Stylish Confluence By Payal Singhal AT LFW 2019

Art, tradition, heritage and global history have been constant inspirations for designer Payal Singhal and for Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2019, her collection called ‘Qo’shillish’ (meaning Confluence in Uzbek) was a grand merger of various cultures and influences. Payal’s clever amalgamation of Indian folk art with transcontinental technics and crafts appeared to be a “Renaissance meets Mughal Art” story.

The designer set her sights first on the beauty of mid-European art then moved to the Indian shores and the result was a sophisticated dramatic line on the ramp. The beautiful art forms of Pietre Dura, Parllin Kari, Malileh Kari, Tilla Doza and the popular zardosi were cleverly and painstakingly embellished on the garments in a contemporary form.

Always experimenting with innovative oriental silhouettes that have become the leitmotif of her many collections, this season Payal introduced voluminous Nizami shararas then brought in lean short kurtis and caused excitement when experiments with the modern saris and renaissance tops appeared on the ramp.

Opening the show with a lehenga and a tie-up blouse, Payal moved the creations to curved asymmetric kurtas, one-sleeved slim maxi gypsy blouse with low crotch pants sporting attached dupatta and then, brought in a sari with frilled pallav and skirt. The scalloped hemline of the lehenga added a feisty touch while the tasselled pallav or dupattas were feminine offerings.

Silhouettes were comfortable with loose, bias cut or boxy blouses for saris. Some intricate gold cutwork boleros and cholis, brought the inspiration to the forefront but the kaftans that glittered down the ramp were ideal formal wear.

Fabrics have always played an important role for Payal’s ensembles. This season she once again favoured crêpe, velvet, georgette, silk organza, brocade and tissue. Her colours have been quite mellow over the years so the collection vibrated between moss green, periwinkle blue, ocean teal, dusty rose, sandstone and poster pink.

Stopping the show was the lovely Mouni Roy who glided down the ramp in a heavily embellished lehenga choli and dupatta trio.

When it comes to the perfect fusion of Indo-western ensembles, Payal Singhal’s “Qo’shillish” collection proved that she is the master in that genre.