KATHMANDU
The second day of the TGIF Nepal Fashion Week 2022 on September 23 presented the audience with the glamour and opulence of the designers with the unabashed use of sequins.
Rasna Shrestha's evening wear commenced the event. Her designs were made in soft colours like white, beige, silver-grey, salmon pink and light green. The shimmering threads used in the embroidery of some of the designs caught the stage lights and further elevated the softness of the fabric's colours. Actress Jasita Gurung, the showstopper, wore a sequin-embroidered deep red dress with a sweetheart neckline.
Paying homage to the French
aesthetics in his collection Le Jardin De Rose (The Rose Garden), Aakash Shrestha showcased the beauty of a rose in his designs. His designs were mostly in the hot-pink shade and made of tulle, resembling the delicate whorls of a rose. Rehan Shrestha, model and designer, was seen wearing a deep-green velvet suit jacket, like leaves of a rose, as one of the showstoppers.
In her collection of evening and occasion wear, designer Sushila Shrestha played around a lot with tulle. One of her interesting designs was a fuchsia fusion of mermaid gown and traditional lehenga. This particular design also had a pattern print quite similar to a Qipao, a traditional Chinese dress. However, her most interesting design was a teal lehenga that was studded with glass jewels and sequins. The model's movement made the lehenga shimmer the same way water-bodies shimmer under the sun.
The most interesting collection of the second day was Anugraha Adhikari's Melancholy.
The designs were made exclusively for the Fashion Week and spoke tons about the extent of Adhikari's creative expression.
His dresses were all made with muted, dark colours like grey, blue and green. The waistline was also cinched with a corset like design and most of the dresses had a sweetheart neckline.
The models had their entire face covered with a veil tied in knots around their necks and were all seen carrying dead, dried flowers. The entire collection screamed 'delicate' perhaps correlating to the fragility of a human mind in melancholy.
Continuing on this delicate note was Sumi Rai with her collection made only in lilac and white colours to spread the message of purity and innocence (white lilacs), and spirituality (purple lilacs). She was also quite heavy-handed with the use of tulle and sequins. A unique way of Rai's use of tulle was draping it from one shoulder of a gown.
The white tulle in this particular design made it look like fur adding to the poise in her collection.
The following sequence was a collaboration between Ambassador Designs and Asian Paints - a collection of bathrobes in gorgeous shades of black, brown and silver, amongst others. The designers, Shrija Shrestha and Manish Shrestha, mixed luxury in bathrobes with the use of lace trimmings and silk-like flowy fabric.
Opened by actress Sushma Karki, Bivesh Rai's Behuli was a collection of heavily embroidered bridal dresses dedicated to brides. It was distinctive in its embroidery patterns. The bridal dresses not only had the common floral embroidery but also sequin butterflies in one design.
Another design had elements of Mughal architecture styles embroidered in it. Karishma Manandhar was the showstopper for this sequence.
The final sequence for the day was by Sumeet Dhanuka - a collection of traditional and modern menswear divided into two sequences. The first sequence had actor Ayushman Desraj Shrestha Joshi in a kneelength kurta made of silk as the showstopper. His second sequence was opened by Parakram SJB Rana in a light pink round-cut crop jacket.
The unexpected appearance of TV personality Bhusan Dahal as the last showstopper of the day visibly excited the attendees present. Dahal was seen in a deep-green velvet suit and made his entrance sitting in the all too familiar stance he adopts during his shows.
Promising more on beautiful designs, the second day of the TGIF Nepal Fashion Week 2022 ended with an after-party with a performance by Sabin Rai and The Pharaoh.
The TGIF Nepal Fashion Week has returned after a hiatus of four years, and I found it excellent. There is plenty to be done to expand the Nepali fashion industry. And such significant events encourage us to dream larger. This Fashion Week provides a platform for young designers. And today, every designer had ready-to-wear pieces. But I particularly liked the Monalisha Exclusive Textile collection since they appeared to be easy to wear. I also loved the male models on the ramp. -Subeksha Khadka, Miss Nepal International 2012
I have attended almost every edition of TGIF Nepal Fashion Week. This time I found the designers and models extremely young. The designs were very original and refreshing, but I particularly loved Anugraha Adhikari's collection because of the flawless stitching and colours that perfectly matched his concept. The young models did a great job of displaying his designs as well. - Rupy Singh, Founder and Director of Rupy's International School
It is easy to start but consistency is what counts, and kudos to the TGIF Nepal Fashion Week team for making a successful comeback. It is refreshing as we finally are able to witness the fashion show. I adored the work of Anugraha Adhikari. I feel like he represents the future of the Nepali fashion industry, which is why I am so excited to work with him. He did a great job with the knit fabric. Because the Nepamode (by designer Aakash Shrestha) was different and featured more handcrafted works, I also liked it. - Reema Bishwokarma, Actress
I have returned to Nepal from India after 15 years and it is a dream come true for me to walk the runway as a model after growing up watching TGIF Nepal Fashion Week. The production was incredible, the stage was enormous, and the lighting was excellent, and the performance is only getting better and better. Even the models were highly professional, and the entire team completed their work very well. I liked Anugraha Adhikari's collection that showed his meticulous attention to details. - Parakram Rana, Fashion Stylist and Blogger
RED CARPET SIZZLERS
A version of this article appears in the print on September 24, 2022 of The Himalayan Times.
