Nida brings street culture to the ramp

Designer Nida Mahmood brought the spirit of the streets to the ramp with her show 'Sadak Chhaap' on the concluding day of the Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week on Monday.

Designer Nida Mahmood brought the spirit of the streets to the ramp with her show 'Sadak Chhaap' on the concluding day of the Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week on Monday.

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From the ambience, the peppy background songs to funky one-liner voiceovers to the use of junk like nuts and bolts, latches, old keys and watch dials, Nida's show took the audience from the glitzy event to the world of gritty yet vibrant alleys of India.

"I was heavily inspired by mundane and boring things around me. Things that we may be seeing every day on the streets but we don't really care about," Nida, whose show was to open this edition of WIFW earlier, told reporters after her show.

"I have used a lot of metallic scrap for this collection like helmets and shoes that I used in my earlier shows. I camouflaged them with new things because most of these things otherwise just keep lying if not reused. I have done a lot of groundwork for this show," she added.

The designer, who is known for her funky, kitschy designs, wanted to bring street typography to the ramp and she successfully did so by using chips bags, tea and masala packets, printed carry bags, ping pong balls, bindis, stickers, sequin sheets and nylon mesh on her clothes.

As for the troupe that regaled the audience with their 'bindaas' music and dance, Nida said: "I wanted to bring the spirit of the streets to the ramp. These kids stay in Shadipur bus depot here in Delhi and this is what they do on the streets for a living. I just involved them to enhance the spirit of street culture I was attempting to showcase through my show."

Nida also used funky conversational street ads - such as Buri nazar waale tera muh kaala, Yahaan thhookna mana hai, Cycle stand, Kaanch ka kaam, PCO - that find place on most streets across the country.

Till the last minute of the show, even during her ceremonial bow, Nida managed to give the audience a flavour of the streets as the evergreen song "Sar jo tera chakraaye" played in the backdrop.

Nida's collection was dominated by saris over denims and dresses in shades of beige to muddy camel colours, interspersed with stark reds, electric blue, tangerine, indigo, acid green and fuschias.

A striking feature at Nida's show was the heavy use of innovative accessories, especially headgear, her colourful bags with posters of old movies and funky neckpieces.

All in all the show was entertaining as most audience members, including Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI) president Sunil Sethi, were seen moving their shoulders to the peppy music, apart from some who cheered the models by blowing colourful whistles that she provided to all audience members.