Fashion goes beyond ramp; gets wearable, affordable (LFW Review)

Mumbai, Aug 8 (IANS) Creativity, glamour and unusual designs are a common phenomena at fashion weeks, but the recently concluded Lakme Fashion Week Winter-Festive 2012 focussed more on the wearability and affordablity factor through collections displayed on the ramp.

The new breed of fashion designers like Atithi Gupta, Pernia Qureshi and Nishka Lulla went the practical way and showcased collections that were a mix of creativity and wearability.

"I think people are realising when you create something, for how long you can just keep creating it. We are not creating it to put it in a museum or stock it in the office. I think by the end of the day everybody wants to make money and I think somebody needs to bring in the change. On a personal level, I design lot of things which is wearable," Gupta told IANS, adding all her clothes were priced between Rs.5000 to Rs 35,000

"I have my margin but I don't want to over-price it because I don't think there is a need. Everybody wants to wear designer clothes and it should be readily available so I feel my collection is affordable," she added.

Gupta showcased an ethnic collection with drapes and embroideries.

Designer Drashta Sarvaiya said it is important that one's creations is a mix of creativity and wearability.

"I think the designers have become more practical because there is a great catch here. Indian women have become very modern and the fashion industry has understood that it is good to show creativity but at the same time it has to be little wearable so it's a mix of both of it," Sarvaiya said.

"There are lot of middle-class girls, who have bought their clothes from me. It's up to you whether you want to buy three to four dresses from outside, which are not going to stand out, or invest that money in one nice dress and make an impression, so it depends. Women are realising that designer wear are special and understand the difference between the brands and designer wear," Sarvaiya added.

Niskha Lulla, who presented a collection dedicated to free-spirited new age girl, is also excited with the kind of response that her collection has received.

"The response has been wonderful, especially from the students who like to wear casual and stylish outfits that are affordable as well. It's nice to see that the new generation is liking the stuff," she said.

Designer Pernia Qureshi added: "I have got stuff which is very affordable and that's why people really like my clothes. My collection starts from Rs.2000 which is very affordable for the students. I fell it is very reasonable. For wedding and partywear suits you will get it for Rs.7000 and it is really cheap."

As always, the glamour quotient was high with a bevy of Bollywood celebrities walking the ramp or attending the fashion shows as guests.

Those present were Hema Malini, Kareena Kapoor, Huma Qureshi, Ameesha Patel, Shruti Hassan, Celina Jaitly, Prabhu Deva, Juhi Chawla among others.