Designer Gaurang Shah presents "Samyutka" collection at Lakme Fashion Week Winter/Festive-2015

The culture of Kannauj; her birthplace in Rajasthan and her lifestyle in Delhi after her marriage is reflected in her manifestation, which is rhapsodically brought together by Gaurang. 

Known as the master of weaves by his peers, Gaurang personifies elegance and captivating the beauty of traditional handlooms and weaves.  In 2001, Gaurang took up the challenge of reviving the traditional handlooms and bringing them back in vogue. Gaurang infuses various yarns like khadi, tussar, muga, organza, silk to create varied textures crafting each piece as heirlooms. 

Samyutka meaning union is a utopian blend of Indian culture and textile history which is bound together in the collection. Gaurang presents his felicity in the surkh colour red, with his mastery in weaving and embroidery to create a magnum opus.

Working with over 700 weavers and artisans he composes a bridal collection straight from the folklore of medieval India.  He gets hand-weaves like kanjeevaram, khadi, uppada, paithani, benarasi, patan patola, kota, dhakai and accentuates them with hand embroideries like zardosi, gota, doria, marodi, aari, chikankari; thus juxtaposing Indian textile art and cultural history.

The collection is a rendering of his passion for the Indian textile which he has beautifully translated into wearable art. His red love is resplendent into bridal silhouettes like anarkali’s, lehenga’s, kurta’s, gharara’s, ijar’s, farshi’s and his signature jamdani sarees for the bride-to- be and tailored jama’s, anghrakhi’s, , chogha’s, sadri’s, achkan’s  for the bridegroom. The show at Lakme Fashion Week, started with a 3 minute kathak dance by Mumbai based dancers Akhilesh and Apoorva, depicting the story of prithviraj and samyukta. The 44 ensemble collection was symphonized with live sufi-qawwali by Razab Ali and troop specially flown in from Rajasthan.

Gaurang creates a story of weaves that narrates an age old love, in contemporary textures. He mirrors the “Samyukta” bride who is head strong yet rooted to her heritage and the beau who is strong, chivalrous yet who celebrates his culture with pride.