Menswear, being a small section of the Indian high fashion hub, has a small presentation in all the fashion weeks making the ‘menswear shows’ all the more impactful and awaited by the visitors at the fashion events.
The menswear industry has gained momentum globally in the past few seasons and this fact holds a lot of potential for designers and brands to hone on. The industry has taken a turn towards acceptance of a more casual lifestyle as the notion that comfort trumps opulence is growing popular.
This notion resonated with the causal, street yet chic lines of menswear fashion that breezed the ramp on the last day of LMIFW SS’19 in the early evening hours. Designers Pawan Sachdeva and Sahil Aneja, along with street x activewear label Nought One by Abhishek Paatni showcased their SS’19 collections for the menswear show to open a plethora of international trends on the ramp such as moody florals, revisited suiting and industrial-inspired chic activewear.
Let’s have a look at what these designers had to offer:
Pawan Sachdeva
Pawan Sachdeva presented his SS’19 collection, Tranquillity, which was inspired by the concept of peace that one needs to find in life which is now defined as a fast paced motion of activities. The collection thus represents a metamorphosis from chaos to a tranquil state of mind. This procession was showed via the changing colours and prints that moved from navy blue, black and grey, to a range of softer shades such as blue and white.
The line showcased several mix and match of solids, stripes and plaid prints placed over silhouettes with sharp cuts and minimal detailing, while championing the layering trend with contrasting prints too. It was a modern take on classic suit sets.
Actor Saqib Saleem was the show-stopper for this collection and wore an all-white coordinated attire finished with a pastel blue semi-formal blazer with zipper details.
NOUGHTONE
The Hyped Indian, which was the SS’19 collection of this activewear as well as street brand, was a take on global street style that draws references from various street sub cultures enveloped in NoughtOne’s hardware-inspired aesthetic.
It included several silhouette details such as zipper jackets, utility pockets, and drawstring closures mixed with modern hardware, military influences and pop colours, playing between the lines of natural and engineered fabrics. What stood out this season was the fact that the brand introduced its first line of womenswear. As per founder Abhishek Paatni, “Womenswear was an extension of our menswear line but with inclusion of new colours such as fuchsia, neon green, we wanted the same functionality as our menswear line offers. We wanted to keep the comfort level high and thus, included lots of shorts too.”
The entire collection followed an androgynous fit module which gave way to straight yet relaxed silhouettes. Traditional Indianwear like the kurta, bandgala and Nehru Jacket were de-constructed and re-imagined to create garments with modern, edgy silhouettes, offering functionality and slickness with strong tailoring. They also included wearable anti-pollution masks matching with the ensembles.
SAHIL ANEJA
Sahil Aneja showcased a collection inspired by the 80’s which was a time of a lot of activity happening simultaneously and the era saw the transition from brights and pops to subdued colours and moodier prints. Sahil utilized heavy-duty fabrics such as leather, vinyl and denims that were presented in a variety of prints and finishes like tie and dye, acid wash, faded etc.
Trench coats in activewear structure, light-coloured floral embroidered overcoats paired with olive zipper-front sweatshirts, camouflage-print pantsuit sets, check printed faux leather coordinated sets were a few stand outs of the show. The silhouettes were loose and involved a lot of layering. In colours such as red, black, blue and white, the garments had several metallic details. Frayed denims with vintage graphics and floral motifs best summarize the collection.
