Sabyasachi, Louboutin give thrilling start to AICW 2015

Fashion designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee opened the 2015 edition of Amazon India Couture Week (AICW) through a line that celebrated hand embroideries of different parts of India in the form of modern cuts and fine detailing.

The signature red soles of French footwear designer Christian Louboutin added glamour to the show that took place here on Wednesday.

The collection was called Bater - one of the most common hunting birds of India and depicted dark, gothic look in the form of colours and cuts.

"Though it is a common bird, it has a lot of resilience and I wanted to bring out a collection which is inspired by hunting birds and prey. I wanted to keep it dark, gothic and sexual but with very fine and intricate embroidery," Mukherjee told reporters post his show.

"We used a lot of hand embroideries from different parts of India. There was zardozi, Badla ka kaam, fine resham ka kaam, Parsi. So, all sort of old Indian embroideries interpreted in modern way of geometries, flat line, linea. From us, it was a kind of new expression," the designer added.

Through his latest couture line, Mukherjee wanted the clothes to be body-conscious instead of doing something which is voluminous.

"It was a basically a modern and eccentric travel line," he said.

Louboutin, 52, whose iconic red sole were donned by the models, was mesmerised by Indian designer's collection.

"It was a very beautiful collection. Of course, I knew the work of Sabyasachi Mukherjee but I have never attended his show. To me it was a great experience. I barely attended any Indian fashion show and I loved the set and outfits," he said.

The set was transformed into a dark jungle with sounds of bats and fireflies adding drama to the entire set-up.

Models were seen flaunting some of the signature style of the Indian designer.

From sari draped over jackets, short dresses, long maxi dress, skirts and trousers, male outfits, capes to bandhgalas teamed up with shawls, sherwanis and Nehru jackets in men's wear were some of the highpoints of the line.

However, one of the unique things about the opening show of AICW was the absence of Bollywood and when asked about the reason, Mukherjee said: "Me and Christian Louboutin have a lot of friends in Bollywood. But let me tell you something, he has dressed up some of the beautiful women in the world and I think for me he was the showstopper."

The collection took place only two months to complete and the designer said he is "proud to be a part of the country where anything can happen".