The recently concluded and first on-ground edition of the FDCI x Lakmé Fashion Week saw the 33rd Batch of the ‘INIFD Presents GenNext’ show reveal two creative designers unveil their innovative and breakthrough collections.
Soham Acharya, 36, of Alpona Designs and Shriya Khanna, 28, were judged by a prestigious virtual jury.
Ever since 2006, the GenNext programme has always been committed to providing new talent an opportunity to be mentored by industry experts and a platform to showcase their work as well as interact with different stakeholders within the industry.
Commenting on the same, Jaspreet Chandok, Head – RISE Fashion and Lifestyle said, “The GenNext programme is one of the highly coveted platforms in the industry that not only identifies and nurtures new designers but also provides them the opportunity to showcase their collections on a global platform. Over more than a decade, the program has been responsible for introducing 200+ designers, several of whom have gone on to make a mark in the Indian and global fashion industry. The two winners kicked off their fashion journey as their collections debuted at the on-ground edition of FDCI x Lakmé Fashion Week.”
We spoke to both the winners of the season to understand what makes them stand out among a pool of highly talented peers. Read on to discover!
SOHAM ACHARYA – ALPONA DESIGNS
A graduate of Textile Design from the National Institute of Fashion Technology, Delhi, Soham Acharya has to his credit the valuable experience of having worked with ace designer Ritu Beri Designs in New Delhi before starting his own label ‘Alpona Designs’.
Originally an artist who loved sketching and doodling on paper, Soham first got a push into the fashion world when people started recognising and appreciating his work urging him to translate his graphics over garments.
“I believe that everything has beauty in it and beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. We cannot physically travel to or touch and see everything we want to but with imagination as a tool, the gap between here and there is diminished,” Soham Acharya, Founder of Alpona Designs, told Apparel Resources (AR) in an exclusive interview.
As a designer, Soham’s main aim is to extract beauty from everything around him and present it in a digitised version that stays forever.
Soham’s debut collection at the FDCI x Lakmé Fashion Week, ‘The Eden Garden’ has been inspired by the beauty of nature. The line presented itself as a colourful feast for the eyes, as a myriad of shades full of earthy and antique hues bursting out on the ramp. Warm tones of nature gently danced with colours of dusk, when ebony, moss green and midnight blue met red, white and quaint accents.
The fabric base for the garments mainly consisted of silk dupion, cotton silk and cotton that were accentuated with surface ornamentation of beads, threads and wool along with arresting geometrical textures that brought the creations to life. The balance of tiered and structured looks was ideal, as the collection moved from flowing, dreamy dresses, parallels, skirts and then onto stylishly visualised free-fall jackets and jumpsuits. The exotic hand painted flowers and birds created a beautiful symphony with Soham’s signature hand embroidery and digital artistry.
Majority of fabrics for the brand are sourced from Gujarat and New Delhi, whereas the raw materials are sourced from the market hubs of New Delhi.
Commenting on the collection, Soham said, “Nature is no less than a Paradise. Through ‘The Eden Garden’, I have tried to honour our Earth in all its beauty. I feel extremely blessed to be crowned one of the winners this season. To be given this huge opportunity to showcase my collection on a prominent platform like INIFD presents GenNext at the FDCI x Lakmé Fashion Week, means a lot to me and I’m absolutely gratified to be chosen for such an honour.”
Opening with a high neck kaftan over tights, the show quickly moved to present a jumpsuit, wraparound flared dress, strappy, tiered creations and kurtas and pants.
A knee length batwing kaftan set the pace for the colourful line, while the floral kurta worn with a swirling skirt and luxuriously, draped, flared cape created a show stopping entry. Sarees came with stylish cholis, while the dolman-sleeved tunic and pants offered relaxed options.
A layered, strappy maxi, slim tunic with tights and the mini cape over a colourful choli and lehenga was a great finale look. It was a grand visual treat as florals in colours of the rainbow were the focal point for every ensemble.
Priced between Rs. 2000 for a tank top and going up till Rs. 1 lakh for heavier pieces, Alpona Designs is currently focused on womenswear, but plans to expand into the menswear space in the coming seasons.
The label is available for purchase online via its own e-commerce store, as well as through various MBOs including Pernia’s Pop up Shop, Aza, etc.
SHRIYA KHANNA
Hailing from Coimbatore, Shriya Khanna believed in pushing the creative envelope to its ultimate limit and starting her own label since as long as she can recall. With a dual degree in fashion designing from the National Institute of Fashion Technology, Chennai and the Fashion Institute of Technology, New York, Shriya further honed her skills working with designers Amit Aggarwal, Rimzim Dadu, Naeem Khan and Nikita Mhaisalkar.
Interestingly, Shriya gave birth to her eponymous label over the lockdown, wherein she employed a few karigars from New Delhi and took them with her to her hometown, Coimbatore, to bring her first collection to life.
“After a lot of trial and error, I made 17 final pieces for my first collection and applied for the GenNext programme,” Shriya Khanna, Founder of Shriya Khanna label, told AR in an exclusive interview adding, “Upon being selected for GenNext, we were mentored by industry experts who guided us to create an additional few pieces fine-tuned specifically for the programme.”
Techniques such as laser cutting and heat fused textiles feature as signatures in Shriya’s offering. For her maiden collection, Shriya partnered with a vendor based out of Tirupur who manufactures and exports garments across the world.
Delhi, Surat, Tirupur and Mumbai are the key areas where Shriya sources her raw materials and fabrics from.
Targeting women between the age group of 25-40 years, Shriya’s debut luxury prét collection at FDCI x Lakmé Fashion Week has been inspired by the work of Peter Collingwood’s Macro gauze, which is in woven textile pieces.
“As a kid, I’d often imagined myself making it big in life and achieving awards, winning the INIFD presents GenNext and showcasing at the FDCI x Lakmé Fashion Week, which is highly prestigious is so overwhelming and splendid, that it feels like an enormous responsibility to be worthy of it. Our Indian fashion industry is enormous and provides a means of livelihood to millions. It’s an honour to be a part of it. As a brand (SHRIYA KHANNA) we’d always wanted to contribute by congruously utilising our resources, reviving and working on our rich Indian weaves by creatively espousing and endorsing sustainability,” Shriya said.
How she came up with the inspiration behind her collection is another story altogether. “I was always intrigued with weaves. It’s not something that I learnt in college but I really wanted to experiment with them,” Shriya explained, adding, “It’s funny because only when I went away from our country to study in New York, did I realise the importance of Indian weaves – something I feel we all undervalue being in India.”
“I signed up for a course to familiarise myself with weaves better but Covid struck and it couldn’t materialise. That’s when upon one of my research sessions, I came across this Europe-based artist who specialises in woven pieces and is also very inspired by Indian weaves.”
The ensembles feature a marked delicate layered and almost geometric aesthetic which is equal parts monochromatic and graphic at the same time. The key elements of the collection stood out in the form of extensive textures, which blossomed from carefully selected fabrics spanning silk organza, raw silk, novelty organza and satin. Ombré dyeing along with digitally cut fabrics sewn together emerged as a key focal point for the collection.
Additionally, Shriya utilised fabric scraps within the collection by carefully fusing each piece cleverly with sublimation printing.
Furthermore, intelligently visualised geometric patterns along with cut work by hand and cotton cords couched onto fabric and recouched with silk threads, created an irate-like base for the textiles.
The show opened with the ombré, maroon line of a mini, cutaway shoulder dress, angular skirt with fluid top, maxi skirt with high slit worn with halter blouse, as the show gradually transitioned to include shimmer to glam up things a bit.
Saree gowns, pre-stitched saree with cutout pallav and white corset midi dress with linear work emerged as standout pieces on the ramp. A marked emphasis on sleeves with trellised or lattice work added to the delicate element of the collection.
Currently focused on westernwear and a few indo-western pieces such as concept sarees, Shriya plans to expand into the home segment in the future. The collection is priced between Rs. 6,000 for a top, Rs. 10,000 for a shirt, and Rs. 40,000 for a saree.
