dressed Heidi Klum, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Jennifer Lopez, Nicki Minaj, Shakira and our own divas – Priyanka Chopra and Katrina Kaif. Talking about how he prepared to dress celebrities, he said: “The design depends on the event. For Katy Perry, I designed her entire world tour and her red carpet look.
Each occasion had a different design and style.” Furne, being an Asian, takes inspiration from Asian fashion and specialises in three- dimensional beadings and mix fabrication. Furne’s love for India is not limited to Bollywood alone, and he loves the richness of Indian culture the old buildings, heritage and the Maharajas. He also admires the work of Rohit bal and Manish Malhotra. As a true non-believer in the dictates of fashion, the designer, who operates from Los Angeles among other places, said that there were no fashion trends to look forward to as he did not believe in them. Why follow other trends when you can set them yourself, huh?
— Kakoli Mukherjee
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