Designer Amit Aggarwal says he looked at the human DNA as a poetic symbol of time within the body and the result was "Arcanum", his latest collection that blends futuristic design, Indian craftsmanship, and sustainability.

The collection, which reimagines fashion as a form of mystical storytelling where models appear as if they are futuristic beings, was unveiled on the third day of the ongoing Hyundai FDCI India Couture Week 2025.

Aggarwal, known for blending science, technology, and sustainability into high fashion, said the inspiration for "Arcanum" was an “inward journey”, a shift from his previous collection "Antevorta", which he presented at the ICW last season and looked at “time as an outward journey”.

"The inspiration like I said was an inward journey looking at time as a concept which I looked at as an outward journey in the last season.

"I feel that the DNA is actually the one that records time for us internally. It's a measure to trace our journeys where we came from and what we would become in the future," he told PTI.

Inspired by biology, emotion, and evolution, the collection was divided into five chapters -- Origin, Bloom, Pulse, Mutation, and Memory.

The outfits feature sculpted, cocoon-like shapes that open up like living forms, made using handwoven nylons, recycled polymers, organic cotton, and traditional ikat.

Shades ranged from emerald greens, deep purples, and midnight blacks to shimmering silver and bronze tones, evoking a sense of mystery.

Each creation blended tradition with innovation, turning emotion and inner experience into bold, expressive couture.

"I look at tradition as a full cycle. I look at the past and the future as a rhythmic cycle. I don't look at tradition as something that's in the past. I look at tradition as something that continues to be in the future and it's a loop so when I look at a textile it's more from the lens of what it makes me feel." He drew a connection between the DNA and ikat, the traditional textile technique, which Aggarwal said was technically "a code".

"The way you yarn dye before the actual textile is woven, it's actually coding the yarn before the fabric is made and its graphic nature also almost looks like a coded pattern. And since DNA is the idea of a code, I associated it with ikat as an important storyteller for the collection," he added.

As a designer, Aggarwal said he always starts with material first.

"Right from choosing the exact colour of the stone to what kind of metal would go around it... We paid so much attention to tiny colours.

"Besides that of course every group had a distinct material aspect in the collection, starting from a hand-woven textile which was with organic cotton and nylon done on the hand loom. And there was of course the ikat." For Aggarwal, material and colour play a very important role in his craftsmanship.

"Just to give you a small example. The watch that I was supposed to wear today came into me as a brown colour. I said 'I don't think brown is going to work for me.' And I have not, so I picked up a black. For me, material, colour all those really matter a lot." The India Couture Week will conclude on July 30.

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