It's a NOIR Spring!

I am one of those fashion devotees who believe in playing it by the rules. So of late when I was admiring the spring collection on the Internet, I had my judgmental rulebook taking down all the notes at the back of my mind. Spring to me springs up visuals of florals, pastels, breezy clothes and easy silhouettes. However, many fashion lovers like me were in for a major sensory assault when I saw a recurring frisson of tuxedo clad beauties scorching the runways day after day. I have always believe that a tuxedo is the most elegant piece of clothing for both men and women. But seeing it in a spring collection was a tad off kilter but then I wasn't complaining. Out of New York, Milan, London and Paris, I was blown away by the creativity at London and Milan. Paris really disappointed me big time or perhaps I didn't get many designers. Saint Laurent: Loved the over-sized hats, jackets and gowns pleasantly peeking out of capes with tassel detailing. Enfant Terrible Hedi Slimane clearly out-tuxed them all! Ricardo Tisci: Givenchy's ultra-feminine dresses with ruffled edges floated on the runway like a pleasant breeze. Lanvin: Alber Elbaz takes the dominatrix route. Loved their one-shoulder poufy ruffled concoctions! Alberta Ferretti: Barely there leafy bustier met the sheer skirt. The Milan's queen of chiffon's new outing was dreamy, ethereal and edgy at the same time! Gucci: Voluminous, ruffled, poufy sleeves in fuscia pink and turquoise blue were simply breathtaking. Isabel Marant: Loved the pretty kaftans, jackets, separates and kurtis! Dsquared2: Always find it edgy and wearable at the same time. My favourite look was the red jackets with black three fourth leggings accessorised with a hat. Zac Posen: Loved the jewel-toned dresses, softly draped and structured, whirls of tulle...and hair with mid-parting...Zac Posen channelled old world charm! Versace: Nipple baring, slashed at the thighs, S & M oozing, va va voom outing by Donatella Versace! Lace and leather seem to be close bedfellows at Milan! Christian Dior: A bundle of contradictions. Rising hemlines and granny skirts which end way below the knees. Loved the pastel and sequinned eye make-up!

Glitzy and Gutsy: Gossip Girl

The Glamazon Suite

I am on the third season of Gossip Girl and more than the drama which forms the fulcrum of the plot, it is the styling and the overall look of Manhattan's Upper East siders that's baffling me. Blake Lively as Serena is clearly the wild child. Her blond beauty, the tiny mole on her face adding to her furnace like sensuality and the husky voice make her simply adorable in a vulnerable sort of way. She is whimsical. She has gone through a lot. Also when it comes to her fashion sense, she is someone who never tries to make an impact but manages to create shocking ripples in the chic corridors effortlessly. She has mostly worn short cutesy dresses, gowns with plunging necklines and leather biker jackets. There is a bit of gamine charm about her since she is playful and there are moments when she cuts a dash as a demure lady with a classic appeal.

Serena's best friend, Blair is a complete contrast. Think Holly Golithly from Breakfast At Tiffany or think of any of the other Audrey Hepburn film be it My Fair Lady or Roman Holiday and Blair merits the description. Unlike Serena, Blair wants to have the perfect life as precise as a custom made Chanel lunch suit. She is the Queen B at Constance and a terror for many girls. No one dares to cross her path. She has a devilish charm-scheming, plotting and being vindictive is her real nature. Despite all this, she is likable. She has got some of the best lines and her sassy nature brings out her aura more effectively. She wears a headband, tunic dresses and accessories-all making of the Prom queen.

What makes Blair even more enchanting is her love and hate relation with her boy friend Chuck Bass. Bass is probably the most intriguing character in the series. At the outset, it is very easy to dismiss him as a Bottega wearing, cigar smoking, temperamental, spoilt, himbo playboy. But he grows to be a smart and caring man who takes care of his relationships with the same precision with which his butler ties the knot of his expensive silk tie. I must add that Bass's closet is a sigh inducing visual-cashmere jackets, ties, cardigans and bows. His devil may care attitude and peppery punchlines make him one of the strongest pillars of the series.

Wallstreet meets English stiff upperlipped

Fall 2011's men's collections are out. And one collection that took my breath away was of Salvatore Ferragamo. As I saw the opening slide on style.com, the gorgeous model wearing a white trench with an edgy collar and copper shirt underneath, my heart did a somersaults of sorts. I have always lusted after trenches and this one is definitely a dream purchase.
From white to copper to chocolate brown, the collection veered towards the shades of teal blue. Accessorised with hats and scarves, some of the numbers are truly drool worthy.


Think of Etro and brand's iconic paisley motif comes to mind. However, there was a surprise as inspiration came from the cow. The collection was an oxymoron of sorts--superimpose the rough masculinity of leather jackets and long coats on the soft femininity of the paisley prints on the trousers, t shirts and lapels on the jackets.

D and G, the younger baby of Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana was young, preppy and hip in a teeny bopperish way. A burst of cheery colours on the runways was a welcome change in a sea of gloomy greys and blacks. Drop crotch pants in neon colours, striped parkas with sheraling hoodies, tinted aviator glares and converses in blues and reds caused a mayhem of sorts within me. These clothes are meant for a guy who has a strong sense of identity, who is not scared of including too many colours in his ensembles and someone who genuinely enjoys the process of dressing up.

Frida Giannini at Gucci spiced up things with long lean coats and intersting pants with an elaborate hem over the toe. Sexy leather man bags, sombre greys with a dash of dull pink reiterated the serious luxe lit feel, label is snynonymous with.

Canary yellows, shocking orange and olive green added energy to the no nonsense collection of Bottega Veneta.

Trust Christopher Bailey to inject a certain Britishness in ever collection of Burberry. The collection started with trench coats with plaid motifs and neon colours of orange, yellow, red and green and then moved towards beige, off white and black. If there's anyone who knows how to reinterpret the trench season after season without losing its sex appeal, it is Bailey.

Samantha rocked and so did the movie!

I still remember during the release of Titanic in India, if you hadn't seen the film, you were dubbed an 'outcast'. In fact funnily enough watching Titanic had become a status symbol of sorts. Today things are not too different. Trashing Sex and The City 2 has become a fad. People who have never followed the iconic series on HBO and can't even spell couture are giving their 'expert' opinions on how the film is silly and amateurish. It's high time when people realise that the movie is aimed at an audience who relish decadence at its best and who soak in couture in its purest form (READ: SJP's flowy gowns, stilettos and outrageous berets).
Coming back to the movie, I felt it was a delight for anyone who is a succor for luxury, style, vintage and all things limited edition. From Carrie's minimalist and uber chic apartment with a walk-in closet, to Big's sprawling office cabin overlooking Manhattan's high rises to the pristine white gay wedding bash to the opulence and regal razzmatazz of Abu Dhabi--it was eye candy at its peak! The film starts with Carrie's cloying voice in the backdrop summing up her stories and of her ever dependable girl friends-Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda. Her first appearance in a white kaftan with golden shades sends a frisson of intrigue down the audience. As the action shifts to Abu Dhabi, drama kicks up and so does Samantha's libido. The scene where Samantha's Birkin breaks and all the condoms splash across the road and she boos all the scoffing Arab men is the funniest of the lot. It is surprising to see Arab women hiding their LV ensembles under black abayas.
Carrie continues her sweet gesture of being a softie and thoughtful when she leaves some money for her caring butler at the hotel as she is unceremoniously chucked out. It reminds me of the episode of the first part when Carrie gifts a LV bag to her assistant for whom the bag means the world.
All in all the film was an epitome of joie de vivre and critics don't really matter as the film has already hit the jackpot across the cities on box office.

RIP Alexander McQueen

It is not easy to define the bond which exists between a child and a mother. It is an emotion that has to be felt, truly felt! The motherly love which a mother feels for her her son and the comfort and solace which a son derives from the mother is simply indescribable. I was not shocked when fashion's chicest hooligan Alexander McQueen ended his life following his mother's death. Son of a taxi driver, who flouted the prevalent fashion rules and rewrote his own style lexicon with his raw energy. Jolting the fashion world with his new sensibility, Lee shot into every fashion lover's foci through profusion of new ideas and consistent ability to churn out fierce, feisty and futuristic collections seasons after seasons. It seemed his aim was to buy a house for his mother who was his greatest source of strength and inspiration. She was someone who was always on the front row to bless every collection he brought out. Alas! He couldn't bear her loss and took the extreme step leaving fashion lovers into trauma by ending his life. Here's hoping that his soul rests in peace. Fashion world definitely lost a genius who achieved a lot in a very small time. Hats off to Lee!

Mens Fall 2009

My favourites from Men's collection

Searing Cinema

Of late I watched two hauntingly morbid films and both left a deep impact on me like nothing else in the recent past. First was Blindness starring Mark Ruffalo and Julienne Moore. This film is about a catastrophe engulfing the world where everyone succumbs to blindness. Everyone turns blind and there is no cure for blindness. How a civilised man turns into a wild savage animal in face of the nightmare is depicted with great degree of sensitivity. The morbid scene when women are being gang raped and people are fighting like ferocious species for food tug at your hearts. These scenes just go to prove that man is nothing without the basic requirements of life and it doesn't take long in turning him into a beast.
The gloom and depression gives way to hope when all of the sufferers unite and put a brave front. Slowly they are bonded with the human feeling of survival.



Another film which moved me was "Changeling" starring Angelina Jolie. Based on a true incident, the film underscores the trauma and agony felt by a single mother who is looking for her minor son in 1920's LA. In the face of the corrupt Police department of LA and sheers apathy and negligence, she is driven round the bend. But she doesn't lose hope and her will power and resilience gets even stronger with each impediments she encounters. Angelina was brilliant as a tormented mother and she evokes a sense of empathy with a restrained performance. I really hope she'll get Oscar nomination for the commendable portrayal. All in all the relationship between a mother and the child is above all the other relationships. It is a self less love and purely unmitigated. And this spirit makes the film all the more endearing.