When Lisa Haydon wearing a leather lehenga walked for designer Monisha Jaising's show at couture week, it was a moment of reckoning! She wore a white shirt with a black flared skirt which had gold embroidery and completed the look with traditional exaggerated kaliras. At his last outing, menswear designer Arjun Khanna fused the biker jacket with traditional bandhgala for today's evolved groom who's rooted in tradition yet wants to add that rock and roll edge.
Blame it on the futuristic athleticism which has influenced fashion landscape the world over or all-pervading industrialisation - the Indo-western fusion has taken a new turn. Black for an Indian wedding would have been blasphemous a few years ago while it's not difficult to see black attires at wedding festivities today. We spoke to some of the edgy labels who've played with the grunge elements like leather, safety pins, zippers etc to morph this new look.
Best for cocktail and mehendi
The new age bride look also gives a lot of scope for experimentation in terms of make-up and hair. Designer Falguni of Shane and Falguni Peacock label says, "I think combining a biker jacket with a lehenga is a cool concept. Over the years, in their quest for Indo-western fusion and seeing the demands from the brides, designers have acknowledged the fact that today's bride wants a western appeal to it. However, just a hint of leather in the biker jacket works fine with a zipper."
Falguni underscores the point that the jacket has to have an Indian feel to it. "It works well for cocktail, mehendi and sangeet functions. Also, besides wedding functions, a biker jacket has a lot more utility - for instance, you can wear it with a pair of denims," she adds.
Arrival of the grunge bahu
Now a days brides-to-be want to break free from the usual norms of wedding attire, and be themselves; and that is how it should be! But who's the biker bride? Designer Monisha Jaising says, "For me the biker bride is someone who is fun, lives in the moment, and most importantly she is a free-spirited person! I am glad to see people are willing to accept change in this rigid society of ours. Fusion has always been a part of fashion all these years. But for a bride to look traditional yet modern, this fusion could be a little tricky. Hence, I put together an ensemble - The "World Bride'' which could be easily understood. I envisioned a modern and contemporary bride who is not only high on style but also high in her values and traditions. I gave her a classic white shirt, which is simple yet timeless, and layered it with traditional gold jewellery which could be have been passed on to her by her ancestors. She moves ahead with time, but carries her heritage with her. To bring in some edge, I have given her an elaborate leather skirt!"
Monisha sees it as a big trend.
Black for your wedding?
Model-turned actress Lisa Haydon says, "I actually like some of the black lehengas with gold embroidery on them that Anamika Khanna does. I find black really elegant and I have no issues wearing black on my wedding day as long as it looks stunning. If a bride looks beautiful in a biker attire and that's her most comfortable look then she should wear what makes her happy."
An offshoot of goth and industrialisation
Designer Kanika Saluja says, "I think it's just a different mindset of existence and thought process. I think you have to be a certain kind of person to be a biker bride. Women are changing and getting more evolved and breaking out of the traditional mind set."
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