Anamika Khanna To Spread Love Through Couture at ICW 2023; Says, ‘The World Needs Love’ – News18

Anamika Khanna, a visionary, who loves what she does and has no qualms sharing it with the world. After a successful show at India Couture Week in 2022, the couturier is back in the capital to spread some more love.

The Kolkata-based couturier speaks to New18 about the inspiration behind the 40 looks she will be showcasing on July 30 at ICW 2023, the surprise collaboration that’s close to her heart and how couture is the space that allows her to be herself.

Excerpts from the interview:

After closing India Couture Week last year with an extraordinary show, what can we expect from Anamika Khanna this year?

This year, I am going with the old world of today. It is modern, stylish yet has nuances of the past. The whole collection is about love. You know when there was time to actually feel and express and just be.

Anamika Khanna is synonymous with celebrating Indian craftsmanship with global contours, tell us what makes this collection special?

While Indian craft remains the mainstay of the collection, this time, we have also introduced two very interesting elements, one is the use of the Indian brocade. It’s being used in various ways which don’t necessarily stay in the Indian realm but also could extend out into a more international space. Second, we have collaborated with an art project which is very close to my home and my heart and that is a surprise.

What was the inspiration behind the couture collection and how many creations will be presented at the showcase?

We will be presenting about 40 looks. Like I mentioned, the idea behind this couture collection was to actually create things that I was feeling in my heart. Those moments that we forget because we don’t have time, those moments because we are always on the phone, those moments where we actually don’t stop and breathe. This whole feeling that world at this moment, more than anything needs love and that’s what I am doing in this collection.

Couture in India through the eyes of Anamika Khanna always has a special moment on the runway and red carpets. How do you manage to stay relevant to the modern design aesthetics?

To stay relevant there is no particular formula or recipe. One has to work incessantly, one has to study, do research. It is also the amount of hard work you put in. I have also over the years, developed a more instinctive trait in myself because this is what I do from morning to night.

I have become slightly more fearless. I am able to experiment, I am able to tell what my heart is feeling without actually thinking about what is going to happen. I am at this stage where I want to try, want to experiment, want to put myself out there. Obviously, you do it in a way that makes sense but you also don’t fear if you are trying something different. It is ok.

It’s always a delight to watch your fashion showcases live. You are one of the few renowned fashion designers, who see fashion through the creative lens of art and music. What is the reason behind your love for blending these two mediums?

I feel fashion is an extension of any kind of art, music or dance. And like I said this art [collaboration] is close to my home, closest to my heart. From the very beginning, there has been an inclination of working with this kind of love that I feel because that’s why I do what I do. And that’s the only reason why I am here. And it just keeps growing.

One thinks that you might feel tired after so many years and you had enough. But it has been the opposite for me. I just feel like it is part of who I am, it completes me, and the collaboration with any kind of design whether it could be home, whether it’s jewellery, it just comes naturally to me.

As a couturier in India, are there any challenges in presenting a couture line as compared to pret? What changes would you like to see in Indian couture that would be a huge help in taking Indian crafts global?

One big challenge that I find is the fact that mostly couture is represented as bridal. It is an obvious thing because that is what Indian couture is all about in terms of relevance of the market. For me, I treat couture in a different way. It is the space that allows me to be, to do what I want to do, to feel what I want to feel, without having any limitations. I put myself out there but this is a challenge that I feel. We can push boundaries.

The other challenge, this is a personal challenge. Being in another city, I come from Kolkata, the logistics of putting a show together, of coming for fitting, of coming back, going back there, it is my city [Delhi] and I have a lot of support, but at the same time it is not home. So that is a very big challenge.

Celebrities have celebrated your creations on global platforms. What’s the secret sauce behind your timeless designs that makes it a favourite among celebrities?

There is no secret sauce to dressing up celebrities. To each their own. Everybody has their style. What works for us, is when you develop a rapport with the people you are dressing you understand them, you get into the spirit of who they are and then it works better. That’s what I do.