Young designers, unique concepts to be unveiled at WIFW 2013

Masaba Gupta's first creations for Satya Paul will kickstart the 21st edition of Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week (WIFW) here Wednesday. The event will see 128 designers showcasing plethora of works and colours on the ramp and wooing buyers from destinations like Japan and Australia.

Dominated by India-inspired themes, the five-day event will also have a solo show by youngster Aneeth Arora, while Manish Arora has been named the grand finale designer.

An initiative of the Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI), the fashion event will take place at Pragati Maidan.

Masaba, 24, a fashion director at Satya Paul, will unveil her maiden collection for the brand.

"I am truly honoured to open the fashion week in my new home city. It's a coveted spot, and I am committed to creating a collection," said Gupta.

Aneeth, a textile graduate from the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad and a fashion graduate from the National Institute of Fashion Technology, describes herself as "textile dressmaker".

Her collection is about modern touch to classic cuts and designs. The designer takes inspiration from local people as she believes that they are the "real trendsetters of the time".

On the other hand, Anupamaa Dayal's collection, titled "Ishq-e-Dilli", inspired by the magic of Delhi, is expected launch new trends.

Her designs will also mark her debut in bridal fashion.

"The mainstay of our work has been pret and club resort designs that work in any context geographically and culturally. Being inspired by Delhi this time, the collection is intensely referenced by Mughal and erstwhile Islamic empire. The collection is absolutely appropriate for destination wedding. Hence it is our way of entering the wedding segment," Dayal told IANS.

Established names like Tarun Tahiliani, Shantanu and Nikhil, Vineet Bahl, Nikasha Tawadey, Namrata Joshipura, Abraham and Thakore, Anju Modi, Manish Malhotra, Rajesh Pratap Singh, and Nida Mahmood will also splash the ramp with their creations in various hues.

Sunil Sethi, president, FDCI, is looking forward to the 21st edition as he feels designers have huge "influence on global trends".

"These myriad style gurus are ready to showcase their creations both on the runway and exhibition area. The interesting mix of innovation, creativity and tradition will usher in the best at the WIFW autumn-winter," he said.

The event will see buyers from UAE, Britain, Australia and Japan.

Another high point of the show is Abraham & Thakore's show that is sponsored by The Development Commissioner Handlooms, Ministry of Textiles.

Talking about collection, Abraham told IANS: "We take a look at the Indian wedding dressing from a modernist and somewhat minimal perspective. We reinterpret traditional occasion dressing into a sleek, modern 21st century bridal wardrobe for the contemporary Indian woman."

Of course, their will be Bollywood flavour. Actress Neha Dhupia has been roped in as Twitter face of the edition. She will tweet news, pictures, ramp reviews from the venue.

"Being an ardent lover of fashion, I am really excited to be attending and tweeting about the WIFW. I will be attending the shows of my favourite designers and look forward to spending my time at the fashion capital," said the former Miss India.