India Couture Week: 2021’s bride wants more

Maximalist, fun, and with a heightened level of customisation — that’s what brides are looking for today. As India Couture Week winds down, couturiers weigh in on the post-pandemic aesthetic

Two weeks ago, stylist Rhea Kapoor tied the knot dressed in an ivory Anamika Khanna chanderi sari with a vintage pearl veil from Birdhichand Ghanshyamdas. For the intimate ceremony held in her living room, she paired the muted outfit with a pronounced winged eyeliner and jewellery from her mother’s collection, balancing her bohemian and traditional sides. It got me curious about how, after the long wait, post-pandemic brides are getting ready for their big day. Are they keeping it low-key? Or are they injecting some fun into the gloom and going large? When I ask Khanna, who is readying for her digital showcase at the ongoing India Couture Week (ICW), she shares that there is an interesting bridal dichotomy. “A section of brides have simplified everything for themselves and their families, and have accepted the fact that the world has changed. For instance, Rhea wanted to go with ivory mulmul and I respect that,” she says. “But then there’s a category that is not affected and still wants to be the dream bride,” says Khanna. As I look at the creations displayed at ICW, I find that many of the designers — coming out of multiple lockdowns and facing a new festive season — are courting the latter, letting their creative freak flag fly high. Couturier Manish Malhotra tried to capture that sentiment in his opening show. “Brides are understandably emotional, but they also want to have fun. I’ve tried to convey these emotions in my bridal edit ‘Nooraniyat’, featuring actor Kriti Sanon [in an ornate lehenga with statement-making zardozi embroidery],” says Malhotra, who also made sure he checked the inclusivity boxes by including plus-size models and casting former super model Noyonika Chatterjee to bring in ‘age-less’ style. (At his store, plus sizing is addressed through customisation of each outfit.)