Trend File with Secret Closet: The comeback of the choli

The second wedding season of 2013 has just begun and we are noticing a marked increase in the lehenga choli.

The second wedding season of 2013, (there are three in case you’re wondering) has just begun and we are noticing a marked increase in the beloved Bollywood style lehenga choli for bridals and wedding formals, particularly and befittingly amongst the younger fashionistas.

The fitted cropped top, resembling a sari blouse with a sprawling ankle length skirt, is most often associated with Indian cinema involving exotic dance performances that make mesmerising use of the endlessly twirling fabric. But here at home, we are accustomed to seeing long to mid length straight cut kurtas over lehengas and farshi ghararas for bridals, and layered anarkalis and peshwas for formals. However, as the longer hemlines and flared panels are flying out the window, so are these silhouettes.

While audiences slowly adapt to, and accept shorter, leaner silhouettes, the gap is being filled by extremely graceful, classic lehenga cholis with the side swept dupatta. Designers like Misha Lakhani, who created her own inspiring bridal trousseau, chose the age old form, as did Feeha Jamshed who wore an attractive electric blue and yellow gold Kamiar Rokni ghagra choli at her mehndi. Khadijah Shah of Elan opted for an ethnic Indian lehenga with a slightly elongated choli by designer Anju Modi for her own brother’s wedding as well. Mahira Khan modeled an exquisite Sania Maskatiya yellow and ivory number at Feeha’s mehendi while Nida Khan, hair stylist at Tariq Amin, wore a glittering gold ensemble designed by Feeha herself. It’s safe to say that the style gurus are dropping strong hints with regard to the trend!

A modern approach to the traditional lehenga choli shape and something that makes it easier to carry off if you don’t have a washboard stomach, is a long embellished jacket or sheer cape added on top as shown by luxury couture designers Farah Talib Aziz, Nida Azwer, and Ayesha Somaya in their latest breathtaking Fall’13 Bridal Couture collections. Pairing a cape with anything at the moment is very much in vogue, be it a jumpsuit, lehenga, kurta, or even a sari.

L’Oreal Paris Bridal Week is right around the corner and we suspect we’ll be seeing a lot more of this trend on the runway soon.

The ironic part worth noting is, as we start leaning more and more towards this style, Indian fashion is simultaneously moving away from it as fewer versions of the choli were seen at the recent PCJ Delhi Couture Week. Saris and innovative couture forms with longer tops were more prominent in the collections of Sabyasachi, Satya Paul, Anamika Khanna and Gaurav Gupta to name some of the legends. The increased back and forth between Indian and Pakistani fashion has started to have a strong felt impact as the two sides swap fashion philosophies. It is a healthy progression to say the least.

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Published in The Express Tribune, August 17^th, 2013.

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