As our way of life turns itself on its head during the pandemic, nature blooms. The world’s elements – air, water, earth – offer the promise of something new. Designer Amit Aggarwal chooses the weightless quality of water and its gurgling limpidity to showcase his couture collection – that’s always got a touch of the futuristic – at the first Digital India Couture Week 2020.

Jewel-toned lehenga by Amit Aggarwal at ICW2020 – FDCI

Harnessing the beauty and poetry of water, designer Amit Aggarwal has conceptualized and directed a short digi-film for the first Digital India Couture Week presented by the Fashion Design Council of India, that’s a little over five minutes, with models wearing his 2020 couture creations – entirely under water. He’s also used the occasion to launch his online store (www.AmitAggarwal.com), where you can shop sarees, lehengas, dresses, and separates, his luxury prêt line, as well as future seasonal capsule collections.

Graceful and unique, each lehenga resembles a work of art by Amit Aggarwal - ICW2020

With the pandemic, life’s priorities have changed, and this in turn, has changed people’s perspectives. As we experience the world through the safety of our homes, nature is renewing itself, secretly celebrating each day as the daily churning of output slows down. The freedom and lightness of the sky and the oceans is a promise of a new beginning. This collection depicts this very weightlessness, as the earth’s elements nurture you in their promise.

Exaggerated epaulettes that are sculptural in look and feel, by Amit Aggarwal at ICW2020 – FDCI

Not wanting to be weighed down by despair, the heart longs for optimism. And this is what the short film evokes, as the swirling water caresses his sculptural couture, pulling the viewer into a water world separate from the dry reality of today, one in which pretty nymphs, some with algae-like, sinewy epaulettes, turn into art.

Peach and blush lehengas with Amit Aggarwal's trademark polymer strips - ICW2020 – FDCI

We see a return to jewel tones with emerald and sapphire lehengas, along with pastel and peach with metallic touches, that use his trademark polymer stripes. “It provides a beautiful structure to the garments, and of course sustainability has a huge role to play in our use of these polymer strips,” Amit has said to me in an earlier interview. “We weave it, we treat it, and we embroider on it to give a beautiful piece of waste a renewed lease of life.” And for a designer who’s created a niche for himself, creating outfits that embrace sustainability while remaining at the vanguard of luxury, the product in itself is part-futuristic and partly rooted in the now.

Rooted in sustainability but with an eye to the future, that is Amit Aggarwal's ICW2020 collection – FDCI

Amit Aggarwal may well follow the traditional diktat of fashion – he is, after all, one of India’s leading couturiers – but he’s also been open to new things every season. Since a couple of years, he’s kept the ‘modern bride’ who’s got makes her own bold and unique decisions when it comes to her outfits, in mind while designing. For Amit, it’s always been about what the garment makes the wearer feel. “Couture for me is a feeling of wearing an outfit that is made especially for you, embodying your spirit and aesthetic,” says Amit. “We always tread a balance of the surreal and functionality of the garment and it’s exciting to translate that vision into a digital experience. At the heart of it is our constant brand story of intricate craftsmanship and hand embroidery.”