“The Last Dance of the Courtesan” by Tarun Tahiliani at #ICW2016

Garlands of love

Fragrance of love

Lights & flowers embedded

Candles & glass chandeliers stirring the soul,

Making a magical rush in the bloodstream

Which connects to the heartstream

And the centerstage you hold

Orange & yellow pearls

Like a long wedding dream

You become alive

With the magical angel of love in pink

Dancing & moving her hands with all her charm

The lady luck all in peaches and roses

Tarun Tahiliani closed Day 2 of India Couture Week with his collection entitled “The Last Dance of the Courtesan”- a tribute and acknowledgement to the highest bastions of culture, poetry, dance & finesse.

The setting was beautiful, luxurious and grand. The show opened with Kathak dancer Manjari Chaturvedi’s performance who brought alive the inspiration behind this collection with her ‘Darbari Kathak’. It was a tribute, to the woman and her art, the music and the dance she performed, a rich legacy, a precious heritage.

The chunar on head, the passa, the mogra, the hand gestures and all the magical movements & expressions of the Nrityajyoti left us awestruck with the language of love.

The first walk was in a golden payal with bridal shimmer and crimsom touches given with a gold rush while the sarees had a Swarovski work detailing. The new couture collection encapsulates the allure of the fabled Indian Courtesan, sadly misrepresented in most of Bollywood as “fallen women” – In fact they were the custodians of beauty, fashion, poetry, dance and music. Used are fabrics in tulle, sheer silks and light brocades mixed with fine thread work and crystals with contemporary notions of cut – the sleeveless anarkali as jump suit, the corsetted kurta drape, the shararas with tulle and gota, Swarovski crystals encrusted opal sarees and draped brocade lehengas, to be paired with shirts and tops.

My favourite had to be the sunset orange & red lehenga. Trellised blouse intricately encrusted with crystal were combined with paneled veils in soft tulle, edged with delicate Chantilly lace with traditional zardozi, tilla and sitara work done in the finest manner.

Gold sarees were beautifully done with red details, the texture & material glorious & with beautiful chunris in net & gold with Swarovski. A whiff of romance floats through this collection, finely embroidered with floral motifs lightly sprinkled with Crystals from Swarovski that are a perfect blend of the modern with the traditional.

Even the menswear collection had a spectrum of silhouettes and styles. It is an amalgamation of intricate embroidery, techniques and embellishments in a myriad of fabrics such as brocades, velvet, silks and georgettes in a sophisticated colour palette of creams, beige, royal blue and taupe. Sherwanis and kurtas embellished with Chikankari and gota embroidery and accented by French knots with pearl highlights worn with embroidered cummerbunds and draped dhotis lend a sense of elegance and distinctive aura to the collection.

Each piece is designed with Tarun’s dream. Every little, small, big canvas comes alive be it the shimmer that dazzles or the beautiful saree drapes, the colours of harmony carefully chosen with sophistication making bold gold statements & speaking volumes of royal & exquisite work from Tarun himself, work that goes beyond contemporary creativity & intelligence of how to dress a woman not casually but epitomizing her gracefully.

The selection of colours was perfect and off whites, peaches and golds could be seen with the dreamy feminine dresses & attires matching perfectly with the royal grace & charm. The alluring, flaming, sparkling, divine reds and the golds shimmering & making way for the off white & gold bait in turban of pure love. The collection is flamboyant, rich and exquisite.

“As usual it’s been my privilege to be associated with Swarovski, world leaders in crystal technology.  As fashion, even couture becomes more high-tech, they add the sparkle of dreams and the aurora borealis to the seduction of contemporary couture. Since couture must adhere to the highest standards of craft and perfection it is only befitting that the crystals are Swarovski.”  – Tarun Tahiliani

Stunning gold pieces set with uncut diamonds were from Shri Hari Diagems, who have also collaborated with Tarun Tahiliani to design and manufacture exquisite pieces in jadao jewellery, contributing to the old world painterly styling on the models – chokers layered with necklaces mixed with rows of multi-coloured beads. French designer Christian Louboutin’s iconic red soles fix the stamp of contemporary luxury and aplomb to the show. While the chandelier backdrop from Mathieu Lustrerie adds further luminosity to the sparkling couture collection.