PBCW Day 1: Desi thumkas meet beastly and beautiful bridals

KARACHI:

The very filmy and drama-packed Pantene Bridal Couture Week (PBCW) opened on Friday evening at the Expo Centre.

As always, the host Hum TV lived up to expectations set by previous installments, in that there was very little to offer for those who have a discerning eye for fashion, but lots of hulla gulla and naach gana. Here’s our review of the saviours of the night, and those that left us gawking in horror.

Asifa & Nabeel



With 13 years under its belt, this designer duo failed to make a major impression on the finale of the first night. Traditional silhouettes with a modern touch here and there played with layers in satin and net. Ghararas and shararas, dominated the ramp for this collection, in whites and pinks. We wish they would take some risks instead of playing it safe, which was borderline boring at PBCW.

Amna Ajmal



This was another collection that seemed like a potpourri of anything and everything. If there was red, it was too much red; if there were contrasting colours, they failed to complement each other. How do solid browns work with tea pink or shocking pink?! Over-the-top embellishments made the designs lose clarity and dignity, and a lack of consistency with borders left things falling in a jumbled up manner. The only thing that was present uniformly throughout was silver wire work. The rotten cherry on the cake, however, was the tail coat with a big fat flower stuck at the very end, making the trail look like fungus growing in a pond. Even the menswear was abysmal, with a jamavar sherwani paired with a pair of jeans!

Mona Imran



Mona Imran’s collection centered on kaam dani and kora dabka work on long coats, ghararas, shararas and some lehenga-choli sets. The colour combination was interesting, varying between black, off-white and bright hues. While her bridal collection was overall more palatable than her ready-to-wear collection at Fashion Pakistan Week 5, there were some elements here too that left one wondering if the pieces were incomplete. An outfit modeled by Ayyan had a moonlight tank top instead of a kameez, which looked quite odd when paired with the heavy, multi-coloured gharara she was wearing. For young girls looking for ethereal bridals, Mona Imran doesn’t have much to offer.

Zainab Chotani



The opening designer’s collection comprised a beautiful selection of colours which was easy on the eyes. After being in the industry for six years, Chotani toyed primarily with ghararas and farshis in pink and turquoise undertones for PBCW. The shirts had intricately done silver wire work with detailed necklines. Hints of kaam dani and diamantes over net jamawar also added the regal touch needed for a bridal outfit. While her plush pinks and maroons were stunning, her whites were elegant. Chotani’s signature style stood out but there was no repetition.

Masti factor



Aamina Sheikh and Mohib Mirza set the ramp on fire with their dance performance on Day 1. Choreographed by Hasan Rizvi of Body Beat, the two delivered an energetic performance while lip-syncing to upbeat Bollywood numbers. While we wish Aamina had added some extra jhatkas to her performance, we give full marks to Mohib for his moves and expressions!

Zaheer Abbas



The young master craftsman struck a chord with the crowd. Zaheer Abbas is not known to experiment with colours, but one can always expect his collection to be immaculately well-stitched and cut. For PBCW, Zaheer presented a beautiful collection for men and women. The menswear included sherwanis with a hint of gold wire work on the neckline and sleeves, while the women’s wear was regal with solid colours and gold bead work. His emerald green bridals with jamawar bottoms velvet borders were scrumptious. The shades of blue and red made for lovely ghararas. Overall, the collection had hints of traditional material with neat, sophisticated kaam and embellishment, for a young modern woman who wants a no fuss outfit.

Nadia Chotani



In her bridal jewellery collection, Nadia Chotani retained the traditional elements specific to the brides of the 60s and 70s. Bridal chokers and necklaces accompanied by over-sized earrings, nose rings and waist bands in gold dominated her collection. Emeralds and rubies added to a complete traditional Rajasthani look, with a slight twist to make it more modern.

Saim Ali



The designer got it wrong on many levels. While his approach to dabble with black bridals can be passed off as creative, the gaudy embellishments, haphazard look and sordid appeal of his collections left many wide-eyed in horror. It seemed that the designer had failed to capture the essence of bridal week, with poor colour combinations and disastrous cuts and style. The combination of black with neon pink, and yellow with neon pink and red was too random, and echoed the overall lack of cohesion in his collection. It was creativity falling flat and resulting in very distasteful designs, leaving us wondering who his clients are.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 23^rd, 2013.

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