CHAI by Narendra Kumar/ Gauri & Nainika

Narender Kumar presented Chai, a collection which effectively conveyed the essence of his design idiom affordable, practical and wearable prêt. Using natural fabrics like cottons, poplins, chinos, denims and also georgettes and leather, he created a range of Autumn-Winter 2004 clothing comprising of day wear essentials like pant suits, dresses and separates like shirts, pencil skirts, ruched up pants, and chic knit sweaters; evening/ club wear in form of fitted off shoulder dresses in stretch cotton knits printed in electric coloured funky prints that had a distinctly retro feel; and floaty evening options in form of sexy one piece georgette dresses. The colour palette included sedate blue, mango, salmon and pink, maroon, army greens, and midnight.

Gauri And Nainika Karan’s collection was of skirts, blouses, and dresses that were very sexy and attractive. The Grecian drapes in the georgette dresses and skirts conceal all flaws and enhance flirty femininity, while the seductive stretch satins add glamour to basic pant and skirt suits. Asymmetric hemlines, corseted waists, noodle ties and folds and pleats are the focus of the collection. The colour palette varies from candy pinks, sea greens and lemons to the attention grabbing siren reds, lush greens and elegant ivories.

Puja Nayyar/ Priyadarshini Rao

Puja Nayyar’s collection was a complex collection, with each ensemble composed of multiple pieces layered, tied, buttonholed, bandaged and harnessed together. Fabrics like faux fur, fleece, cottons, web-like mohair knits, rexine etc were given disturbingly distressed treatments like ruching, quilting, pleating, patching etc and even though the collection was made almost entirely in white and ivory with only tints of steel blue, salmon and gray, it appeared aggressive and aggrieved at the same time. There was a total absence of any symmetry and identifiable shapes and the garments exploded, imploded, rearranged their shapes and reassembled themselves into compound forms. Skirts, shirts, vests, jackets and pants were vaguely identifiable.

Priyadarshini Rao's collection was simple, elegant and innocent. The long, layered a-line skirts in georgettes and silks were teamed with crushed silk blouses and worn with ankle skimming coats were feminine and gamine, as were the yoked patchwork dresses with draw string necklines, crinkled over shirts, and antiqued light weight velvet tunics. The colours were bright and warm- fuchsia, orange, sapphire, turquoise, mauve, sage, slate and butterscotch. Delicate thread embroidery in spontaneous floral patterns was used to embellish the skirts and dresses, alongside the use of the tie-n-dye leheria patterns, and feathered appliqués.

CUE by Rohit Gandhi & Rahul Khanna

Formal wear for men and women is truly the forte of designer duo Rohit Khanna and Rahul Gandhi's label Cue. The collection included smart office wear with pant and skirt suits, pencil skirts, constructed shirts etc, to glam-wear in black with peacock feather coloured appliqués and embroideries, and moves into the realm of funky club wear with sexy dresses embellished with multicoloured chenille yarn fringes. Occasionally a heat set bubbled sheer skirt is teamed with a severe tweed jacket, and floaty brown chiffon is crafted into an teasing warp-tied blouse. The men's wear features well-tailored suits, jackets and lean lowers, all classic in their expression yet trendy in their appeal.

Ranna Gill

Ranna Gill’s collection was the combination of Moroccan, Egyptian and the Mediterranean cultures. Gill crafts kaftans, tunics, ponchos, kurtas with deep necklines, endless side slits and teams them with modern silhouettes in form of slim pants, tiny minis, slim skirts. Made of georgettes, crepes and satins, the fabrics are exuberantly embellished with sand blasted earthy prints, vibrant appliqués, and bold dori-work and satin stitch embroideries, lapis lazuliand sparkling metal sequins. The colour palette is equally saturated with saturated hues of cobalt blue, emerald green, aubergine, coffee brown, and sand, besides generous accents of gold dust and moonlit silver. Both men's and women's wear was featured in the collection, with men being as magnificently togged up as the women in crinkled pajamas, kaftans, and kurtas.

Rocky S

Rocky S is known for giving young, vibrant and full of life collection and so was this year’s collection which was a heady mix of influences ranging from the feral west, Indian melas, wild clubs of New York. His collection included leather jackets with contemporary strapped up detailing, layered gold lame skirts, flared striped pants, trendy overprinted shirts, miniscule hot pants, and flirty sensuous dresses. These were embellished with wacky overprints, rhinestones in colours like magenta, red and orange, feather fringes and fur. The colours were warm, and included reds, maroons, browns and plenty of gold. The mens wear was equally hot, with jackets made of Indian prints bearing sporty detailing, well fitted pants and a range of shirts.