Raw Talent

Textiles rules Sanjay Garg Signature Line’s debut at LFW

With no surface ornamentation, Sanjay Garg’s pieces placed emphasis on the woven fabric (Source: Express photo by Dilip Kagda)

For a man who has been at the forefront of the handloom sari revival movement, and has infused Chanderi silks and Banarasi drapes with a heavy dose of hipness, Sanjay Garg of Raw Mango’s decision to launch a line of occasion wear had fashion watchers intrigued. The debut of the Sanjay Garg Signature Line was the most well-attended show of the India Textile Day initiative at Lakme Fashion Week Winter/Festive 2014. And the designer’s single-file seating gave everyone present a front row view.

With his starting point being the ghaghras worn by the women of the printing community of Akola, Garg skirted existing ideas of wedding wear, delved into traditional clothing techniques of India and presented a line of occasion wear that let the woven fabric (kadwa brocade technique of Varanasi), bereft of surface ornamentation and embroidery, do all the talking. White, gold, midnight blue, emerald green, rani pink and salmon pink walked the ramp, pointedly steering clear of the eternal bridal favourite, red. Lehengas turned into pleated skirts with pockets, saris wore relaxed drapes, floor-length dresses replaced the done-to-death kalidars, cigarette pants and palazzos teamed up with tunics and sherwanis and, in a few instances, deep v-necks added a hint of playfulness.

The model brides wore metal-toe flats and zero jewellery, thereby letting the warp and weft of the weaves take centrestage. The sole ornamentation came in the form of motifs woven into the fabric, such as flowers, parrots and peacocks, bringing Garg’s trademark Raw Mango touch to the collection.

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While the silhouettes were clean and more closely tailored to the body form, some of the minimal shapes were reminiscent of Abraham & Thakore’s experiments with bridal wear. The katori-style bodices were lovely and the liquid gold-like pieces stood out, but some of the brighter brocade saris came across as too loud in the hushed and subdued symphony of proceedings.

Unfortunately, Garg’s claim of reviving the “the long-forgotten technique of making garment patterns on the handloom”, was somehow lost in its on-ramp translation, at least to the untrained eye. While one could see the progression of the engineered weave in the lehengas and A-lines, we admit to being slightly baffled in other cases. Here’s hoping, much like the accompanying booklet that sought to introduce us to the concept of the ghaghra and sari evolving from the ‘Antariya’, that Garg will give us a deeper insight into his creative process in seasons to come. Marginally underwhelmed, but most definitely intrigued, we can’t wait to see how Garg takes this story forward.

kimi.dangor@expressindia.com

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