For Rahul Mishra, creating couture isn’t about setting new trends for the upcoming season – it’s about creating art by interspersing nature with his wildest imaginations. “As a designer, originality is very important for me, hence the internet is not where my inspiration stems from. I draw my ideas from everything I see and feel around me. Nature is the most optimal influence in my process – this time around, I borrowed from the bountiful beauty of the Himalayas, where I am creating my safe haven. Real flowers, ice-capped mountains and other elements from the botanical wilderness have been reinterpreted in the form of couture.”
The Enchanted – rightly titled, the line appears to be straight out of a fantasy. From Greece to the Himalayas, Rahul’s muse will forever be mother earth. Always unearthing more than just solace from his travel escapades, the designer wanted to build a home and a creative sanctuary for himself and the team in the rural northern parts of India, away from the bustling civilisation. While the dream home is yet to be built, the designer managed to engineer his architectural wonders in the form of exaggerated couture ensembles. “Liberating ourselves from any sort of limitation when it comes to devising a collection has been the most fulfilling part of this experience. The Himalayan biodiversity is extensive, to poetically present it through fashion was equally challenging and amusing. Converting rare flowers like poppies, peace lilies, foxgloves, bellflowers, hollyhocks, iris and anemones into not just 3D surface ornamentation but also to give a garment the form and shape of these flowers was taking it to a whole new level in terms of construction. Unadulterated by city lights, we cascaded the glimmering sky onto the silhouette – every component of the surrounding was infused through painstaking techniques.”
As he prepped to showcase his 3rd fashion film for the Spring/Summer Haute Couture Week 2022 edition – the designer had challenges beyond the ongoing in the atelier as the 3rd wave of covid had officially hit his doorstep as well. “Last month, I was covid positive, this month most of the team tested positive, so bringing this together was a mammoth task. But the sheer idea of creating something larger-than-life and beyond our regular production cycle is almost euphoric. The final product is for the world to enjoy, but to us, the procedure and the journey are also equally cathartic. Even with the pandemic and shifting spaces, we didn’t dial down on the magnitude and the result is for everyone to see.”
Known for his juxtaposition of textiles, shapes and embellishments – Rahul’s idea of creating couture is meddling everything together into beautiful chaos. “When we start designing a collection we aren’t married to a particular idea or technique, the approach we take is very fluid. Each attire has a conglomeration of hundreds of techniques and colours. From blending sequins with thread to incorporating gathers, sheer panels, applique and dori work all in one piece of clothing is an enormous undertaking, but that’s exactly what fashion is to us – exploration.”
“Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I’ll meet you there,” a quote from Rumi headlines the press release for Rahul this season. This perfectly encapsulates his idea of what a couture show should entail. There’s no method to his madness, a refreshing take in fashion – which isn’t often observed in fashion. To make ensembles as wearable pieces of art if what Rahul Mishra’s showcase is and will be always about. Incase you missed his show, you can now watch his fashion film below.
To learn more about the Spring/Summer trends for the season, tap here .
