FPW Day 3: Zainab Chottani shines bright, Nilofer Shahid marries art and fashion

In its final flourish, Fashion Pakistan Week delivered a day replete with fashion highs, redeeming itself from the some-hit-mostly-miss lineups of the past two days. It was a day for bridal design and couture, mixing in the old guard with the new, bringing forth statements that managed to set that elusive fashion bar high.

The show opened with Umar Sayeed’s impeccably crafted bridal line and ended with couturier Nilofer Shahid’s artistic, breathtaking ode to Rembrandt. Sandwiched in the middle was a range of designers who each held their own, staying true to their signature, dabbling with bling, structure and exquisite hand embroideries.

Umar Sayeed

Umar Sayeed made waves even prior to his showcase given that his showstoppers were the Ho Mann Jahaan trio; Mahira Khan, Sheryar Munawar and Adeel Hussain. They opened the show to the beats of Shakar Wandawaan and a very enthusiastic audience.

After a considerable sabbatical, Umar Sayeed was back, spinning his flair for grand, finely-honed bridal design. It’s what established him as a bridal heavyweight at the onset of his career and it’s what made his FPW Elysian collection a treat to behold.

In an effort to merge his penchant for tradition with some modernity, Umar dabbled with cancanned lehngas, off-shoulder short shirts, halter-necks and the Dhaka pajamas. It was his workmanship, though, that held center stage; an amalgamation of zardozi, French knots and diamantes, embellished with extreme precision.

The color range ran wide, from ivory to pastels, fuschia and bright pink, this collection marked Umar Sayeed’s definitive return to the limelight. He should stay there now and lift bridal design from the ennui that it lately keeps drifting into.

Top pick: The heavily-worked purple lehnga worn by Mehreen Syed for the avant-garde bride.

Zaheer Abbas

Umar Sayeed’s show was a tough act to follow but Zaheer Abbas managed to do so adroitly with his Baad-e-Naubahar. His was an interesting blend of traditional trousseau-wear, interspersed with on-trend capes, fitted high-collared shirts and a variety of shalwars. Designs were well-constructed and neat, embellished with a pleasing mix of shimmer and embroidery.

Model-actress Amna Ilyas walked for the final act but it was the silver and light purple lehnga worn by Cybil that caught our eye. It served as an ideal wedding-wear option, easily slotting Zaheer as a strong contender in the very lucrative bridal market.

Top pick: The boat-necked velvet blouse with embroidery down the shoulder and neckline and the high-collared shirt with gold embroidery, paired with a velvet shalwar.

For a prospective bride, the silver lehnga encrusted entirely with crystals, pearls, ari and French knots with a purple net dupatta boasting appliquéd motifs, worn by Cybil on the catwalk.

Delphi

Delphi’s prowess with crochet has won it a niche market and the fabric was wielded into a variety of silhouettes. There were risqué numbers like the halter blouse paired with a sari and traditionally long shirts, tunics with those ever-rampant varying hemlines, retail-friendly capes. Embroidered birds in flight spread their wings over a crocheted canvas interspersed with sequins.

In terms of silhouette, Delphi toed commercial lines; in terms of craft, it has always been in a league of its own. The brand’s luxe crochet serves as a refreshingly different option from heavily embroidered wedding formals.

Top picks: The long shimmering shirt with a scalloped hemline paired with loose, embroidered pants, the capes and the exquisite gray sari worn by showstopper Mira Sethi.

Zainab Chottani

Zainab Chottani is a designer who has grown from strength to strength, showing frequently at fashion weeks and building her market. More than anything else, her Dilruba exemplified her flair for playing with color.

Actress Mehwish Hayat took to the catwalk in an all-out bridal dress but much more eye-catching was the ebullient palette that defined the rest of the collection; popping with fuschia, hot pink, deep red and orange. The dupattas and shawls lined with velvet were beautiful and will probably prove to be a hot-seller at winter weddings.

The silhouettes, as they often are in bridal-wear, remained market friendly, comprising culottes, crop tops and ghagra-cholis. It steered the lineup into the ‘pretty’ category, but not the groundbreaking one. With her clientele in place, a brand new store in Karachi’s ‘it’ Khyaban-e-Bukhari, Zainab Chottani now needs to diversify, have more fun with design, shake things up a bit.

Top picks: The shawls lined with velvet and the cropped top in shades of burgundy paired with sequined culottes.

Faraz Manan

Faraz Manan’s ‘Imperial’ – a continuation of his showcase at the opening of his new store in Dubai – masterfully played with shimmer, shine and luxe pastel shades. Bolstered by his thriving business, Faraz wields glamour with absolute confidence. Short shirts and saris were cinched at the waist with bejeweled belts and smart knee-high shirts were paired with culottes.

There were no celebrity showstoppers, for once – ‘Imperial’ didn’t need any. Finely-honed, bling-infested and yet sophisticated, with just a bit of Faraz’s quintessential Bollywood oomph added in for good measure, this is why Faraz has become a bridal favorite in a very short time.

Pastels and whites are certainly his forte. It would now be interesting if he also veered towards brighter hues.

Top picks: The rose-pink flared shirt with culottes and the gray and silver long shirt cinched at the waist, worn over cigarette pants.

Nauman Arfeen

The only all-out menswear line at FPW, Nauman Arfeen’s ‘The Legacy’ was a well-defined one. The sherwanis, waistcoats and coats were well-cut – an absolute essential for menswear – and there were, refreshingly, no overdoses of effeminate bling.

Instead, Nauman employed subtle, delicate thread-work over a white, ivory, beige and olive green palette. Nauman Arfeen has steadily worked towards gaining a stronghold amongst the shaadi-bound entourage. This collection is bound to become a hit amongst grooms.

Top pick: The waistcoats and thread-embroidered sherwanis were spot-on.

Nilofer Shahid

In her first ever show at a fashion week in Pakistan, Nilofer Shahid transformed the catwalk into a magical work of art. This was the only show at FPW that was truly about the love for couture, evading mundane aspirations towards commercialism.

The Rembrandt collection drifted through beautifully crafted drama, complicated design elements, poetry in motion as Rembrandt’s artistic career was etched out, bit by bit.

There were digital prints playing with light and shadow, 3-D florals hand-stitched into Baroque elements, militant jackets and capes and gothic black, treated with feathers and layered with gold and glitter. Every detail had a story; a cape worn by Cybil bordered to emulate Rembrandt’s etches, the all-black designs dedicated to a period of mourning in the painter’s life with the slight shimmer signifying his works of art during the time and the copper accents that the painter often employed, in belts, collars, shoe heels and jewelry.

The heavily trailed gown worn by Mehreen Syed in the finale was inspired by Rembrant’s infamous ‘The Jewish Bride’.

As separates, many of the designs were retail-friendly; many of the dramatic designs can eventually be translated. Conventional commercialism, besides, is hardly what makes a fashion week spectacular. At a time when design is so often generic, Nilofer Shahid brought out a labor of love, trendsetting and original. This, in essence, is what fashion shows used to be about, what fashion week should be about.

Top picks: The cape worn by Cybil, inspired by Rembrandt’s etchings, the very aristocratic capes and jackets in deep red and a black trailing cape with feather detailings.