French Wedding Made In India

No Indian wedding trousseau is complete without Banarasi silks, Tussar, brocades, zardozi work, etc. A mainstay of Indian weddings since time immemorial, these rich fabrics are routinely used by Indian designers in their wedding couture collections. But now, these wondrous weaves are casting a spell the world over with their versatility. Recently, these fabrics even debuted on the runways of Paris, the heart of the global fashion industry. It all started in 2016 when New Delhi-based Palak Shah, CEO of designer label Ekaya, was approached by Paris-based luxury fashion consultant Veronique Poles for a unique partnership—that of Indian fabrics and the French couture and wedding industry. Poles, who facilitates business for France’s La Fédération Française de la Création Couture Sur Mesure (The French Federation of Custom Couture Creation), was smitten by Indian fabrics—which she came across during her frequent trips to India in the past decade—and wanted these to be part of the Paris Haute Couture Week.

An annual event organised by the French federation (a private trust created for designers who make custom-made wedding-wear), the fashion week celebrates the talent of its fashion designer members in consociation with weavers from across the world. “When I sent a few samples of the zardozi and silk to my (designer duo) friends Pierre Letz (president of the federation) and Daniel Martin, they were immediately taken in by the richness of the cloth and accepted my proposal,” says Poles. What ensued was a first-of-its-kind Indo-French collaboration, with Shah’s Ekaya tying up with the federation to supply them Indian fabrics such as Banarasi silk, brocade, chikankari, zardozi, etc, using which their designers from across the world created exquisite wedding gowns.

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