Manish Malhotra is mighty prolific. Barely weeks after his show at Lakmé India Fashion Week, he unveiled a whole new collection (more on that in a bit) over the weekend, at a show called Mijwan – The Legacy. The show was in support of the Mijwan Welfare Society, an NGO founded by Kaifi Azmi, and currently headed by Shabana Azmi. And Malhotra’s association with the NGO goes back four years.
As with all of Malhotra’s shows, the ramp was bursting with stars. In keeping with the theme (legacy), the stars walked with their sons and daughters – Amitabh Bachchan with Shweta Bachchan Nanda, Jaya Bachchan with Abhishek Bachchan, Shatrughan Sinha with Sonakshi Sinha, Anil Kapoor with Sonam Kapoor, and Javed Akhtar with Farhan Akhtar. (Quite a mouthful. Also, notice how cramped the head of the ramp seems when they all line up together!)
The show was in some ways an extension of the SS ’15 collection he showed at LIFW – the fringe details, the bold flowers, the sequins. But the hues were powder-soft, and the emphasis was on chikankari works. In fact, Malhotra has adopted the Kaifi Azmi Sewing and Embroidery Centre in Mijwan, Uttar Pradesh, to help generate employment opportunities for the local women. And even Shabana Azmi applauded his efforts, and added: “One cannot even begin to imagine how empowering it is for the women of Mijwan to be pulled out of oblivion by Manish Malhotra and be brought to the steps of the film world. They now dare to dream and live their dreams, unfettered and unafraid.”
Flip through the gallery to check out the complete collection and behind the scenes images
The Mijwan collection will be available at the Manish Malhotra stores in Mumbai and Delhi. 45, Vishnu Dham Building, 14th Road, Khar West, Mumbai. H 5/1 Kalkadas Marg, Mehrauli, Delhi
Photographs: Viral Bhayani / Instagram
