Fashion Week

In July I went to Mumbai to attend Lakme Fashion week. As compared to London, Milan, Paris and New York, Indian fashion industry is in its infancy, but it is already so rich in its variety of fabrics, colors, embroidery, and designs that it should not take it too long to compete with major western houses of fashion. Sitting in the auditorium in Mumbai, western music blaring loudly, watching the Indian models parading down the ramp, I had to pinch myself to remember that I was not in New York. The audience, which included film stars, industrialists, and the elite of Mumbai, were dressed up as if they were at a society gala in Manhattan. Yet at the same time, I was afraid that Shiv Sena will break open the doors and come inside to create mayhem. Aki Narula shocked the audience by dressing up his models scantily and then having them tongue lashing right in front of the press. Manish Arora dressed his male models in T-shirts carrying photographs of two men in an embrace. Rohit Bal picked only male models and they all wore sindoor in their hair partings. Rina Dhaka’s shoe seemed like done for Victoria Secret. J.J. Valaya presented a glittering array of exquisite work on traditional garments. Ashima-Leena’s ethnic embroideries and Chinese dragons on whites and blacks were mesmerizing. After Monisha Jaisingh popularized the kurti last year, the lungi made its entrance into the fashion world this year. Tarun Tahiliani drew the largest number of celebrities and the loudest applause. He will be the first Indian designer to participate prestigious Millan Fashion week. His collection was a stunning display of craft design and talent. After seen all this and much more, I realized that Indian fashion has come a long way since I left India 26 years back.

Anila Midha
Class of 1975

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