Nitanshi Goel closes Suneet Varma’s Kashi show in Delhi

Nitanshi Goel took the runway at Taj Palace Hotel in a wine-coloured lehenga with an off-shoulder draped top and a mermaid-tail skirt covered in sequins, closing Suneet Varma’s Kashi presentation at Lakme Fashion Week.

Shown on Thursday, the collection moved through ready-to-wear skirts, draped saris, tops, trousers, dhoti skirts, jackets and corset tops. Varma said the designs paired traditional craftsmanship with contemporary glamour, with the aim of making pieces that could be worn globally.

Kashi began with a memory from a textile-sourcing trip to Varanasi 32 years ago. Varma recalled making an earlier cape with a tree-of-life motif; for this collection, he returned to that artwork and built it around a Kashi landscape. “It is an inspiration because it goes back to the tree of life, it goes back to spirituality, but I also wanted to make it modern,” he said.

Lakme Fashion Week, held in partnership with the Fashion Design Council of India, is scheduled to conclude on Sunday with Amit Aggarwal presenting a collection from his prêt label, AM.IT.