India Couture Week 2023: Ritu Kumar is synonymous with reviving Indian textiles and crafts while creating her own signature narrative one timeless piece at a time.
Returning to the runway after a gap of 10 years, Ritu ‘The OG’ Kumar is all set to present a line that celebrates her legacy and mirrors the style of today’s India. “This season, there is a sense of a revival of our efforts over the years. We are back with our own clear handwriting but tweaked to give it a contemporary feel,” expresses Ritu Kumar.
In conversation with News18, the doyenne of Indian fashion talks about how even after 60 years of revival work her designs remain relevant and why AI [Artificial Intelligence] is not designed to do haute couture.
Excerpts from the interview:
As a brand that has been celebrating Indian craftsmanship since its inception, what will this collection represent at India Couture Week?
It celebrates Indian textiles of varied sophistication and their detailing, a study of which is continuous with our legacy and mixes nostalgia with modern silhouettes.
As the OG of Indian fashion, will the couture collection see a blend of your legacy and contemporary Indian styles?
Yes, that is the signature of the line [The OG], and how even after 60 years of revival work it can still remain relevant. This season, the legacy stays intact while the mood mirrors the style of today’s India. The collection encapsulates a new feminine aesthetic through heritage textiles and nuanced classicism on dresses, jackets, capes and anarkalis.
One thing in this collection that resonates and highlights your love for Indian crafts?
It is the use of old age patterning and techniques which are customised for the young Indian of this millennium.
What’s your vision for couture in India in 2024?
Couture is going to be led by the wedding market, which will become more varied. It perhaps will not remain only true to Indian textiles but will definitely be using the high skills of Indian embroiderers to experiment with varied inputs to create new handwriting.
What do you feel about the role of the craftsperson in creating a collection?
The craft people have seldom been given as much credit for their role in creating masterpieces. The designer at the end of the day remains a catalyst, an important part of the collection, but would not be there without the craftsperson.
Breaking stereotypes and redefining couture over the years, what is your opinion of Indian textiles in modern times?
The richness of Indian textiles has always been known to customise for any market or any occasion. We are the country which clothed the world before we were colonised. We have not lost the ability to be dexterous and make them relevant to modern times.
We live in an AI world, do you think technology will take over fashion and leave artisans and designers out of jobs?
There will always be a hunger for the manmade, as long as it stays relevant to the coming world. Here the role of a designer is perhaps more challenging to make sure that happens. AI [Artificial Intelligence] has a role to play in this large market, but essentially it is a robot and not designed to do haute couture, as much as mass-market products.
A favourite craft of yours that still needs to be discovered by the world.
Hand weaving and the beauty of hand spinning produce the most stunning fabrics that this country has ever known. We are scripting the discourse but have not attained the level it can go to, especially in India where we still wear the unstitched garment.
Indian Couture Week’s RBL Inaugural Show featuring Ritu Kumar will be held at Taj Palace, Delhi on July 26, at 8 pm.
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