Exclusive: Designer Arpita Mehta On Crafting Sarees For The Beach, Trends, And Size Inclusivity

In mood for summer!
Exclusive: Designer Arpita Mehta On Crafting Sarees For The Beach, Trends, And Size Inclusivity
During the recently departed season of Lakmé Fashion Week X FDCI, designer Arpita Mehta exhibited her newest range of summer favourites. Injected with sunlit colours, mirrors and drapes, in attendance were stylised sarees, bandeau blouses, capes, shell-soaked trims and tier dresses. For this collection, Mehta partnered with Dyson and hair expert Adhuna Bhabani to set the mood right. What attracted the shoppers was Mehta’s ethnic approach towards the beach, which crafted this unique wardrobe for the season. Besides prints, her signature mirror work was an evident protagonist of the collection. In conversation with me, the designer talks in detail about her new collection, summer trends she is loving, what to wear on a beach mehendi and more.

Q: Describe your latest collection for us.

Arpita Mehta: With the new travel-inspired collection, my vision was to curate versatile creations that are high on comfort plus style and perfectly capture the vibe of the season. The arrival of summer was the core inspiration for the cuts, colours and prints selected to create an effortless yet chic collection. To match the mood of the line, we used colours like acid yellow, sage green, juicy mango, and dust pink and also introduced sequins and mirror drop tassels to elevate the look. One could also spot lots of happy prints and shimmer across a range of silhouettes. These were used to showcase a carefree and relaxed dress code.

Q: How did Dyson help you achieve the mood board for this season?

Arpita Mehta: Dyson and our brand share a common vision of effortless styling. To achieve our mood board for this season, we believed in the capabilities of Dyson hair care tools to create the desired looks that we envisioned to elevate the line. My aim was to create soft, easy and breezy hairstyles which complement my spring-summer collection of 2023, and Dyson helped in bringing alive our desired aesthetic of effortless styling.

Q: Tell us something about your collaboration with Dyson. How did the brand inspire your latest collection?

Arpita Mehta: As mentioned, Dyson and our brand share a common vision of ‘effortless styling’ It is important for women to feel good all the time. Keeping that sentiment in mind, Dyson has hair care machines which are very easy to use and can instantly amp up one’s glam quotient. Similarly, keeping in mind the upcoming spring-summer season, we as a brand designed easy, relaxed, and sexy pieces that one could wear on a summer holiday and our summer line is effortless to style and can be worn both day and night.

Q: What are five summer trends you think will be everywhere?

Arpita Mehta: Five trends which would dominate this summer season are corsets, drape skirts, hand-embroidered mirrors, sequined kaftans and beautiful oversized pearl accessories. For the hair, I feel easy, soft wavy textured hair will dominate the summer look.

Q: What are the challenges that came your way while designing a holiday-wear collection?

Arpita Mehta: There weren’t too many challenges while designing our holiday summer line. It has become a part of our DNA because we have been creating summer lines for over a decade now. But sometimes what could be challenging is selecting the appropriate fabric for the season due to the drastic changes in weather conditions every year. It is crucial to identify the phase we are going through and then choose the fabric accordingly.

Q: What do you think the Indian market is yet to achieve in terms of beachwear designs?

Arpita Mehta: When it comes to beachwear, the Indian market is still figuring out its ideology. While there is a segment of people who are passionate about beachwear fashion, the rest of India is yet to fully embrace it and may not even invest in beachwear. However, beachwear is a growing market in India. As a designer, it is exciting to create something new and await the response of the consumers who would love and purchase the piece.

Q: As a country that is still hesitant about skin show and wearing certain cuts, and silhouettes, how do you plan to make it fall in love with the idea of beachwear?

Arpita Mehta: There’s a small segment of people in India who do invest in beachwear. For me, rather than trying to push for the masses to love your beach line, it is important to create something that even the smallest segment can connect with. The idea is to create fashion pieces that you not only love as a designer but also wish to showcase to people and open new horizons and possibilities within the collection. I wanted to make pieces that could be worn not only on a beautiful, beachy holiday in Europe but also on a small beach in Goa or any other place in the country. So, it is important to strike the right balance between Indian body types and the correct styles.

Q: Holidays are all about getting the most Instagrammable shot. Do you make sure your designs are equally photogenic?

Arpita Mehta: The only agenda we have in mind while designing any line is to make sure that person who wears it looks and feels amazing. If someone looks and feels great in the piece that they have worn, then they naturally look good in any picture. So, it’s a win-win situation.

Also Read: “Individuality Is The Concept”: Celeb Hairstylist Adhuna On Teaming Up With Arpita Mehta For LFW X FDCI

Q: Did any of your recent travels inspire this collection? If yes, please elaborate.

Arpita Mehta: I wouldn’t dedicate this holiday line to any specific travel of mine. I feel it’s the changing mood of summer wherein you’re longing to travel and go to these beautiful places in and out of India. I think it’s the mood that inspires my collection more than an actual place, especially for this line.

Q: What is the signature Arpita Mehta element in this collection?

Arpita Mehta: For the first time ever, we have introduced mirror sequin embroidery along with classic mirror work which is a very exciting new addition for us. And while we did add fringes in the form of suede fringes a year back, this season we have introduced fabric fringed dupatta. These two are the new additions along with our mirror tassel jacket and a mirror tassel blouse. And that’s not all, we have also introduced multiple fun and exciting new techniques and new shapes to the line. For instance, we have fitted co-ord sets and drape skirts along with fully embroidered kaftans and of course, we do have the classic ruffle saree. So, we have tried to maintain our classic signature element as well as introduced some new embroideries too.

Q: Are inclusive, all-size designs a part of this collection?

Arpita Mehta: Whenever we create our collections, our goal is always to cater to all types of women regardless of their height or size. Whether it is XS, Medium, XL, or Double XL, we aim to create designs that will fit and flatter every body type. We’ve never seen anyone differently. This is the reason why we custom-make our lines and collections for everyone.

Q: Your design language has always been a mix of traditional motifs and contemporary aesthetics. Is there a similar contrast in this collection too?

Arpita Mehta: As a brand, we have always believed in promoting contemporary India and this is something you can always see in our designs as well. Our summer line is a tribute to the holiday season and these outfits are designed such that one could also wear them for a brunch or even for a sundowner. But despite the incorporation of slightly westernised outfits, there will always be a hint of Indian fluidity in our collection. Therefore, while our recent line is inherently a holiday line, I primarily view it as a contemporary Indian fusion line that can be styled in multiple ways, allowing it to be worn on a beach holiday or even for a mehendi party.

Q: If you were to design for a mehendi at the beach, what would be the ideal bridal look?

Arpita Mehta: If I had to recommend a style from our current collection that is perfect for a mehendi at the beach, I would highly recommend paring a sequin and mirror embroidered draped tulip skirt along with an embroidered coordinated top and complementing it with a fringed tassel dupatta. This would be my number one recommendation. If one wishes to opt for an easier and more relaxed look which is super effortless, then one should go for a hand-embroidered sequined and mirror kaftan as this will elevate a bride’s mehendi dressing.
Image Credits: Instagram
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Jasveen Kaur Sawhney

Jasveen Kaur is a fashion writer, and pyjama hoarder, who loves watching interviews of all kinds, and checking her Pinterest mood board every hour!

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