‘Wild Flower Hall' was the title of Kavita Bhartia's Autumn/Winter 2010 collection that was showcased at the Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week (WIFW) recently. As the soft-spoken designer later described it, “It's a happy collection. Doing the embellishments made me feel particularly happy. And the first thing that came to my mind is Wild Flower Hall.”
Draping, the season's most popular technique, was in, heralded by a silk mono-shoulder dress in georgette and crushed silk. Black was the colour present in most garments in some measure or the other — in sequinned black leggings, in thread stoles, in the form of cut-work flowers on a handkerchief dress, with green or purple in tie-and-dye tunics, or plain head-to-toe. A feeling of lightness prevailed despite the predominant black.
The colour palette also included shades of indigo, purple, maroon, green (from mottled to henna green to green-black) in fabrics like silk, georgette, jersey and net.
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“The mood right now is sombre, not over-the-top,” says Kavita.
Silhouettes ranged from draped dresses and skirts to shift dresses, printed silk long shirts belted at the waist, cowl dresses, maxi dresses and a wonderful pair of draped ankle-length saris in red and black respectively. Mention the latter and she says, “Weren't they nice! When we were shooting, Indrani (Dasgupta) was like ‘Oh my god! I can zip into it, dance in it!'”
Kavita, herself clad in one of her creations (a smart black tent-silhouette tunic with zipper detail in front, minor beadwork embellishment and subtle prints), is best known for the contemporary use of traditional fabrics and crafts. In her present line, they came in the form of the aforementioned tie-and-dye and traditional kalamkari motifs.
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Accessories, too, are something the designer is becoming serious about. The show featured some of the pieces, which included wrap belts, metallic totes and suede slouch bags, though shoes were the models' own. “I want to do my own accessories. Accessories don't have a sizing problem. They're easy to market internationally. So far, there's been a dominance of international labels in this segment. Indian designers need to come out with accessories that are high on style and quality, which hasn't happened yet,” she explains.
Another distinguishing aspect of her show was the use of live percussion, in the form of musicians Sienna and Babla. “Sienna is a drummer from Iran, who's currently studying drumming in the Capital. I heard him performing with Abida Parveen. There was this eccentricity to his playing, a varying of moods, which, if you see, is also the inspiration of my collection,” says Kavita, the lady behind the Ogaan chain of stores.