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The third and final show of the Chivas in Fashion tour, which brought nine Indian designers to Dubai, featured Rocky S, Shantanu and Nikhil presenting their first runway shows in Dubai, and one of the city's favourite Indian designers, Neeta Lulla.
Rocky unveiled the latest red carpet eveningwear collection from his Rocky S Noir line.
Inspired by divas of the 1920s, the collection was extremely feminine, romantic and sexy. Rocky's clean lines and flattering silhouettes included off-the-shoulder, ballerina and bubble dresses, smart jackets, sleek fitted gowns with feathers, ruffled, layered and draped outfits with deep slits and bows and some beautiful '20s-inspired floral prints.
Sparkle
A black and gold dress worn with a black jacket composed of hundreds of fabric leaves was a nice example of the designer's attention to detail and construction. The fabrics included soft georgettes, chiffons, crepes and satin in shades of white, beige, burgundy, black, gold and silver enlivened with sequins and sparkle.
"I like my women to feel very special," said the designer, who is a favourite with stylish stars such as Bipasha Basu, John Abraham and Katrina Kaif. This collection, seen for the first time on the ramp, will be available in Dubai at Samsaara in July.
Brothers Shantanu and Nikhil also presented a Western collection for their runway debut in Dubai. Working with a minimalist palette of black, charcoal and gold with a dash of orange, they focused on creating interesting silhouettes such as chic fitted gowns, flared panelled tunics, short draped dresses and short tops teamed with jodhpur pants.
‘No bling'
The garments were embellished with layering, frills and metallic belts. Sari-inspired drapes and traditional block printing of the fabrics added an Indian touch to this international collection.
"We don't do bling, so for this show we decided to create something that global women can relate to. We hope Dubai sees our soul and connects to it," said Nikhil, the creative brain behind this partnership.
Shantanu, who manages the business side of the label was happy that the Chivas tour had given them a chance to get closer to the Dubai market.
"We are currently focussed on opening more stores in India. But we want our label to be global and there is no better place to reach the global woman than a cosmopolitan city like Dubai with a mature fashion market," he said.
"The Chivas in Fashion tour is a great concept because like the designers Chivas also understands luxury making for a good synergy," he added.
The Shantanu and Nikhil collection is available today at the Designer's Lounge in the Creek Ballroom of the Park Hyatt Dubai.
Neeta Lulla provided a fabulous Indian flourish to the fashion extravaganza with her Jodha and Akbar collections. The designer has won accolades for the Mughal era costumes she designed for the film starring Aishwarya Bachchan and Hrithik Roshan.
She has now adapted those designs into more wearable, contemporary lines for her customers.
Royal robes
It was interesting to see the royal robes on screen transformed into kurtas worn with jeans for the men and tunics and panelled dresses worn with leggings for the women.
She also presented elegant sarees, dazzling lehenga cholis and sherwanis in rich gold and vibrant greens, reds, oranges, pinks and yellows.
With her Arab customers in mind, Neeta also showcased a line of colourful jellabiyas and a range of gold trimmed abayas and shaylas based on the Jodhaa Akbar theme.
It was a nice surprise to see Neeta's Bollywood designer friends Rocky S and Vikram Phadnis walk the ramp in her opulent sherwanis. The audience also got a chance to see some of the original costumes from the film. The garments were on sale at Kimaya on Saturday.
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