Designers Swapnil Shinde,Nachiket Barve and Narendra Kumar ensured a healthy dose of festive and glamourous fashion Nachiket Barve: The rapidly changing colours of the sky,when the sun descends to make way for the moon,inspired Nachiket Barves collection The Golden Hour on Thursday at the Lakme Fashion Week. The collection was the perfect canvas for Barve to play to his strength with colours; all the hues of sunset amber,red,gold,yellow,pink,burgundy found their way onto the clothes,as did his love for layering,flowing silhouettes and appliqué. But shifting his focus to a slightly more festive look,this collection also marked a departure for Barve. He has played with embellishments like never before,using fractal embroidery,sequins,periwinkle appliqué and polki motifs,especially with the textured neckpieces that accompanied many of the outfits . Much to his credit,the designer pulled off a more blinged out look than is his wont. A highly wearable collection,it featured some good examples of fusion dressing. A special mention needs to be made of the trench-kurta with fractal embroidery which,according to Barve,should finally give Indian women an excuse to wear a trench-coat without feeling foolish. Swapnil Shinde: With his collection,Speed of Sound,Swapnil Shinde produced one of the most accomplished collections of the day. Ultra feminine and glamorous,the line of red-carpet-ready gowns,cocktail dresses and skirts were in black,grey and brown,with a few in a wonderful shade of yellow. Mimicking soundwaves in the forms of rolls of acrylic and leather,strategically placed across the bodices of his gowns,Shinde showed that he could do dramatic and statement making fashion without being too loud. The art-deco style belts and towering heels complemented the collection,which used a profusion of lush fabrics such as organza,taffeta and crepe,and paired them with acrylic,leather and PVC. It was a line with a strong concept,and Shinde executed it in his characteristically glamorous fashion. Narendra Kumar: With F. Scott Fitzgeralds classic,The Great Gatsby,as one of his inspirations,Narendra Kumars collection was reminiscent of the smoking room in an old mens club. Known to predominantly cater to the menswear segment of the market,Kumars show,Fly Me To The Moon,opened with a female model wearing an all gray suit that could fashionably enhance any womans appearance in cut throat corporate environments. The menswear,of course,stood out. The collection started with grey tuxedos and then went on to showcase three-piece suits,jackets and blazers inspired by American culture in the '60s. Kumar even went as far as to showcase all white ensembles which were paired with two-toned shoes or all black. The colours progressed from gray and gold and champagne to pink. There was even a curious ensemble that featured different shades of orange. Black,being the masculine favourite of the festive season ,came towards the finale,paired with different combinations of maroon,purple and gold. But it was the show-stopper,Kabir Bedi who made an elegant entrance wearing a white blazer with black trousers and a maroon handkerchief in his pocket that set the theme for the show.
