Drama and edgy cool marked Amit Aggarwal’s showcase at Lakmé Fashion Week x FDCI. A play of structure and form, Amit’s pret line underlined the prowess of power fused with feminine elan. The pieces were a blend of flow and fit. Long capes to corsets. Dresses to separates and kaftans, jackets and roomy pants. Metallic was a mood with Amit’s reimagined Benarasis coupling well with his signature handwoven polymer. The pattern play was both soft and structured and the styles flattering all body types. The clothes were characters in their own, championing individuality. Amit, in a t2 chat, decoded the collection and more.
Tell us about the title... 'Aged Anew: What We Have Now Is All That We Once Had'
I think it comes with the idea of repurposing, going back to basics, going back to simpler things in life. This is also the pret line from the brand. So I think that it is, of course, a little bit of nostalgia, because sometimes I think in the larger scheme of life, we keep forgetting to enjoy the smaller nuances of our everyday and I think the clothing celebrates, of course, occasions, but it's not an occasionwear line, but I feel that it's the tiny occasions between the big occasions that make our lives beautiful.
I think that with couture, there's always, of course, that big feeling, something moving within you that initiates the idea of what you want to be. But I think I don't want to be that with pret. I think pret is a lesser emotional product and a more functional product in your wardrobe. I don't think the stories from the brand or from me need to be endlessly tall for a product that you need to see immediate beauty in. I do understand that we all want to pick up things that, of course, have a narrative. The brand house codes don't change, so the pret line will also have all the brand house codes, but I think I want to talk about the versatility of it, the purpose of it in your wardrobe, about how many times you can wear it. I want to talk about weather conditions, and what will a fabric do to you. And why should you have it over a million other pret options that you have in the market. So I think these are the stories that I like to tell about pret, rather than always the feeling, because the feeling is there, you know. But I think that I would I like to channelise other parts of me too when I design the pret.
I actually started as a pret designer and I do equally really enjoy pret, because I think sometimes a lot of the part of what we do for couture is with draping, but with pret, it is a lot with pattern, because it has to be on a flat paper. Of course, there are hints of draping, because that's something that the brand is known for. But I think it really makes the other part of my brain work, where the darts need to be placed, how the armholes need to be right, where should the ruffle be. In couture, you can take that leeway, okay... I got an exaggerated ruffle. In pret, I have to design the ruffle so that the woman can move her arms.
In couture, it's for that one moment she might not be able to raise her arm back, but in pret, I want her to be able to wear that outfit a million times. So what should be the exact width of the ruffle? So I think these little things channelise a different part of my brain. It excites me, rather than trying to do the same things over and over.
From when you were doing pret initially, is it any different now?
I think 2014 or 15-end is when we launched AM.IT and it saw instant success internationally. I think every single store that was stocking our main line, just doubled up their orders when they saw the AM.IT line and a lot of other stores that were not stocking the couture also started stocking AM.IT. Unfortunately, it did not see any success in India because I think it was way too early. Maybe it was a very new aesthetic, and I also feel that the brand isn't a 100-year-old or a 50-year-old legacy brand from which the country is ready to absorb another product line with a very visually different appeal. So I think that after three-four years and post-Covid, I thought it was important to take a break from it and launch it when I think the brand's mature, I am more mature, understanding what of the pret from the brand is doing well and people are resonating with. How do I amalgamate the AM.IT in it and make it into a more evolved version because I think the world's also really evolved. I mean, we all are newer versions of ourselves post-2020.
It also talks about freedom. What is freedom for you today?
I don't think, unfortunately, you can ever be completely free. I think, currently, while knowing the fact that I can never be completely free, choosing the kind of bonds that I want to succumb to, the ability to choose the ones that I bound myself to, is freedom. It's like a relationship. No matter how much your partner loves you, how much you love your partner, there'd always be those moments where you feel a certain way, but the choice of being with that partner....
Have you always used your art to express your freedom?
Yeah, always. There used to be a time when I was very attached to what I used to create. Now I'm not attached. I think I'm 45 now, so it's like, like the grandmother zone, where I think you've seen enough kids in your family growing, and then you know not all of them are going to be great.
Can you detach yourself and see your work as a viewer?
Yeah. I don't think I'm critical, very honestly. I'm not someone who will wallow that 'Oh, my God. Why is it so bad?' I was a person like that. I don't do that any more. In that moment it was created... that sense of detachment, where I mean, it's fine. I think the idea of perfection is actually a byproduct of the amount of time and effort that you put in. And I think if you've done both to the optimum, that's the best that you can do, and that's perfection for me. I don't live in that idealistic state.
How has the meaning of success changed for you?
The ability to give back. It's nice to be able to pass on what you learnt from someone.
Are you mentoring people you work with?
I don't like to call myself that, because I think there's an equal give and take. I learn from them as much, in fact, probably more. I always tell the team that I'm just going to be able to resonate or amplify the energy that you give me.
Coming back to the collection, what are the highlight pieces for you?
I think I got enthralled by the pants that we've done. Similar shapes, but I think the fact that we cut it in a variety of different fabrics that just changes the form and allows you to go from being a daywear pant to an afternoon pant to an evening pant to a pant that you'd like to wear at a club, so beautifully. And I realised that sometimes fabrics have so much to do, and then with the same pattern, you can create four different looks.
A constructed, beautiful choli can be paired so well with a white shirt and a pair of classic trousers. So that thing of how you can use a blouse to go to a party versus a blouse that you'd like to wear to a shaadi, you know, just changes it effortlessly. So I think that sense of styling is the key when it comes to ready-to-wear. I think it was a lot of learning for my own self.
There's an interesting raincoat. I call it a raincoat, which is made in Benarasi. It's a trench/raincoat... it's hybrid. That's the piece that's closest to my heart.
The Banarasi Edit has charted its own course...
It was an experiment, but I think we got a lot of support. No matter how hard we try, to be very honest, when we construct that big couture piece, there is a little bit that goes to waste, which we've seen. I want to use that in the pret. And it's not waste because it's bad. It's waste, because we are humans, so we are bound to make mistakes, and sometimes it's a colour that a client wants, and we don't find that same colour, so we make it in something else. I don't want to sit on that textile, it's a heritage piece. So, I would like it to be a double repurpose. That's why you see that the pret line will have flashes of it, but it's not the full-blown form, like you have it in couture. So I want to be able to use it till it's fully used.
Do you feel the pressure to come up with a new collection every season?
Sometimes it is super pressure. We made a conscious decision last year no matter how important it is, if we don't have something new, something good to say, we won't do it. But we are also humans that are bound by relations, bound by a give-back sometimes.
What’s your take on Indian fashion now?
Everyone’s not on the platform for fashion week, but there are so many interesting new brands. Even if you just look at Jaipur, the amount of interesting things that are happening out of there, the smaller brands that are using indigenous textiles and creating, I just feel that we need to master our fits and understand where will it fit in a person’s wardrobe. Those are the two things, which I think only comes with time. When you start off early, it takes time for you to have a sense of maturity, but I think that I’m really happy that we are in that position right now.
How important is it to develop a distinct voice in fashion?
Can I be honest? I don’t think today technically it’s possible to have your voice when you start as a creative individual. Very few might have it. We are filtered with so much information. When I started off, to get to see what Prada did, I had to wait for six months. So six months later, a book would come with the printed collection of Prada, which she did for spring/summer... that was a cycle. Right now, I think even before she knows what she’s doing, someone sitting in India would know. So I think that sometimes that information overload doesn’t allow you enough time to understand your own nuance.
I remember when I was quite young in fashion and Armani was once asked a question, ‘Who do you think would be the next Armani?’ He had said I don’t want to be a bitch and tell you that there cannot be another Armani because we don’t live in a time and age where there can be another Armani. He said I’m not saying it out of being pompous, but I’m saying it because of the fact that the world has changed, and nobody will want four lines (in a year) from a brand, and (it’s not possible) all the four lines do exceedingly well.
I do feel that in this muddled land, we will still see a lot of beautiful flowers springing up. I don’t think that the future is bleak, but that focus is really important.