The uniqueness of cotton was hailed of late by Cotton Council International in Mumbai by organizing Cottonscape; a day dedicated to the fabric.The celebrations unfolded to highlight the various aspects of cotton put forth through different mediums varying from art installation to photography exhibit to fashion shows involving the venerated names of fashion and textile industry.
The evening opened with a trend presentation by SunaHasan, the Trend Director at Stylesight, giving designers and brands insight into the anticipated trends for Autumn Winter 2012. She stated, “Cotton will have a strong presence next season. Many people associate cotton with spring/ summer, but there are a lot of offerings in cotton in the cooler months also. The thermal properties of cotton make it a great fabric for layering and keeping you comfortable in winter.”
Actually, Cottonscape came as an event centered on an industry discussion panel led by the Cotton Association of India titled “Cotton Promotion in India: what has been done, what needs to be done, and why it’s important”. The panel addressed issues facing cotton at the retail level such as eroding market share and competition from synthetic fibers while the versatility of the fabric was well exhibited through a cotton art installation featuring denim fabrics from Arvind’s Spring Summer 2012 collection as evening wear.
Exploring the various facets of the fabric, the event had fashion shows by designers Anita Dongre and Rina Dhaka, along with Provogue showcasing its Spring Summer 2012 collection featuring men’s shirts in hues like pink and orange paired with trousers in grey and black. Designer Anita Dongre’s brand, Grassrootpresented an exclusive collection with a full spectrum of pieces including gowns, jackets, pants, skirts and salwaar suits. Long gowns with traditional block print from Rajasthan in an earthy palette of beiges, rusts, mustards, browns and blacks were a highlight of the evening.
About her association with Cottonscape, Anita Dongre, said, “I am very excited about this collaboration as I love working with cotton and enjoy styling the fabric for the day wear and the glamorous evening wear also”.
The evening came to a close with an exclusive cotton collection by Rina Dhaka who belted out her Indian Prêt Wear line with block printed and hand dyed fabrics sourced from the emporiums of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. The color palette ranged from subtle creams to luxurious ivories and earthy browns with unexpected pops of bright burnt orange and white. Embroideries and intricate thread work adds texture and lavishness to the collection.
Designer Rina Dhaka put, “It is a pleasure to once again work with Cotton Council International. I feel cotton is an extremely versatile fabric that translated well into so many applications. I hope the Indian industry continues to support such efforts in the future.”
The evening also witnessed the best of the names from fashion industry being honored for their commitment to cotton in a glamorous award ceremony. Best Menswear in Cotton was bagged by Hemant Lecoanet while Rahul Mishra got the Best Womenswear in Cotton award. Masaba won the Emerging Influencer in Cotton, the Outstanding Achievement in Promotion of Cotton by a Designer award went to Narendra Kumar and the Outstanding Achievement in Promotion of Cotton by a brand went to Fab India.
