Overall Benefit

For her show at the Lakme Fashion Week this year, Asmita Marwah dressed up in a flirty yellow jumpsuit with flared pants and a short, fitted top. “Ideally, it’s suited for a person who is tall and has a lean body structure, but for someone like me, who is only of average height, it works quite as well, with a bit of restructuring,” says the Hyderabad-based designer. Accordingly, her collection has a range of jumpsuits with what she calls “elephant pants” — a takeoff of shararas — while the tops resemble regular jumpsuit uppers. “I worked on the theme of a whirling dervish and the flares worked for the theme,” she says. Marwah’s boho chic also comes from using fabrics like mulmuls and handwoven silks.

Delhi-based designers Hemant Lalwani and Nandita Raipurani too have used the jumpsuit to put forward their eclectic design sensibility. The two have come up with a shorter version of the jumpsuit as well as full-length variations. Besides handpainting the pants, the duo have also generously used elements like silver and gold dabka work on the collars, and pintucks and flares on the pants. “We wanted to fuse Indian elements with a western silhouette and this worked beautifully,” says Raipurani.

Of course, several others have worked their way around the jumpsuit. Designers Rohit Gandhi and Rahul Khanna have worked with off-shoulder pieces in essentially anti fits. “We have used colours like fuchsia, lime, coral, cobalt and powder blue and purple because they automatically make the ensemble stand out. The look is essentially simple but there’s a hint of applique and fringe embroidery, tie-and-dye and sequins to give it an eveningwear approach,” says Khanna. Namrata Joshipura, meanwhile, has done a more casual, fitted look in lycra, with the trousers often shortened to knee-length. Sisters Gauri and Nainika, though, have chosen to stick to the classic silhouette, while designer Rakesh Agarvwal has come up with opulent pieces that are just perfect for an evening out, with silhouettes that resemble dresses and colours that range from bright yellows to dressy blacks.

“The thing to keep in mind is that the jumpsuit is no longer restricted to gym wear or casual wear. Choose one that suits your body type and accessorise it to get the perfect look,” says Atsu Sekhose. The designer has used linen and cotton to create a range of funky jumpsuits, which come with drawstrings and often resemble dungarees. He teams them with transparent jackets, uppers with shirt collars and cuffs, “so that you can either dress up or down, depending on your mood”. Check out your own statement now.