Fashion designers Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla at Hyatt Regency. Picture by Rashbehari Das

Opulence, old-world grandeur with zardosi and chikan, the elaborate costumes of Madhuri Dixit in Devdas and the elegant outfits of Dimple Kapadia ? a few images one associates with designer duo Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla.

So when the two unleash their designs on the ramp at the Lakm? India Fashion Week (LIFW) for the first time this April, the audience can expect to be in for a mild surprise. For it?s pr?t that will dominate the first ever LIFW collection of the couture kings.

In Calcutta to judge the auditions for Lakm? Fashion House, a reality fashion show on STAR One, Abu and Sandeep revealed plans to unveil a ?high impact? collection at LIFW.

?It?s not a typical Abu-Sandeep collection, it?s very different from what we have done so far. It?s a fusion of pr?t and couture,? said Sandeep, refusing to divulge details of the line that is meant to be a surprise for the audience.

One of the oldest designer pairs on the Indian fashion stage (they have been around since the mid-80s), Abu and Sandeep finally decided to participate in the India Fashion Week after being urged to do so by ace designer Ritu Kumar.

?Ritu and Rati Vinay Jha, the new director of the Fashion Design Council of India, came to us and said ?enough is enough, you guys have to participate this time?. And so we finally gave in. I guess you have to be seen at LIFW to be in tune with the fashion fraternity,? conceded Sandeep.

While the fashion week line tops their priority list for the first half of the year, the Mumbai-based designers are also gearing up for a couple of big fashion shows in Delhi and Mumbai, organised to raise funds for HIV-positive patients.

But movies, one of their main areas of specialisation, are what the two are giving a miss for some time now. ?We are not working on any film projects right now, but we are always open to interesting offers,? said Sandeep.

Having worked with directors like Sanjay Leela Bhansali, the duo next wants to design costumes for our city?s star filmmaker Rituparno Ghosh. ?We are extremely fond of Rituparno?s films. He has a lot of creativity and we would love to work with him. We would even love to work for a Bengali film with him if the subject suits us,? said Sandeep.

If Bengali films are just fine with them, Bengali cuisine is a favourite with both and they happily crown Kewpie?s as the ?best restaurant in the city?.

The two are pretty impressed by the city?s nightlife as well. ?On Saturday, we decided to check out the nightlife of Calcutta. We went to Shisha and Tantra and both places were rocking,? smiled Sandeep.

But one sore point on the city?s nightlife map was pointed out by Abu. ?Calcutta is such a beautiful city, one gets to see lot of good architecture around. But I was disappointed to see that none of the landmarks like the Howrah Bridge or the Victoria Memorial properly lit up at night.?