Some of designer Siddhant Agrawal’s initial thoughts for his newly launched collection, Sutairu Saga, involved being heavily inspired by Art Deco. Sleek geometric shapes, patterns, and the simplicity of it, claimed his mind. According to the young designer, each of their patchworks and silhouettes represents sleekness, around which the entire collection has been built. Talking in grave detail about his inspiration, the designer further tells me about deriving art inspiration from Japanese culture. Thus, there’s careful usage of cranes that represent Japanese folklore. Stemming from a very contemporary state of mind, the Siddhant Agrawal aesthetic aims to preserve its uniqueness through their diverse storytelling. As Siddhant puts it, the name Sutairu Saga translates into ‘a style tale’, and that’s what they had planned as the starting point for this collection. We’re in conversation with the designer, who gives us more insight into the collection.
Did you manage to achieve what you had initially conceived?
Yes, we did conceive the idea of different silhouettes with avant-garde details into a ready-to-wear collection. That being what we had started out with, many more ideas for the collection come into play. Talking about the different silhouettes of shirts or the jumpsuits, every piece was an idea that evolved as it translated into reality. So the final product was an amalgamation of our initial ideas with more inspirations through the designing process.
What guided the selection of the colour palette for Sutairu Saga?
The colour palette for the collection is fairly minimalistic and designed in a contemporary fashion. The colour palette compliments the craftsmanship that has been used in each garment. Bottle greens and blacks can be seen in different silhouettes throughout the collection. The presence of blue, black and bottle green is seen in the bucket hats, jumpsuits, hoodies, and the pants. The colour palette has been set around the embroideries and patterns that are signature to Sutairu Saga.
How would you define the mood of the collection for us?
The mood of the collection is definitely an amalgamation of Art Deco with a Japanese aesthetic, with multiple colours, textures and silhouettes all in alignment with the mood. Each garment has signature elements of the collection, be it the Shoji Patchwork, the cranes, the Chrysler embroidery — all have been defined with inspirations that are either Art Deco or a Japanese culture staple.
Finally, what should the fashion of now look like?
The fashion of now should be contemporary yet chic, over the top yet personal, and definitely undefined. Fashion is dynamic to time, with new and old trends entering and leaving the market. For each of our collections, each style has been designed with a unique perspective, look and fit. Similarly, the fashion of now is personal to the one who wears it, it is designed with elements the wearer can relate to or feel belonged in. Every aesthetic inspiration has its history that is translated into a modern style. So, the fashion of now is vast and it is not defined as one. Contemporary fashion is ever changing but still reflects the classics. Hence, we always experiment with the classic and the contemporary to create pieces that lie perfectly on that tangent.
Words Unnati Saini
Date 10-01-2023