Manish Malhotra at the LFW Summer/Resort 2013

Designer Manish Malhotra paid homage to 100 years of Indian Cinema by showcasing a very unique collection at the Lakme Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2013 show at the Grand Hyatt in Mumbai.

Manish Malhotra at the LFW Summer-Resort 2013 collection

He chose his inspiration from three main eras of fashion in Indian Cinema covering the span of a hundred years, from 1913 to 2013. His designs embodied characteristic styles of every iconic period within that timeframe with a bit of Manish Malhotra flair.

Manish Malhotra LFW Summer-Resort 2013 collection

The stage was set with dramatic music being played in the background, large posters of Indian films being used for the backdrop and an audio-visual featuring the highlights of the Hindi film industry.

Kajol & Karisma Kapoor at Manish Malhotra LFW Summer-Resort 2013

Several Bollywood A-listers were invited to walk the ramp and his audiences were literally left star struck. The show opened with directors’ Karan Johar, Anurag Kashyap, Dibakar Banerjee and Zoya Akhtar walking the ramp dressed in black and white.

These four renowned filmmakers were the perfect choice to open this show since they are all involved in making a small documentary celebrating a 100 years of Indian cinema.

Manish Malhotra LFW Summer-Resort 2013 show

After a bit of the black and white era, with a range of lehengas, kurtas and bandhgalas with pajamas, we saw a burst of color in the form of beautifully embroidered anarkalis, fitted kurtas, sarees and salwars in shades of pink, green and yellow. This was then followed by another range of fun clothing with polka dots on cholis, embroidered sarees with stunning borders, bell bottoms and maxis with a touch of the 70’s and 80’s.

LFW Summer-Resort 2013 Manish Malhotra

This range in turn was followed by apparel that featured more recent fashion styles.

LFW Summer-Resort 2013 Manish Malhotra show

A special mention must be made of Bollywood actors Varun Dhawan and Siddharth Malhotra who wore white kurtas and pajamas with colorful jackets.

Kajol and Karisma Kapoor at Manish Malhotra LFW Summer-Resort 2013 show

Kajol and Karishma also graced the ramp as they walked with Manish dressed in his creations.

LFW Summer-Resort 2013 Manish Malhotra show Priyanka Chopra

Even after all that, the best was yet to come. Priyanka Chopra walked down the ramp in a gorgeous lemon green saree with a hot pink border.

Asha Bhosle & Hema Malini at Manish Malhotra LFW Summer-Resort 2013 show

After talking a bit about Indian cinema, she called on stage three legends – actress Hema Malini, playback singer Asha Bhosle and Oscar winning costume designer Bhanu Athaiya.

LFW Summer-Resort 2013 Manish Malhotra collection

And I must say, with all the glitz and glamor surrounding this nostalgic journey of Bollywood fashion, Manish Malhotra successfully recreated the past in his own unique way. When asked about his thoughts on this occasion, he said “I have grown up watching Indian cinema. My journey as a costume designer to movies for 23 years has been an emotional experience. I have loved cinema and cinema has loved me back. It has made me what I am today. When I got this opportunity to celebrate 100 years of cinema, I had to embrace this milestone and create a memorable collection reflecting my equal love for cinema and fashion.” And personally, the celebrations couldn’t have started off on a better note.

LFW Summer-Resort 2013 show Manish Malhotra