There was a rush of excitement that came in when FDCI offered us the Amazon India Fashion Week’s Grand Finale. And to share the runway with the man that mentored me in my early days as a designer, burgeoned the thrill in the coming days.
Finale or not, putting a show together is always a lot of work from the point of ideation to the complete look on the ramp. My interpretation of Amazon’s theme ‘fresh new look’ is about a new outlook of the woman of today. She celebrates the culture and has a vision for the environment she lives in that translates into her clothing choices. This also gave us an opportunity to take a fresh look at the brand Amit Aggarwal. My commitment to sustainability nudged me to bring it into our couture line this season.
My most favourite part is rummaging through the found fabrics of bygone days. The inspiration sparks and design starts flowing in my head the moment I hold old textile in my hands and witness the fine stories each one has to tell. I worked with a number of swatches and processes to restore these age old fabrics. It was as if the studio turned into a laboratory! Piecing together the patolas and brocades with new material and technique started giving a definite form to the collection.
The buzz before the fashion weeks is wonderful. There is a bit of nervous excitement, a lot of coffee and barely any sleep! The team worked like zombies on a mission. It was only when the looks started getting ready one ensemble at a time that we were reminded how much we love our jobs.
I look at a show as an experience for people to remember for a long time. Such an impact is only possible if the jewelry, the shoes and hair all come together to create magic. For this I worked with Malini Banerjee curating all the looks from head to toe. Suhani Parekh of Misho custom-designed a stunning collection of fine silver jewelry for us. The shoes were from Aprajita Toor. She crafted a unique collection of glass-like shoes with minimal embellishment.
I like to look into everything personally – the accessories, hair & makeup, set, music… The very talented Elton J Fernandez did the hair and makeup. The set was beautifully designed by Punit Jasuja. We were constantly going back and forth with Tarun’s team to ensure we put up a fantastic show together – one that compliments the other. We had the BeardsEyeView team taking pictures of all the backstage action.
I was very grateful to be given the opportunity to share the stage with such an experienced couturier. We worker 15 years ago and have evolved since, I played with sustainable solutions, structural balance, sculpting while he focused on creating highly stylized ready to wear pieces that highlighted his everlasting craft. We both wanted to celebrate fashion and the unique relationship our aesthetic has.
A grand finale comes with a lot of expectations so the buzz just excites me to do even better. The buzz both at fashion week and at the studio are very exciting as you see everyone working as a team to push this brand forward. The best creative ideas bloom when all these aspects come together.
The idea of introducing our brand ethos of sustainability to couture was well received by the audience because this collection brought the brand closer to its roots. The idea of up cycling the brocade sarees and patolas to give them a long life really caught on with our audience.
The set and the live artist really turned the show into a grand finale. Our vision for the set was to turn it into an amazon forest where with the help of lights we can see the change from the dark night forest to a fresh morning forest. The cello artist playing in the night forest to the morning light made this an experience for the evening.
*This blog is written by designer Amit Aggarwal