KARACHI: Day 3 of Hum Sitaray’s Bridal Couture Week — The Gold Edition held at the Palm Marquee showcased bridal fashions by Nickie Nina, Rang Ja, Emraan Rajput, Aisha Imran, Asifa & Nabeel, Amir Adnan, Sonya Battla and a collective show titled The Grand Couturiers featuring Elan, Nida Azwer, Sania Maskatiya, Shamaeel Ansari, Sherezad, The House of Kamiar Rokni, Umar Sayeed and Zara Shahjahan.

The showstoppers on the last day of BCW were Sana Javed, Junaid Khan, Azfar Rehman, George Fulton, Fahad Mirza, Aijazz Aslam, Wiqar Ali Khan, Moammar Rana, Shehzad Shiekh, Ali Safina, Javaid Shiekh, Ahsan Khan, Adnan Siddiqui, Sarwat Gillani, Humayun Sayeed, Sohai Ali Abro and Mussarat Misbah. The hair and make-up on all the days was by the team at Nabila’s and N-Gents with choreography and event direction by Ketan Bhatia.

Nickie Nina’s collection bore their signature style in terms of workmanship, techniques, fabrics and colours in silks, jamawar, organzas and velvets with silk thread and zardozi work with crystals on a base of reds, maroons and pastels.

Mela by Rang Ja brought forth bold and exquiste patterning and a burst of vibrant colours in strictly ethnic cuts with volume and the underlying theme of festive celebration.

The Royal Raj menswear by Emraan Rajput attempted “to bring the royalty back in groom wear” with a collection that embodied fine Eastern luxury wear with Mughal Era motifs on a base of ivory and darker shades.

Aisha Imran’s eclectic blend of hand-crafted lehngas, ghararas and Western gowns featured a palette inspired by the colours of festivity and in what was a celebration of a woman’s grace and persona.

The self-explanatory Lavender Fields collection by Asifa & Nabeel showcased the romance and the slender form of the beautiful form of flora in a variety of fabrics and silhouettes.

Amir Adnan’s Ceremony represented “the threads of history and monarchy” in the designer’s own words. “It encapsulates statement jackets and sherwanis paired with Jodhpur-like pyjamas and gathered, tucked and rumpled luxurious shalwars. The collection is a tasteful ode to classical tailoring and royal romance that is communicated through its bright game of tones.” The extravagant, trendy menswear was crafted with intricate gold embroidery and bold baroque style.

The Grand Couturiers show celebrated prominent designers who showed two ensembles each. Elan, Nida Azwer, Sania Maskatiya, Shamaeel Ansari, Sherezad, The House of Kamiar Rokni, Umar Sayeed and Zara Shahjahan displayed classic cuts and intricate detailing in workmanship, detailing and finishing.

For the Grand finale on Day 3, Sonya Battla’s intricate hand-worked embellishments and simplistic silhouettes in chiffon, silk, net and jamawar was a celebration of feminism and its delicate nuances in what the designer described as “fusion couture-meets-bridal East-meets-West.”

Earlier, Day 1 of BCW featured a fantastic line up with Fahad Hussayn’s Dulha Bhatti collection, Undulus by Yasmeen Zaman, Progeny of Venus by Erum Khan, Naqas-i-Zareen by MNR Designs, A Return of Splendour by Tabassum Mughal, Amina Yasmeen by Mansoor Akram, Eminence-IV by Naushad Imdad and Roses in Rain by Sadia Mirza, with showstoppers Hadiqa Kiyani, Farhan Saeed, Urwa Hocane, Humaima Malik and Sana Buccha. As a special treat,

BCW also revealed the official trailer and cast of the upcoming movie Yalgaar topped off with a live performance by Azfar Hussain and an ensemble of stars featuring Humayun Saeed, Adnan Siddiqui, Ayub Khoso, Ayesha Omer, Bilal Ashraf and others.

On Day 2 of BCW, Indian couturier Tarun Tahiliani opened the show with model Nooray Bhatti and closed with supermodel Nadia Hussain. Next, Neeta Lulla opened with models Sabeeka Imam and closed with Fouzia Aman.

Deepak & Fahad voyaged into bridal wear with an exquisite collection titled Taajwardi that featured Hareem Farooq and Danish Taimoor in showstopper appearances. The collection was breathtaking in terms of design, structure, technique and embellishment.

Umsha by Uzma Babar, Ayesha Ibrahim, Kuki Concepts, Teena Durrani, Goal by Fouzia Hammad and Zainab Chottani also showed with Fouzia Hammad’s Self Portrait and Zainab Chottani’s Dastaan stealing the day’s thunder with exquisitely crafted bridals that got a round of applause from the front-row fashionistas.

Published in Dawn, May 9th, 2016