Fashion 2020: Adding oomph to organic

Two thousand and nineteen saw a lot of bold bright colours, breezy silhouette, and crazy accessories (yes we’re talking about those teensy tiny bags), but with the new year is all set to transform the fashion world and introduce elements that won't only be fashionable but also responsible.  

According to fashion designer Nachiket Barve, it’s going to be the individualistic style that will define 2020. He says, “The whole idea of a big mega-trend is dying down and what we are going to see are micro trends and fashion being used as self-expression. Whether it is in terms of mixing it up, like wearing a sari in a different way or creating your own mix will become a big trend.” And also adds that layering and asymmetry will also be taking over the runway.

Veteran designer Ritu Kumar, on the other hand, feels the fashion industry is going to take on more responsibility and we’re going to see less of over the top outfits. She says, “I think it’s going to get very much more conservative, and since in the economy at the moment is down there will be less wastage and less fast fashion,” she also predicts the return of classic styles and hopes “avant-garde and out of the world clothing are going to take a backseat.”

Designer Jyoti Sachdev Iyer also feels sustainable is the way to go, she says, “What you will see ruling the runway is brands making a shift towards a more sustainable future for our industry, androgynous and gender-free fashion is long overdue and we’ve seen glimpses of it for years.”

Talking about pushing the boundaries of fashion, Nachiket says the focus will be more about what goes on in making the clothes than the design itself, he says, “Whether it’s about communication, the way your garments are made, who made garments, what is the thought process, what is the storytelling, all of that becomes important.” Whereas Ritu Kumar feels designers are going to experiment with natural fabric. “We are very definitely making a move towards completely natural fabric. Things would stay in your wardrobe longer and they won’t be a fashion fad,” says the designer.

Over the years we have borrowed a lot of trends from the west, be it the crop top, chockers or distressed denim. But this time around Ritu Kumar believes the west would be borrowing trends from the Indian market. She explains, “Their markets are saturated with little black dresses. And now they are looking for more casual and fun clothes as we have here.” We’ve already seen lehenga inspired dresses which they see as a combo of crop top and long skirt hit the runway.

While every year interesting designs and trends are brought to the forefront, some fashion fads also make their way into the wardrobe which doesn’t need to be carried forward to the next year. Nachiket has a huge list of trends that he’d rather leave in 2019. Apart from slogan t-shirts, which he feels is done to death, he is also not a fan of tiny bags. He says, “I’m done with those tiny bag trend, also the sunglasses which look like contact lenses need to go because I think fashion has to be functional as well.” Jyoti, on the other hand, is tired of dhoti pants, she says, “Not a big fan of your regular dhoti that we’ve done for years and seen on the runway, on brides, in magazines - it’s so done-to-death.”