Actress Shahana Goswami walks the ramp for Deba-run on Day 3 of the fashion week. — ASIAN AGE

March 4 being the Indian Textile Day, Day 3 of the Lakme Fashion Week Summer/Resort had a theme of its own. If last year it was the Anna Hazare movement that echoed on the fashion corridors, this time Gandhigiri returned to drape the ramp in khadi. A better half of the ensembles on day three took a decidedly organic turn in their choice of fabric, accessories and colour palette. The start, however, remained a low key affair with Purvi Doshi’s creations failing to excite. Although she did stay true to the “desi” theme and used a lot of coarse Indian fabrics like khadi and jute in her line Chalval, her silhouettes had nothing new to offer. “Khadi is not just a fabric — it symbolises a movement. For most people, wearing khadi instils a sense of freedom and I wanted to bring out the fashion aspect of khadi,” said the designer at the post show conference. Sadly, her show failed to do just that. But the dullness was short-lived because Shashikant Naidu’s Duality proved an instant mood lifter. The designer used Western silhouettes to portray traditional Indian art and his fusions were a breath of fresh air. He presented an eclectic mix of ikkat, kalamkari and khadi and coupled it with gorgeous lambada jewellery to complete each look. A highlight of his show was the portrayal Rajasthani miniature paintings on contemporary cuts of tunics and wrap dresses. “Most people perceive khadi as a drab affair — I wanted to change that perception by infusing a splash of colours,” said Shashikant, explaining the philosophy behind his creation and his viewers looked more than convinced.
The colours blended into oblivion in Debarun’s Bygone, but thankfully the fashion didn’t. The designer upped his showmanship and had his models stroll in, almost in slow motion, carrying lanterns to the tune of the All India Radio. It was almost a time travel of sorts, back to the nostalgic 90s, as the models floated on the ramp draped in white, to the sound of Ajeeb Dastaan Hai Yeh. The next few minutes infused new life to chanderis, crushed mulmuls, luxurious Indian cottons in the form of fitting suits, saris, fish-tail ghaghras, A-line skirts, cutwork kameezes and flared trousers. In men swear, drawstring flared pants and shirt kurtas with elaborate cutwork stood out. Actress Shahana Goswami signed off the show in a pristine white mulmul crushed sari, her attitude as breezy as the fabric that was draped around her.
From there on, there was no looking back. In the post lunch slot, Paromita Banerjee and Soumitra’s collection soared in both creativity and experimentation. Paromita’s line which was inspired by the typical Bengal marketplace known as the “haats”, was a seamless blend of geometrical and floral patterns in traditional Bengal designs such as ikkat, shibori dyes, batik and bandhni prints — her use of the gamcha, a Bengal towel cloth, as a scarf was a head turner. Soumitra’s replication of the Mughal era through the delicate Bengali weaves of the Jamdani was a visual treat played in soothing white with golden embroidery. However, the surprise package in that slot was Farah and Firdos’ Cocoon. Using the finest silk weaves of Bhagalpur, this designer duo infused new life to a dying art form with unique silhouettes like yarn jacket, draped Buddha dress, halter and hourglass dresses that were at once dreamy in their looks and yet scored high on the fashion metre.