The Indian Runway Bride: Different Indian Bridal Looks

The coy Indian bride has come a long way and what we see today is a confidant woman who dresses according to her taste, individual style and culture for her big day. She is more of East meets West and the fusion can be seen in today’s bridal wear. The different Indian bridal looks have a more global approach nowadays.

In India mainly the bridal wear comprises of a saree, lehenga, salwaar kameez or an anarkali suit. The events associated with the Indian weddings like the Sangeet, Mehendi, Haldi and the cocktail party have also opened doors for different Indian bridal looks to suit the event. Adding to it the cultural diversity brings out more Indian bridal looks like the South Indian, Maharashtrian, Gujarati, Bengali or the North Indian bride. 

When we consider the saree, it is no longer the age old attire. The blouse worn with the saree has undergone a huge transformation. Sometimes it is the show stealer from the saree, and gives that edge to the outfit. The sarees also portray a look with jackets and sometimes instead of the unstitched drape brides also go for a fitted saree.

Here are some of the modern Indian bridal looks:

Applique and zari saree

Pre-draped Saree

Crystal blouse

Culturally in India the saree is more popular as bridal wear in Maharashtra, Bengal, Orissa and down South. We can see the brides from there decked in Kanjivaram, Banarasi or Paithani style silk sarees.

Bengali bride in red and white banarasi saree

The South Indian Kanjeevaram

Maharashtrian Paithani saree (Source: Pinterest)

The lehenga originated from the north of India but has gained popularity across regions as bridal wear. It has a heavily embroidered skirt teamed with a blouse and stole. The lehengas can be paired with a Gujarati style shorter blouse with bare midriff or the Northern style longer fitted jacket type blouse. The elaborately done lehenga with a big flare gives a royal princess look because of which it has become popular with the girls today.

Opulent red lehenga

Four piece lehenga

Traditional Gujarati inspired Lehenga

The Anarkali suit again due to its flare and volume like the lehenga is a great bridal choice. The difference is that in an Anarkali suit the top is one piece almost reaching the ankles and it is generally worn with churidar pants below. The look is completed with an embroidered stole, or the new trend, a jacket.

Anarkali jacket set

Red embroidered anarkali

The salwaar kameez bride can generally be seen in Punjab region of India. This outfit is preferred by the Indian ladies as daily wear or office formals due to the comfort factor. This outfit however will offer a subtle bridal look as compared to the sarees and lehengas.

Beige Salwar suit

In the cocktail parties of the modern day Indian bride, the gowns have also found a place. The Indian bridal looks with gowns can be traditionally inspired or can have a complete modern feel to it.

Corset Gown with traditional embroidery

Modern gown

A bride can mix and match from the plethora of the different Indian bridal looks for her big event. She can wear the traditionally relevant (depending upon her family’s lineage) saree or lehenga for her wedding day and opt for contemporary bridal wear for other events.

A wedding is a once in a lifetime affair, so brides, show all your Indian bridal looks with all the show stopping attires. The wedding runway is all yours!

Indian Fashion Style: Sarees V's Gowns

We are recently seeing a lot of photographs on  social media with the specific tag #100sareepact. It is two innovative women who have started this new buzz, as they want to encourage the fact that wearing saree in the workplace is a great and stylish option.

This new virtual platform created by these two women is a space where people can celebrate their memories of sarees. All participants in this pact are attempting to wear a 100 saris before the end of this year. Since the creation of this website, there has already been 4000 visits and 1400 women who have participated. The concept is really simple, the person has to post a picture and explain how they feel when wearing a saree into the workplace.

But obviously, the pair want to go further with this, and not just wear sarees in the office, but begin to bring the saree back on the red carpet, instead of seeing the same thing over and over again: gowns. We used to see a lot of sarees on the red carpet with the previous generation of Bollywood actors such as Hema and Rekha Malini, who always showed up for ceremonies in stunning Kanjeevarams or subtle chiffons.

Before, Bollywood celebrities wore what they liked and looked good, based on their tastes instead of following all trends, what people wore was not so important. Nowadays, it’s different as everyone tends to follow trends of the moment to look stylish.

At Cannes 2015, we saw the Bollywood actress Sonam Kapoor make an outstanding appearance with her voluminous gown. After this appearance, she then attended a press conference wearing a extremely unique fluffy outfit, although this choice of outfit was not such a success. The look was more suited for a teenager going to prom night!

The idea of bringing back more traditional clothes on the red carpet is for Bollywood celebrities to generate further attention from the international press. For this kind of big event such as Cannes 2015, every look is perfectly planned and thought out. Obviously, with all the paparazzi around celebrities, the stable black gown will be the safe choice, however, it will miss the brilliance and condition of making someone stand out. But, for the first time it will be difficult to convince Bollywood divas to be different and not follow the trends, because it will also mean taking the risk of stirring the fashion police, as all celebrities hate this kind of “bad” judgment.

When we look at Aishwarya Rai and Sonam Kapoor looking perfect in Elie Saabs and Oscar De la Rentas during Cannes 2015 Festival, we know that it was to stand out from the crowd. These two Bollywood divas ultimately looked extremely glamorous, and are obviously outstandingly beautiful,   but maybe the looks were slightly too much.

It’s always better for everyone to have fun with their fashion and not stress about what they will look like. For example, we saw the actress Nandita Das, in a simple black and red saree, she looked very natural and it had a greater impact. 

It’s the right time for the designers to rethink about the approach to red carpet dressing. It will might be better to make people look comfortable, natural and fun loving with their outfits and not superficial.

Manish Malhotra - A Success Story

Indian designer Manish Malhotra is one of India’s most well-known and loved fashion designers. But not only does he create stunning garments for Bollywood’s most important and loved names but has also designed for a number of world famous Hollywood stars, such as actress Reese Witherspoon and even supermodels Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell. Manish is well known world wide for the creation of extravagant and luxury garments with a distinctive traditional Indian style with the use of colour storytelling and glamorous and intricate craftsmanship.

Manish was born in Mumbai, and his swift journey to the top of the fashion industry has ultimately been one of a kind. From his characteristic love for movies, glamour and unique colour to forming an extremely niche category for himself as a top Bollywood stylist/Costume Designer. He is now one of the most well know and influential designer’s in the country, he has without a doubt created an unique pathway to success.

As a self-taught designer, Indian designer Manish’s career first started with a small Mumbai-based boutique. From that moment he chased his dream to be a Costume designer for the top movies. He initiated ‘styling’ in Bollywood as a whole as we now know it today, a visionary that involved not only the creation of the clothing but the development of the character and the aspect of working on each fragment of the look.

Manish Malhotra's imaginative outfits and garments always attract applause from the audience at Lakme Fashion Week, but his most recent cocktail dress collection for the current year's Winter/Festive Season fashion week hosted in Mumbai was all the more incredible and jaw-dropping. We saw a variety of shimmery, beautiful and breath-taking ensembles of couture Indian attire from the Indian designer including unique lehengas, sarees, and fusion outfits.

Staying very true to his glossy theme, Manish designed his whole collection around shimmering fabrics and dreamy rich colours.

As the saree develops as more and more globalised as a fashion statement, Indian designer Malhotra used its elegance, detail and charm to design beautifully flowing skirts – doubling up the traditional Indian garment into a stunning ball gown that glides across the room.

The fashion week festivities wouldn't be completed without some breath-taking and unique lehengas, created from shimmering silver fabrica and embroidered with gorgeous pearl coloured beads! Manish Malhotra's designs are known to feature heavy materials and borders in line with a graceful and royal image.

Bollywood Best Dressed - Our Picks from Cannes 2014

Bollywood's footstep on the Cannes red carpet is rapidly increasing each year and this year they certainty did not disappoint! The Bollywood stars certainty held their own in terms of fashion this year, even showcasing a stunning Indian evening gown, joining a number of the other celebs for best dressed of the event. The Indian evening gown trend was proudly showcased as stars such as Sonam Kapoor presented a stunning gold sheer Anamika Khanna Saree with a detailed pearl and gold detailed choker, designed by Sunita Kapoor.

This wasn’t the only show-stopping outfit Sonam presented, the 28 year old Bollywood celebrity heated up the red carpet in a number of breath-taking looks that left everyone in awe.

First shown was a dramatic black embellished Ellie Saab Spring 2014 Couture gown which featured gorgeous jewel detail. Finally, the GQ India beauty dazzled in a delicate powder blue Elie Saab gown, complete with a flowing skirt and structured bodice, which she wore to the Chopard Dinner.

It's hard to choose which gown is our favourite but we're leaning towards her dusty pink Indian evening gown!

Another Bollywood beauty who certainly stole the show was without a doubt Aishwarya Rai, wearing a stunningly structured golden Roberto Cavalli gown, Aishwarya's hair and makeup was every bit glam. She made her impressing 10th consecutive attendance at Cannes as L’Oreal Paris’ ambassador. The world went crazy over her and her golden look and was talking about everywhere – from printed publications to social media.

For her second appearance, for the premiere of the movie “The Search” – she showcased a beautifully detailed white Roberto Cavalli gown embellished with tons of Swarovski crystals, she also opted for nude lips and perfect subtle make-up.

Last but not least has to be Mallika Sherawat, she was a vision in blue as she showcased a stunning powder blue lace gown with cut out detail and a volumous up-do, teamed with statement jewelled earrings. For her next appearance she dazzled in a all white pleated number with a plunge neck line. This ensemble looked amazing as the windy weather swept it around as she made her way down the red carpet!

Highlights at the Wills Lifestyle Fashion Week 2014

Shantanu and Nikhil Mehra: West meets the East!

In the History of Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2014, the only designers that showcased Indian menswear in the course of the entire day were none other than Shantanu & Nikhil Mehra. The Designer duo presented a collection called “The Shadows Within”; it’s about an imaginative character called Vanessa, a British woman who lived in India during the 1930-40’s era.

Shantanu and Nikhil Mehra’s collection created a romantic mood by using shade like oxblood, blush pink, Chocó brown, sand yellow and white ivory. Layered Gowns paired with Victorian evening gloves, Signature sarees and Venetian knee length cocktail dress styles added the perfect Vintage touch to their collection. Shantanu and Nikhil tried to bring femininity in their menswear collection so there were a lot of elegantly draped kurti’s showcased this season. Another eye catching accessory in the men’s-wear collection was the gilded pocket square with the bandhgala jackets. The quirky footwear with intricate work was very well noticed. The fabrics used for the collection were a combination of silk & cotton, which perfectly matches the Autumn Winter Season.

Shantanu and Nikhil successfully managed to put together the ethnic silhouettes with western-wear sensibilities in their new collection at the Wills lifestyle India Fashion Week, 2014.

Shantanu and Nikhil Mehra's collection at the Wills Lifestyle Fashion Week Autumn/Winter ,2014

Shantanu and Nikhil Mehra's collection at the Wills Lifestyle Fashion Week Autumn/Winter ,2014

Shantanu and Nikhil Mehra at the Wills Lifestyle Fashion Week Autumn/Winter ,2014

Nikasha Tawadey : BiBa

On the second day of the Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2014, the ramp was set on fire by Nikasha Tawadey’s fabulous collection called “BiBa”. The designer showcased an entirely new range for the fall season.

Nikasha only used chitz fabric in a totally vintage style for her collection. The colour scheme for the new collection was shades like cherry red, blush peach, champagne and burgundy wine; Red ombre was evidently used. Slip blouses, sheer ruched tunics, muslin, chanderi sarees and kaftans with fine-crafted hand embroidery and striking embellishments, MAGNIFICIENT! What a delight to watch. The purses styled with the clothes were super adorable and attractive.

Nikasha Tawadey’s collection mirrors a tranquil language where time is the definitive luxury. The collection was a perfect blend of classy illustrations, fabulously articulated at the Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week, 2014.

“Biba” Collection at the Wills Lifestyle Fashion Week Autumn/Winter ,2014

“Biba” Collection at the Wills Lifestyle Fashion Week Autumn/Winter ,2014

Nikasha Tawadey at the Wills Lifestyle Fashion Week Autumn/Winter ,2014

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Mix and Match Designer Sarees

Probably, we are not the only ones who are wondering how to face the string of our friends’ weddings which come up during the WeddingSeason. 

When you work full time it is not easy to find out the perfect look to attend the ceremony in just few minutes. You could wear the same designer sarees for each wedding, but we suggest you to give always to them a quirky twist. Perhaps, you could pair up your saree with a jacket, or a gown...click here to get more ideas!