Signature Premier Fashion Week - Kolkata(Day One)

I almost couldn't believe my eyes/ears when I first got a call(and then text(s) and then a mail) from gingerclaps team offering me to cover Kolkata Fashion Week for them! Kolkata Fashion Week,though still in its nascent stage,is already a name to reckon with. Covering a prestigious event like this was nothing short of a dream come true.
                            And then came the D day. I reached the venue a little late,thanks to the famous Kolkata traffic but the excellent management at the Park made sure I got my ID card in no time. I managed to reach just in time to see models walking down the ramp in Lakme Fashion Week regular Paromita Banerjee's designs. The rusty background music and the rich handlooms transported the audience into an entirely different world. Dhakai,Jamdani,Khadi,Tussore,Tangail and Ikat formed the major part of the collection. It was celebrating Indianness on a different level. Watching her collection made me wonder whether the next Sabyasachi has arrived or not. Though the entire collection stayed true to its roots,the feel was very contemporary. Traditional saris gave way to skirts,wraps,tunics,capes and kurtas. Later,in the post-show interview,Paromita herself said that the collection was very all India-centric,with inspirations as varied as 'Kala Bou' helping her come up with this collection. It was aptly named 'Story of Weaves'.


After a short break,it was time for gen next designer Swati Aggarwal to show her bridal collection 'Ruling Goddess'. Though high on bling,she balanced her pieces well with the minimal make up and accessories. The elaborate head gears complemented the clothes well as the colour palette varied from ivory and dreamy pink to bolder colours like magenta. The tied up hair made the whole look non-cluttered.

                                                                                                              Coming up back to back was another young designer Neyhha Banka with her fun and vibrant collection 'Tick tack toe'. Starting out with fun prints,as the show progressed,she moved on to solid coloured maxis and saris with clever use of ombre,peplum and layering. A lot of pants were seen,varying from printed pants to solid charcoal grey ones. Things got bolder once the super short shorts and dresses started to make an appearance. As they say,only the bold stand out when it comes to fashion. The quirky headbands with tick tack toe patterns easily caught attention.

The best was finally saved for the last. Abhishek Dutta had taken the expectations a few notches higher with his decision to host his show in the almost vintage ambiance of Priya Cinema Hall in the southern part of the city. Though the show started more than an hour late,it was definitely worth the wait. He struck a fine balance between his western line and fusion range with ample use of colours like blue,purple and black. The Bold and the Beautiful truly came together to make the show a treat to the senses. The somewhat unusual idea of making the models walk down the aisles made the whole experience all the more real.

Photo credits: Debanjan Ghosh

                                                                  Though I had had a pretty hectic day,I think this was an experience I'd cherish forever. Thank you Signature,spiritzandmore and most importantly,team gingerclaps for giving me such a great opportunity!