Indian Textile Day at LFW sees innovative use of traditional fabric

Mumbai, March 19 (IANS) The Lakme Fashion Week (LFW) dedicates a day to Indian textiles in every outing and the second day of the summer-resort edition 2015 on Thursday saw felicitation of designers promoting their use and a pitch for greater use by corporates and youth.

The day started with prominent designers Raghavendra Rathore, Sabyasachi Mukherjee and Anita Dongre being lauded by Textile Commisioner Sajay Kumar Panda for their continuous contribution to promote Indian textile and handloom, as well as discussions on how they can be popularised as a new style statement among fashion-conscious youth.

Mukherjee, one of most influential names in the world of fashion, appealed to all corporates in India to set aside a day for Indian wear.

He said it would be great if Indian youth could wear textiles and make a revolution.

The felicitation ceremony was followed by the first show of the day by young designers Ujjawal Dubey, Divya Seth, Mayank Anand and Shraddha Nigam.

With two timeless fabrics as their base, Mayank and Shraddha presented their "Chauraha" collection at the ongoing edition at Hotel Palladium here.

The duo used fabrics like Dhonekali from West Bengal that is normally found in the pallav. They also showcased a modern interpretation of the gamcha, an unstitched fabric or garment mostly used in north India in the summers to protect the wearer from heat and dust.

The designing duo used them in a colour palette of black, white and red checked pattern along with hand woven cotton that created a fashionable stir on the runway as the models glided down. From interesting draped tunics and dresses to cowl pants and striking tops, the collection made optimum use of these two very humble textiles.

Divya Seth gave eco-organic fabrics a deluxe royal touch through her line "Sultana on Safari".

Aimed at the jet-setting global traveller who believes in sustainable fashion, the designer kept her fabric choice pure handspun and woven Khadi, organic silk and silk chiffon, which were given an innovative touch with traditional reinvented Kalamkari and Ajrakh in natural dyes.

Ujjawal's 'Antar-Agni' label offered men's and women's wear collection. The designer opted for handwoven khadi, linen net, linen satin blends, cotton linen and added faux leather and organza for accents on clothes.

Detailing gave the men's wear a new age feel as wide salwars, one-button collarless jackets, long knee length Sherwani, and cross-over kurta revealed some comfortable options.

The women's wear looks started with a relaxed panelled anarkali with an organza inset at the sides, moved to a cross-over top worn with slashed and layered pants, a cowl draped toga top and a very innovative pant-skirt.