BMW India Bridal Fashion Week 2015: Suneet Varma
The finale of BMW India Bridal Fashion Week was rightly given to the amazing designer Suneet Varma. Based on the grandeur of the Ottoman Empire and the arts and literature of Persia, this collection features an array of both vibrant and pastel coloured lehengas in hues of pink, red, gold, and blue with heavy, intricate embroidery. Impeccably styled, the outfits feature feathered accessories and opulent headpieces handmade with beaten metal in antique shades of gold.
With head-turning collections, only Varma can truly describe his work and inspiration, “My world is about creating a dream- it is a chaotic place that I live in day in day out as I work on the collection. From the inspiration, to the sets, accessories and the music of the show- it builds up like an enormous surge and I treat it like a vast ocean of endless possibilities. And in the midst of all this chaos is the woman who is the true source of my inspiration and the collection is always her story.”
Image Credit: India Bridal Fashion Week, Suneet Varma, Harper’s Bazaar India, Elle India
Written by Neha Oberoi
Originally from Canada, Neha is a London based fashion and travel blogger. Business woman by day and blogger by night, Neha loves to analyze and has a flair for spotting upcoming fashion trends. You can see what inspires Neha and her latest outfits on her Blog; for daily fashion updates you can follow her on Instagram; or say hi on Facebook and Twitter.
BMW India Bridal Fashion Week 2015: JJ Valaya
Known for extravagance, JJ Valaya kept to his name with his show at BMW India Bridal Fashion Week 2015. Named ‘The Bolshoi Bazaar’, and inspired by the architecture of Moscow, this show featured stunning bridal and party wear in tones of red, blue and gold with intricately panelled embroidery. Gorgeous head dresses ruled the runway emphasized with pearls, tassles, beads and long draped scarves.
Taking inspiration from different countries is what influences Valaya’s collections. Along with gorgeous embroidery, his designs incorporate digital printing and appliqué on a variety of silk fabrics. JJ Valaya’s collections are made for the bride who loves extravagance and bit of drama in her attire.
Photo Credits: BMW India Bridal Fashion Week, JJ Valaya
Written by Neha Oberoi
Originally from Canada, Neha is a London based fashion and travel blogger. Business woman by day and blogger by night, Neha loves to analyze and has a flair for spotting upcoming fashion trends. You can see what inspires Neha and her latest outfits on her Blog; for daily fashion updates you can follow her on Instagram; or say hi on Facebook and Twitter.
BMW India Bridal Fashion Week 2015: Tarun Tahiliani
Aptly named ‘Our New Eclectic World’, the collection presented by Tarun Tahiliani at BMW India Bridal Fashion Week includes feminine silhouettes created through light-weight fabric layered gowns, lehengas and sarees. This collection brings a Western touch to Tahiliani’s designs, giving them a modern and elegant affect.
Combining ancient Indian artistry with the latest fashion trends and techniques, Tahiliani describes the collection as ‘A visceral blend of classic draping, poetic construction, opulent textiles and intricate embellishments. There is a need for an intelligent and seamless fusion of our past and present.’ And how right he is! The designs in this collection are collectibles and can be worn now and in years to come.
This collection is perfect for the modern bride who wants a traditional touch in her outfits. Taking into account that this collection has been in the creation process for over a year, and that it includes Indian and French embroidery techniques, the craftsmanship is one of a kind. A master dream-weaver, Tarun Tahiliani brings a woman’s fashion dreams to life through his decadent designs, and as Tahiliani says, ‘Real luxury is when you indulge purely for yourself’.
Photo Credits: BMW India Bridal Fashion Week
Written by Neha Oberoi
Originally from Canada, Neha is a London based fashion and travel blogger. Business woman by day and blogger by night, Neha loves to analyze and has a flair for spotting upcoming fashion trends. You can see what inspires Neha and her latest outfits on her Blog; for daily fashion updates you can follow her on Instagram; or say hi on Facebook and Twitter.
BMW India Bridal Fashion Week 2015: Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla
BMW India Bridal Fashion Week started with a bang as designers Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla presented a stunning collection inspired by nature. Embroidered to perfection, the show opened with Indian fashion starlet Sonam Kapoor gracing the runway in a heavily embroidered golden gown.
Known as ‘The Varanasi Collection’, models walked down the runway in what can only be described as an explosion of colour. From yellows to blues, and greens to the traditional reds, everything that a bride’s heart could desire can be found on this runway. This collection was created with rich silks and brocades, and heavy thread work and embroideries.
Some of the country’s most coveted couturiers, Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla are known for their colourful timeless designs. With collections to fill an entire trousseau, these show stopping pieces are much sought after for brides to be.
Photo Credits: India Bridal Fashion Week, Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla
Written by Neha Oberoi
Originally from Canada, Neha is a London based fashion and travel blogger. Business woman by day and blogger by night, Neha loves to analyze and has a flair for spotting upcoming fashion trends. You can see what inspires Neha and her latest outfits on her Blog; for daily fashion updates you can follow her on Instagram; or say hi on Facebook and Twitter.
The Think Shaadi Blogger Meet-Up
Recently, we hosted our first ever London blogger meet-up, an opportunity for our existing Think Shaadi blogger team to meet a few of London’s enthusiastic bloggers and discuss interesting topics within the blogger universe. The sophisticated Villandry played the part of our perfect hub for the meet-up located on Great Portland Street.
So let’s go ahead and meet the #ThinkShaadiMeetUp bloggers…
Mandavi from The Red Notebook Blog works as a freelance fashion and personal stylist based in London. She studied at the London School of Styling with a background in digital design and fashion e-commerce. She joined Think Shaadi’s blogger team earlier this year, where her debut article focussed on the perfect wedding outfits for sisters.
Safeera runs Habibi Lifestyle, her blog covers Asian fashion and lifestyle. She studied journalism and currently freelances as an Editorial Manager. Habibi Lifestyle looks to include the full picture of what makes up the modern day Asian female.
Sara K Blog’s founder Sara is a British Asian fashion blogger, journalist and digital marketer in the working world. She created the blog last year in order to let British Asian women seek their own identity, without being dictated and inspire them through fashion. Sara’s blog has an interesting approach in the form of an online fashion blog magazine.
Jessica looks at all things luxury via her blogging platform, The Deluxe Wedding Blog. Jessica is a wedding planner and started her wedding blog venture in December 2014. She focusses on informing brides about different brands may it be fashion or stationary within the industry. She’s recently joined the Think Shaadi blogger team; have a read of her article here.
Aditya from Mr Fashion Queen launched his blog in 2014. It focuses on online luxury fashion, looking at trends, celebrities, clothing & accessories from the western world. He gained a great deal of an international exposure after living and travelling in countries such as India, Singapore and Turkey.
And let’s not forget the hosts for the meet-up…
Vic from Think Shaadi looks after their blogger community. Vic runs London Ki Ladki, an Asian fashion and food blog, and freelances in PR & Marketing by profession. She launched her blog last year with an aim to inspire British Asians on finding unique Asian fashion. From a food perspective, she focuses on discovering distinctive London restaurants to inspire others when eating out around the city of London.
Ben joined Think Shaadi in January 2014 as editor, as well as running his own business, Mirza Creation which offers photography, designing, editor and copy-writing services. He was excited about the meet-up and pleased to meet such magnificent bloggers.
We were interested to know which brands everyone adored, and just to name a few Victoria Beckham, Rohit Bal, Manish Arora, Vera Wang and Dior made it to the favourite list. It was interesting to see how many of the brands mentioned were either American or Indian. For everyone, they felt as a blogger “no no” was slating brands and product placement within blog posts, which is a controversial topic as this can be deemed as being a way of being dishonest to your readers. In regards to challenges they felt they faced in the “bloggersphere” industry, it was the classic “quantity vs. quality” issue; when stakeholders want to collaborate with a blogger – they focus on the number of readers following the blog and it’s social media platforms, as opposed to looking beyond this at the quality of work and readers.
The meet-up was full of interesting discussion and immense laughter; a great deal of learnings came out of the meet-up that we all walked away with. As a result of such a triumphant meet-up, we hope to host another one soon! Thank you to those who joined us at the blogger meet-up, you were all an absolute delight and so enthusiastic and passionate about blogging! If you are an avid wedding, lifestyle, fashion or beauty blogger interested in joining Think Shaadi’s blogger team, then please email ben@thinkshaadi.com.
Photography by Dev Joshi Photography
AICW 2015: Manish Malhotra
Manish Malhotra is one designer who I follow religiously. I absolutely love everything about him. His recent collection has shown just how awesome his talent is. Malhotra will go to any extent with the choice of his colours. His daring character bring two worlds together. colours which you wouldn’t think go together, are combined and look spectacular with the magic touch of Malhotra.
Along with being a famous fashion designer, he practically works with every Bollywood movie and designs the most the fabulous clothes. Malhotra’s pulse is getting quicker as we get closer to the event of ‘The Empress Story’ #IndiaCoutureWeek. Malhotra also gives a glimpse of his collection in the Elle magazine.
India Couture Week 2015 is a fun filled week from 29 July 2015 – 2 August 2015. it is where 11 shows are taking place and designers showcase their collections under one roof.
The Empress Show revealed some stunning pieces by Manish Malhotra. looking at a wide range, you can see the great attention he has put on embroidery. Looking closely at some pieces, you can see the hand stitched embroidery which has been carefully crafted. This gives the style a class look.
By Rehana Lila
Photos courtesy of Manish Malhotra,
and Harper’s Bazaar IndiaAICW 2015: Varun Bahl
My favourite style from the Varun Bahl’s new collection is the plain outfit with the heavy embroiled scarf. This gives a beautiful finish to the outfit. id wear this sort of outfit to a formal occasion, as it gives the person a celebrity glamorous look. wearing this to an awards evening would most certainly cause attention. Bahl has created this look on his spree collection too, where he has left the spree blouse and skirt plain then having the drape with maximum embroidery.
Bahl’s ‘Mantra’ for the season is to keep it simple. This is exactly what he has done. Despite sticking to simple he is known for his embroidery, so he has also kept that in tact by combing both and bringing something unique yet beautifully elegant. Varun’s collection this season most certainly defines the feminine woman.
Bahl’s other style which I love is the volume he has added to his outfits.The addition of layers under skirts or dresses, make it perfect for an evening occasion, providing a red carpet look.
Varun Bahl became famous in Italy and he was awarded the ‘Best of the Season’ award in 2004 from 20 other competing designers.He is also know for his ‘innovative use of exclusive fabrics and the intricate detailing of his work.’
By Rehana Lila
Photos courtesy of Varun Bahl, Harper’s Bazaar India
AICW 2015: Gaurav Gupta
Counting the days for the Amazon India Couture week 2015, the day has finally arrived for Gupta and team. Running up to this date, the team have been practicing cat walks, and make up trials to make this day an epic one.
Gaurav Gupta’s new collection was launched on 24th July 2015. This season Gupta has focused on intricate detail working with lace and chiffon to create a Victorian finish. The colours used such as red, purple, burgundy; all bring a vibrant look on anyone wearing a piece of Gupta’s collection.
Along with looking at the AW2015 collection, looking at previous collections from 2011, Gupta has also portrayed his quirky personality through his work. He doesn’t only have a degree within fashion, he worked his way up by delivering his creativity such as owning a brand name like ‘Atpug Vauag’ which is the reverse of his name. This brand lead as debutant of the year.
The collections creates a unique yet elegant and sophisticated look, which repeats the Victorian vibe that Gupta is showcasing this season.
By Rehana Lila
Photos courtesy of Amlan Paliwal/IANS, Harper’s Bazaar India and Vogue India
AICW 2015: Rohit Bal
This season, Rohit Bhal has focused on floral prints. Even if it is a small part on the outfit, Bhal keeps the theme consistent throughout his collection. With the warm colours chosen, these outfits would suit any skin tone and brilliant for the wedding seasons as well as the weather.
Bhal has used these prints in the right places. For occasion wear, he has carried the prints on the skirts which brings out a dramatic look and will turn heads no matter what occasion. For the more simply look he places the prints on either a top corner or bottom of a dress, which again gives a simple touch and can be worn on days where you want to simply enjoy the sunshine.
The neutral colours are aimed for the simple yet elegant look and the vibrant, are for special occasions. Rohit Bal today has a significant presence in all the cities of India. He is considered a ‘maverick’ talent who never disappoints. His work most certainly proves how he is well known to handcraft and paying great attention to detail. Bhal’s passion doesn’t just revolve around fashion but he also launched his first restaurant ‘Veda’ in New Delhi. Rohit’s way to show his creative talent is portrayed through what he does and he brings this out through some of the work which he has Shown in major fashion capitals all over the world.
Another major achievement is through achieving a partnership with International shoe designer, Christian Louboutin.
By Rehana Lila
Photos courtesy of Harpers Bazaar India and Rohit Bal