Total Recall

Even the free whisky at the Chivas bar could not have enticed anybody to miss David Abraham and Rakesh Thakore’s show. The first Abraham and Thakore ramp show in their 18-year-old career had the assembled guests nodding in appreciation. The two showcased silk ikat and applique cotton tunics,mostly in monochromes,poly-laminate churidars teamed with kurtas,velvet jackets and pants among others. Other contemporary motifs such as the autorickshaw and kolhapuri chappals were either embroidered or beaded into the kurtas,jackets and accessories. We particularly liked the shoes— jooti platform heels,which were in sync with the collection. Last word: Their silk ikat sarees are to die for.

Grand finale designer Rajesh Pratap Singh created his autumnal wonderland on the 80 -foot long runway comprising acid-washed wooden boards and a background screen covered with unfinished clothes in muslin,almost as a tribute to “work in progress”. The models hurtled out in oversized shirt trousers,black sheaths with red cross-body patterns,plenty of reversible jackets in cashmere and silk to Rolling Stones’ classic You Can’t Always Get What You Want. The designer rounded off the proceedings with a choir group singing Pink Floyd’s Us and Them . In the end,in true Pratap style,the designer ducked out briefly for a bow,even as friends Manish Arora and Namrata Joshipura cheered for him loudly. When asked how he manages such spectacular shows without showstoppers,Pratap responded: “I am basically a tailor. This is what I do best.” Touching.

Mad hatter Shilpa Chavan’s show The Rainbow Totem began with a bang as models in perspex and feather hats inundated the stage. On the ramp were visors,masks,and plumes. Model Ignatius Camilo walked out in a feathered hat,matched with torn stockings,while another swished down with a towering Perspex skyscraper on her head. The female models sported cartoonish oversized red lips,while a lighted helmet — a toss up between a spaceship and a futuristic machine greeted the audience next. From the sidelines it looked like another outing from Stanley Kubrick’s futuristic A Space Odyssey.

One need not have looked further for effortless dressing than Nida Mahmood’s Sadak Chaap show on the Grand Fashion day. The show area resounded with the sound of the plastic whistles which Mahmood had given away as takeaway,even as seven boys from the Salaam Baalak Trust,invaded the fluorescent green runway,in shining shirts and cheap glasses,sporting old fashioned trumpets and drums. After the initial band-baaja,the stage was set for a quick shave and hair-cut. A burly man settled into a chair for his hajaamat (shave) as an antique radio blared in the background. The models stepped out in oversized headgear—spray painted helmets with plastic combs,rough red horns,carrying bags fused with nuts and bolts,and shining green ones with Vimal emblazoned on it. On the runway were 23 outfits with loads of attitude. We liked the 29-year-old Mahmood’s trademark sari-jeans,with epaulettes stitched on the blouses. “What’s not to love about being over the top?” grinned the designer.

(With inputs from Anushree Majumdar)

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