Off the Ramp

Fashion choreography gets a new twist as designers opt for flash mobs and models enter from seating areas.

Fashion choreography gets a new twist as designers opt for flash mobs and models enter from seating areas.

As the lights dimmed,the stripes on the runway glowed in the dark. The music began to play,lights came on,and models dressed in designer duo Shantanu and Nikhil Mehras creations approached the ramp from different directions,including the seating areas on both sides. This wasnt a show rehearsal going awry,rather it marked a detour from the conventional fashion show. Since our collection was called The Tourist,we wanted to recreate an airport on the ramp. We had models sit among the audience so that when they walk up to the ramp,theyd look like busy travellers at an airport, says Shantanu Mehra,about the choreography of his show at the recent (Summer Resort 2013) edition of Lakme Fashion Week (LFW).

The designer brothers are not the only ones who have deviated from the routine. Narendra Kumar Ahmed had two sides of the ramp lined with models clad in what resembled riot police gear. Debarun Mukherjee threw in a flash mob and Rohit Kamra had a belly dance performance to kickstart his show. Ken Ferns had models dance among the audience,toss colourful balls and spray confetti as part of his Talent Box show,in sync with his circus-themed collection. For Kumar,his collection,titled Thought Police,was a statement against moral policing. The models in police gear may have blocked the view of the ramp but that is exactly what I was going for. I wanted to draw a parallel between the show and the restrictions in our country, he says. Similarly,at Mukherjees show,the Be You line,he incorporated a flash mob to lend it a more contemporary feel. The performance seemed right as the show was about self-realisation, he says.

Show director for Khannas show,Alison Kanuga says that a dose of glamour makes a show stand out. At a fashion week,its easy for people to get bored with back-to-back shows. So when you add something new,it breaks the monotony and ups the recall value, she says. Models walking out the opposite end (as opposed to walking back) also helped highlight the front detailing of Khannas outfits.

However,overdoing this could also lead to more confusion. The flash mob in Mukherjees show rattled many industry insiders who felt that the performance trivialised fashion. Anu Ahuja,who directed Kumars show,says ,I tell designers that going overboard wont help as the show becomes gimmicky and the clothes get lost in the noise, she says.

The key element is to have a clear brief. Unless you have a really strong theme to back your choreography,it will fall flat, warns Khanna. Aparna Badlani of Atosa says that choreography will take the design story forward and make the show interesting only if the quirks fit in. If not,it will overwhelm the clothes and that defeats the purpose of it all, she says.

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