At Paris Fashion Week, Rahul Mishra debuted a new ready-to-wear (RTW) label today. The label AFEW, an acronym representing Air, Fire, Earth, Water, embodies Mishra’s vision of effortless, easy-to-wear luxury tailored to the modern woman’s wardrobe. And that can be seen in the clean yet youthful silhouettes of the collection.
The apparel is inspired by the designer’s Indian heritage, which has long been a part of his visual language.
Rahul Mishra at Paris Fashion Week
An RTW collection is produced in larger quantities in a factory as opposed to haute couture items which are hand-made and unique. But this does not mean that Mishra’s RTW label is any lesser than his couture collections, though they won’t burn a volcano-sized crater in your savings account. If his elaborate couture pieces have fascinated you, then you will like this ready-to-wear collection with its simplified motifs.
The designer’s motive behind the collection is to bring a “little touch of something special” to lower-priced staple pieces in your wardrobe like T-shirts, which can be worn easily, compared to couture pieces. The details may not have taken thousands of man-hours to be made but stylized embellishments and latticed and pleated designs elevate them from your basic t-shirt or dress.
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His collection is complemented by an exquisite lineup of jewelry, crafted from sterling silver and recycled brass;. At the same time, the bags were handcrafted in Manipur with kauna grass weaves and decorated with hand-embroidered motifs. So were the accompanying shoes.
For those unversed in the couturier’s history, you will be surprised to know that Mishra actually started out with an RTW label, which married his Indian heritage with European cuts and tailoring. This is exactly what made him famous in the first place — creating an international footprint for the designer.
At a time when Mishra’s eponymous couture label is on track to become India’s first home-grown billion-dollar, the move to partner with Reliance Brand Limited (RBL) to build a new, much more accessible brand does make sense.
“I never want to be a moment in fashion,” proclaimed Mishra on Instagram, while launching his new ready-to-wear label. But only time will tell what will come of it.
The collection will soon be available in Rahul Mishra’s flagship stores and on the label’s site.
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