The music that provides the vital backdrop to fashion had a telling story indeed to narrate on Day Four of the Lakme Fashion Week Winter/Festive season. With rather tired tracks like Hips Don’t Lie and Angeleyes providing the

rhythm, the scene was set for some déja vu inducing collections. Matters were not helped by the fact that Day Three having ended on a visually spectacular note with the collection by Sabyasachi Mukherjee, everything presented on Day Four seemed to have a sluggish feel indeed.
With the audience still reeling under the effects of the Sabyasachi benchmark, the collections that kicked off Day Four seemed pale and almost inconsequential. Starting off with newbie designers Anna-Liza and Anita Walia of Deux A, Pam and Arch London and Arjun Agarwal, the ramp saw a collection of 1920s-inspired outfits. While Deux A drew their inspiration from the film Metropolis to create their line of jumpsuits and desses, Arjun’s sheath and fitted sack dresses saw the past reflected in the ballooning hemlines.
Spirits failed to lift with the pre-lunch shows by Abhi Singh and Purvi Doshi. Abhi’s ocean-inspired collection comprised jackets, dresses and jumspsuits in jersey fabrics with a marine motif and colour palette, and the designer said, “I wanted to bring everything that’s connected to the sea — the marine life, the patterns formed by waves”.
Purvi, on the other hand, had gold cholis and off-white and gold pants teamed with sheer overcoats in a variety of fuschia shades, including pink, purple, green and blue. The overcoats also featured embroidery in floral motifs. Saying that her line was inspired by the game of Peek-a-Boo, Purvi said, “Through this line, I wanted to bring out that sensuality lies in the eyes of the beholder. The use of sheer overcoats reveals and yet, leaves as much to the imagination.”
Post-lunch, the auditorium was packed to capacity for Babita Malkani’s “Metalmorphosis” show. Inspired by sculptor Arzaan Khambatta’s series of metal sculptures, Babita’s collection featured flowing gowns and short dresses in equal measure — all accentuated by metal nuts; bolts, washers etc.
Whether it was in the belts, shoulder accents of liberally scattered across the fabric, the metal formed a large part of Babita’s collection, which saw actress Kalki Koechlin as the showstopper. The colour palette was a muddy brown and pieces by Arzaan dotted the ramp. Babita explained, “It was watching Arzaan work on his sculptures, with all of his nuts and bolts, that actually inspired me to come up with this collection, and merge metal with fabric.” Babita’s fans ensured that the designer’s show was well-received, finally rousing the crowd out of its stupor.
The evening shows began with a joint showing by Drashta and Rehane. While Drashta’s aqua-inspired collection initially seemed to veer into Abhi Singh’s territory, it proved different enough. Cocktail-style dresses in shades of blue, green and mauve made an appearance — some with trains, some with textured fronts, all accessorised with necklaces, belts bearing seashell charms. Then, models coated in talcum powder presented the all-white ensembles of Rehane Yavar Dhala. Shorts, dresses and shirts, all textured to varying degrees formed the mainstay of the line.
Shaking off the remnants of fashion fatigue and lethargy then fell to designers Neeta Lulla and Wendell Rodricks, whose shows were planned as a finale to Day Four.