WINNING FASHION

WHEN IT COMES TO PAGEANTRY, IT IS THEIR ENSEMBLES THAT GIVE OUR CONTESTANTS SO MUCH CONFIDENCE. WE TAKE A LOOK AT INDIAN DESIGNERS AND THEIR CREATIONS THAT ENABLED THESE BEAUTY QUEENS TO WOW THE WORLD

The stage is set; the young women are ready to turn their pageant dreams into reality. Their clothes have a major part to play in the transformation journey of these girls into winners on the global stage. Which is why, when we celebrate the winners of the Miss India and Miss Diva pageants, we cannot but also celebrate the Indian designers whose costume contributions have turned heads and fortunes around.

We spoke with eight designers who dressed Femina Miss India World 2020 Manasa Varanasi, Femina Miss Grand India 2020 Manika Sheokand, Liva Miss Diva Supranational 2020 Aavriti Choudhary, Miss Universe 2020 Third Runner-Up Adline Castelino, and Miss Universe Harnaaz Sandhu 2021 for the international stage. They told us about the inspiration behind their outfits and offered us simple style tips that will pack a punch, should we want to elevate our look, too.

ABHISHEK SHARMA

"For Manasa, I designed an outfit with recycled and upcycled chiffon fabric collected from fabric waste from previous collections. The high fashion garment has left zero fabric scraps and has had little to no impact on the environment. The raised collar and the dress bottom are all basic rectangular shapes draped differently. It's a look that embodies the feeling that we care about the environment. Even the motifs depict that we all belong to the same planet and that we must live in harmony, which is the need of the hour."

STYLE TIP: THE LOOK MAKES A VERY BOLD AND STRONG STATEMENT. YOU CAN STYLE IT IN VARIOUS WAYS DEPENDING ON THE OCCASION AND MOOD. WEAR THE TOP SEPARATELY WITH A PAIR OF HIGH-RISE DENIMS OR SHORTS OR EVEN SKINNY-FIT PANTS. PAIR THE SKIRT WITH A KNITTED OR TUBE TOP, OR TUCK IN AN OVERSIZED SHIRT. EITHER WAY, THE LOOK WILL TURN HEADS.

LAVANYA COODLY