Frankie Says Relax: LFW SpringSummer 2014 is about easy comfort
This week will see some of the biggest and most promising talent in India’s fashion industry welcome summer with a flourish on the ramp. Now in its 22nd edition, the Lakme Fashion Week, slated for 12-16 March, features 98 participating artists, including Manish Malhotra, Rajesh Pratap Singh, Anita Dongre, Neeta Lulla, Mandira Bedi and many others unveiling new collections and defining the fashion trends for the coming season.
The designs arriving on the ramp this year take inspiration from the entire length and breadth of the country — while Shruti Sancheti’s collection will bring forth the weaves and designs of Puducherry, Sidharth Sinha’s N&S Gaia brings to life the sustainable weaves, crafts and textiles of the Northeast adapted for an urban palate, and Anita Dongre’s collection is built on the finely woven fabrics of Varanasi.
Designers are also incorporating sharp cuts and silhouettes that mirror a metropolitan landscape dotted with skyscrapers — metallic hues, solid cuffs, angled collars find resonance in the collections of Nikhil Thampi and Chandni Mohan, both of whom cater to a younger, hipper, party crowd. Of course, the other kind of party that you’d like to spend a year’s salary on for your wardrobe is the wedding, and everyone from Tarun Tahiliani to Manish Malhotra will have a range of new designs on display, be it the understated, chiffon kaftan or the pencilskirt lehenga in Tahiliani’s new line (which otherwise stresses on resort wear, a fresh break for the king of ethnic chic), or Leon and Vaz’s gorgeous gowns that take Westernstyle bridal wear out of the binary of black and white and spin it in shades of ochre and gold.
The dominant trends for the season, however, are to be found in the resort-wear section; not surprising since, come summer, you’ll want minimal clothes on your back. After a season of the ’90s nostalgia craze taking over both the ramp and the streets, this is the