Be it a shoot or a ramp show, designer Abhishek Dutta is always uncompromising with the spectacle. An al fresco runway set on the railway tracks amidst a display of heritage train models, illuminated by the spectacular festive lights from Chandernagore and accompanied with the sound of baul percussion and string instruments was the set-up for the grand ramp show of Abhishek Dutta’s Spring-Summer’22 collection ‘A Slice of France’, hosted last month at the Rail Museum in Howrah. “We chose this location as it is situated on the banks of the Hooghly river and it actually transports us to the bygone era. Chandernagore is a French colony and their lights are world famous and the craftsmanship that goes into it had to be showcased to make this entire show worth a watch,” said Abhishek, when t2 caught up with him post-show.
Wearable, sustainable and fashionable, the collection was an amalgamation of French artistic expressions and local craftsmanship, created by taking inspiration from nature. The showcase was a part of the Hooghly Heritage Hub project supported by EUNIC(European Union National Institutes for Culture) Global dedicated to create awareness on cultural heritage and Indo-European histories of areas in Calcutta and New Delhi through various cultural activities.
Director of Alliance Française du Bengale Nicolas Facino said, “A Slice of France’ is a bridge woven between tradition and modernity thanks to the artistic talent of Abhishek Dutta. A true passer, he takes up the patterns of local craftsmanship by using sustainable materials that awaken our eco-consciousness. The fluidity of the Hooghly inspires the collection as the river flows by the French colony of Chandernagore in the Hooghly district of West Bengal.”
The Rail Museum located on the banks of the river Hooghly in Howrah was an apt set-up for the showcase of the collection that takes its inspiration from the fluidity of the river. The event in collaboration with Alliance Française du Bengale and the French Institute in India / Embassy of France in India, co-organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) focuses on river Ganga and its pollution that gets reflected on this sustainable textile collection created to inspire consumers to be eco-conscious.
The show began with the soul-stirring baul music presented by British Council, Calcutta and coordinated by Banglanatak dot com and progressed onto a recital by patachitra artiste Swarna Chitrakar, whose oral storytelling on the river Hooghly alongside the display of a patachitra mapping its cultural,economical and social history was a mesmerising act.
The baul music continued as models walked down the long ramp in western-style outfits such as flowy dresses, easy-breezy jackets, separates, structured suits and frilled skirts. Choreographed by Pinky Kenworthy, the models exhibited the collection through three sequences. The first sequence in shades of monochrome grey displayed flowy silk and linen outfits depicting the pollution of the river Ganga through its oil-spill print. A seamless change of the colour palette to shades of aqua with white in the second sequence was displayed through a range of denim outfits featuring the label’s signature asymmetrical cuts in relaxed fits, smart and structured outfits. The sequence featured more hand-embroidered French baroque motifs and cutwork highlighting the craftsmanship of Bengal. The third sequence focussed more on prints. Glimpses of a striking mustard yellow shade in the colour palette of the collection, inspired from the riverside sunset and sunrise, broke the monotony of grey, blues and white by adding a dose of brightness to the display.
A special collection of accessories from the label, handbags made out of their signature leather detailing, denim and printed handbags, were showcased for the first time on the ramp with the outfits. “Over three months, artisans worked on digital prints with French motifs and water pollution-inspired custom prints to put together this collection. The ensembles in the collection are made using handwoven 100-count spun silk, Chanderi silk, linen, cotton denim, all woven in Nadia district of Bengal, detailed with waste leather for appliques and cutwork. The bags were made from reworked leather and fabrics. French motifs form an integral part of this collection of handwoven textiles,” said Abhishek Dutta.
The patachitra recital narrated the stories of trade, social and agricultural impact of the Hooghly river on the people residing on its banks
Subhamita Banerjee in a high-waisted Bengal Tiger-printed trouser depicting the style of prints on French porcelain, paired with a denim and printed lapel jacket and mustard bikini top
Meghna Bose in an asymmetrical kaftan top featuring the oil-spill print teamed with a pair of mustard bloomer shorts, accessorised with a textured coral leather sling bag
On Ankita, fringed handwoven linen denim one-shoulder top teamed with a pair of box-pleated flared mustard pants. Riya sported a handwoven linen and denim fringed asymmetrical dress with leather panel, accesorised with a printed denim bag designed with leather handles
Kutubuddin Sheikh walked in a denim bomber jacket with fringed panels teamed with a twill weave French porcelain-style Bengal Tiger-printed slim pants with leather-detailed printed bag
Ushoshi Sengupta in a handwoven denim fringed wrap-around dress, carrying a French porcelain-inspired printed denim bag
Abhishek Dutta with wife Jayshree
Didier Talpain, french consul general in Calcutta, walked the show as a showstopper
(Extreme right) Debanjan Chakrabarti, director east and northeast India, British Council
Kanchana Mukhopadhyay, president of Alliance Francaise du Bengale
Pictures: Pabitra Das