The Cultural Foundation of Awadh
Chikankari has been a language I have spoken for over two decades, a craft that has shaped much of my couture journey. In creating the Awadh collection, a haute couture line inspired by the cultural refinement of Lucknow, I found myself returning to the discipline and delicacy of this beautiful tradition. Its restraint, patience and understated elegance reflect the very spirit of Awadh, a region long associated with grace and quiet luxury. Over time, Chikankari has become central to my design language, shaping how I interpret inspirations through surface and detail.
The Design Language and Visual Identity
When I began working on the Awadh couture collection, I kept imagining flowers unfolding slowly in a forest at dawn, revealing themselves in various forms, shapes and layers. The collection draws from this quiet progression, delicate hues and stronger tones emerging petal by petal. I imagined my muse walking through the forest at dawn….she pauses, observing a half-open bud, a curling tendril, a blossom bending under its own weight, a half open flower and one in full bloom. She gathers these moments, emotions, impressions instinctively and weaves them into her outfit, through embroidery details, lace embellishments, crystal sparkles, hand stitched bugle beads and a sprinkling of iridescent sequins.
The floral formations slowly came alive on a canvas of pastel hues in silk georgette, crepe, organza, satin and taffeta…renderings that feel as though they have grown on and around the silhouette, vines trailing along sleeves, tendrils framing necklines, blossoms scattering gently across the bodice and delicate flowers working their way down the panels of large voluminous skirts. The artwork is guided by movement and the surface feels almost alive.
Fabric, Texture and Surface Detail
Delicate silks allow the embroidery to rest lightly, almost suspended, and move ever so slightly, as the fabric carries the thread-work with ease. The pastel palette oscillates between hues of blush, peach, powder blue, pistachio, baby pink, lavender and soft ivory…evoking the stillness of early light, when colours appear soft, restrained and diffused.
Surface embellishments lend further depth and dimension to the Chikankari embroidery, precious crystals catching light like dew, glass bugle beads adding dimension and tiny sequins glimmering softly, zardozi accents adding depth where shadows may naturally fall. Lace appliqué introduces a sense of memory, as though the garment carries a past within it. Each facet of the embroidery reveals itself gradually.
The Craftsmanship Behind the Collection
Each piece in my Awadh collection is first hand-drawn on paper, artworks created with various layers in mind, blocks cut out of wood to render each motif, Indego dye used to trace these into delicate silk georgette and then begins the process of meticulous embroidery, stitch by stitch.
The hand-embroidery requires 1500 to 3000 hours of meticulous work by each of the women artisans to complete one single garment. These craftswomen bring years of skill and a unique personality to each ensemble.
There is immense patience and commitment required in their process, day after day, month after month .Focusing on every stitch, on both surfaces, the top and the reverse, with a shared understanding of the beauty that emerges.
For me, Awadh is an offering to this exquisite craft and to the woman who chooses to wear it. It carries with it memories, heritage and legacy…..to be discovered by the patron.
