JOIN USThe first two days of ‘Gitanjali Prasad Bidapa Fashion Week’ saw prominent and regular Page 3 personalities in full attendance along with the best of Bangalore designers hand-picked by Prasad.
Held on the sprawling lawns of the Bowring Institute, the event gave designers and brands equal space to showcase the best of their work. Prasad Bidapa always wanted to do something for Karnataka and showcase its rich and cultural heritage.
And what better platform than a fashion show? The make-up of the models was subtle with a dash of red and yellow, quite similar to the Karnataka flag, and the show was interspersed with clippings of all the historic places in the State.
“The Bangalore designers have not been able to exploit their talent or showcase their designs to the fullest. There are 32 designers and 30 models. The show is my tribute to the City,” says Prasad
Among the prominent designers on day one were ‘The Royal House of Mysore’ that presented its heritage collection of silk saris and ensembles, in shades of bright red, yellow, blue and green.
Next, came designer Runa Ray, who worked around denims to weave some bold designs, exclusively for the modern woman. “I thought I would create a glamourous line with denim and I have worked with a technique called scrapping off and the faded off versions. There are skirts, shorts and pants in denims. It’s for the bold woman,” says Runa, whose collection in blue and black stood out in terms of its bold cuts.
Raj Shroff stuck to monochromatic colours of black and white, “It’s a spring-summer line that very practical and wearable. It’s a fusion of Western and Indian designs,” he shares. Amanda Bachalli’s collection, titled ‘Sublime Princess’ is made for the strong woman of today.
“I have woven jewellery on the garment instead of embroidery. It has a lot of work but the collection is wearable and not as heavy as it seems,” she adds. On day two of the fashion show, the lawn was jam-packed with people eating and drinking to their heart’s content and soaking in all the fashion around them, both on and off stage.
The popular designers were Shalini Subramanian whose label ‘Plantation House’ showcased tops, pants and tunics in shades of purple, grey, blue and white. “The concept is about a relaxed feel and I’ve created layers an layers of clothing. It is inspired by the folk clothing and culture in South Africa and Japan. It is sort of flattened and makes the wearer look slim,” she says.
What stood out in the evening is Rony Dutta’s creation, ‘Postage Series’, featuring digital prints on jewellery, which is made in pure silver. “The pieces in this collection share an artistic ideal which is toned down and in a way non-ornamental. We do not think women or men should wear jewellery according to their age, but jewellery should rather reflect their attitude and the clothes they wear it with,” says Rony.
Namrata G chose to showcase a Victorian look in pure white. Talking about her collection, Namrata says, “We’ve created a formal line of gowns, dresses, shirts and suits. There’s embroidery in silver on the border,” she says. Actress Pooja Gandhi was the showstopper.