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'Fresh and cool' end to LIFW
Curtains will come down on the Lakme India Fashion Week, 2005 with the grand finale tonight to focus on 'freshness and coolness', based on the sponsor Lakme's 'Peppermint' theme.
Curtains will come down on the Lakme India Fashion Week, 2005 with the grand finale tonight to focus on 'freshness and coolness', based on the sponsor Lakme's 'Peppermint' theme.
"This year we have chosen peppermint as the theme and the show would reflect coolness and freshness," Lakme Lever vice-president Anil Chopra said.
The designers for this year's grand finale are Varun Bahl and Monisha Jaisingh.
The week-long fashion extravaganza saw as many as 55 designers, including Ritu Kumar, Tarun Tahiliani, Rina Dhaka, and Wendell Rodricks, showcasing their collections.
While the old timers of Indian fashion industry made their presence felt, rookie designers like Shantanu Goenka and Lakme Fashion House contest winner Shazad Kalim announced their arrival.
"There is a lot of expectation from here as it is a big stage where all the big names in the industry watch you," said Goenka.
Over the week, both domestic and international buyers kept a close watch on the collections showcased.
"I came looking for something inspirational, uniquely Indian and also very commercial at the same time," said Elizabeth Bidersen of Selfridges, a top international fashion buying house.
With designers like Wendell Rodericks leading the 'pret brigade', buyers welcomed the shift from high-end diffusion and couture collections to the more basic.
"This time around there has been a shift towards the more basic in the collections showcased. The designers seem to be looking at the volume market, which augurs well from a business perspective," Sumit Chandana, Ladies Ethnic Wear category manager, Shoppers Stop, said.
Celebrities and stars made their presence felt with actress Shabana Azmi cat-walking for Anuradha Vakil and Mandira Bedi for Satya Paul. Cricketers Virender Sehwag, Mohammed Kaif and Irfan Pathan also took the ramp by storm.
Controversy too played a part at this year's fashion week with designer Suneet Varma accusing Aki Narula of copying his designs for a yet-to-be released Hindi movie. Narula, however, denied the allegations.
Fashion Design Council of India, meanwhile, announced there would be two India fashion weeks from next year.
"There has been a lot of discussion on the need for two fashion weeks in a year," Rathi Vinay Jha, Director General, FDCI, said.
