AN INDIAN SUMMER
India’s pristine evening attires, the timeless allure of chikankari, and the pieces you need to invest in
WForget colours and heavy embroideries. White has revolutionised Indian eveningwear this season.
HITE. THIS SEASON’S GO-TO HUE for couturiers across the country. “For me,” says Manish Malhotra, “summer is all about whites.” But that’s not why his entire Summer-Resort 2014 lineup at Lakmé Fashion Week revolved around the non-colour. “It is beautiful, soothing, fashionable; it’s universal.” So much so that even when his models stepped out wearing navy blue gowns, the embroideries were all white. “It balances everything,” he adds. Not one to do anything by half measures, Malhotra sent out a strong line-up of models in white-on-white jamdani anarkalis and chikankari lehengas, diaphanous kurtas embellished with sparkling sequins and sherwari jackets covered in silken threadwork. Later, he added salmon pinks, navy blues, and golds. All embellished with white.
He isn’t the only one filling in the blancs. Tarun Tahiliani, a longtime proponent of kora (undyed) natural fabrics, has also paid homage to the power of white this season, with pale lehengas and saris embroidered in self, and trimmed with a hint of black. To him, the recent favouring of traditional whites for the evening is a reaction to a sensory overload. “We don’t do colour like we used to; no natural dyes, so the colours have no resonance,” he lists his first point. “Then, we’ve been going too multicolour. Third, we’re cramped by too much colour everywhere we go, so we need to wear something—well, not really understated—but something that makes us stand out in the crowd.” This, he adds, has led to the need to simplify. “And all the people who can actually afford good designer garments are wearing amazing jewellery too, so the clothes need to be subtle.” White, and all its shades, is the natural answer. And others have caught on, too. Rahul Mishra and Pankaj & Nidhi have made a statement of their translucent long jackets, filled in with filigree motifs in Mishra’s case, and with laser-cut florals at Pankaj & Nidhi. The anarkali is also a key traditional silhouette that’s been bleached to perfection. Rohit Bal’s multi-metre concoctions and Rabani & Rakha’s net-and-tulle ones speak for themselves.
Sandeep Khosla of Abu Jani-Sandeep Khosla, the duo instrumental in changing the perception of white as a colour to be worn by choice (“Only widows were expected to wear white when we started,” he says), concurs with Tahiliani. “Today, more brides are willing to wear white even to the main wedding— with a touch of colour, of course,” he says. For the designers, it all started a quarter-century ago when Jaya Bachchan began wearing the exquisite chikankari that the duo later became known for. Dimple Kapadia followed suit, and these two muses helped turn Jani-Khosla’s proficiency with white into legend. “Today, the shift is noticeable, and the families are OK with their daughters wearing ecrus and ivory tones.” This, he says, shows the way to wearing the season’s spectrum of whites. Just load up on the jewels, and shine your way to fashion stardom. Varun Rana