Fashion Focus Atsu Sekhose's tribal ballgowns

In October last year, at his Spring/Summer ’13 fashion week show, designer Atsu Sekhose reclaimed his heritage.

 

“The show was sponsored by the Ministry of Textiles to highlight North Eastern fabrics and weaving techniques," the designer says. "That’s when I discovered a whole range of textiles from the area, which has now become part of my vocabulary.”

 

This season, multiple buyer meetings abroad kept him away from showcasing an Autumn/Winter ’13-14 collection at Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week in Delhi. But Sekhose’s seasonal offering, revealed via a sophisticated lookbook, is sumptuous.

 

Featuring intricate embroidery, old Hollywood glamour, a take on the pants-under-ballgown style which Raf Simons did so well at the Dior Fall 2012 couture show -- and of course, a modern re-imagining of tribal textiles from Sekhose’s native Nagaland.

 

“The colour palette of this collection is predominantly black, red and white which is part of my Naga identity. And we’ve used some of the tribal prints interpreted as urban graphics. I didn’t want the clothes to look like costumes, which happens when people stick too closely to the ethnic fabrics. I wanted to translate them into garments that can be worn by anybody,” the Delhi-based designer says. 

 

The similarities to opulent red carpet labels like Oscar de la Renta and Marchesa ring a bell, but Sekhose has found his couture niche in the tribal-inspired ballgown. There will be no voluminous anarkalis or 24 kali lehengas from this Indian designer.

 

“I’m inspired by classic Hollywood glamour,” he affirms. “Most of my clients are from the Middle East and evening wear is what they expect from me. I’ve learnt from my own mistakes, and now I understand my market.”