Head over Heels

At first sight,it’s easy to mistake the grey thermocol heads — that are bunched together on metal wires against a wall — for an art installation. But a closer look at these heads — that form part of the exhibition at the newly opened Colaba space 1/29 Gallerie — makes it clear that on each of them sits a headgear. Through such presentation,costume designer and milliner Isha Ahluwalia combines her love for art and fashion. “I am not just excited by fashion — I am in love with all design-related things. My interests range from architecture and painting to fashion and product design. So I decided to launch my line of headgears in an artistic manner,” she says.

The headgears have a strong sculptural identity. Ahluwalia has worked with processes involving carving,moulding,draping and folding. The collection is aptly titled “Percherie” and is on display till December 6. The headgears have been crafted almost entirely in leather,silk,animal prints,net,sequinned embroidery and metal chains. The leather is soft and contoured,with the use of raw edges such as extended skin or animal hide,while the metal components bring in a robotic,mechanised,cyborg-like aesthetic,she says.

“My works are rooted in Indian-ness,though I have reinterpreted old traditions and ideas. For instance,I have offered my own take on the Kullu caps and the brocade version of the Haryanvi borlas (a kind of maang teeka),” says this alumna of Central Saint Martins,London.

Ahluwalia — who has also dabbled in costume design for films such as Matrubhoomi: A Nation Without Women,Rajat Kapoor’s Mithya,Kiran Rao’s Dhobhi Ghat and Saeed Mirza’s Ek Tho Chance — is showcasing a range of bow-ties,ties and clothing items at the show. “Much like the caps and hairbands,the bow-ties and ties have a leather or a silk base and are high on versatility. The capsule collection of clothes consists of crop tops,throws and capes. Here too,I have fused mythology with a futuristic vision. For instance,the cape is made of leather and has a silver crown-like centrepiece,” says Ahluwalia,who owns the gallery space with partner Paul Rodrigues.

vidya.prabhu@expressindia.com