By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR: Redefining fashion beyond the runway, Blenders Pride Fashion NXT Festival hosted a first-of-its kind avant-garde festival experience in the city on the 2nd of March. As India’s first experiential fashion festival, it brought together a host of stellar high-on-style experiences across luxury fashion, upbeat music performances and immersive pop-ups curated by some of India’s coolest lifestyle brands.
Festival goers were in for a magnetic new experience that was steeped in fashion and style. The evening hosted a stunning fashion show curated by ace designer Nachiket Barve and an innovative showcase called Fashion NXT Spotlight curated by Fashion Design Council of India with 9 leading Indian designers – Alpana Neeraj, Bloni, Antar Agni, Mandira Wirk, Geisha Designs, Verandah, Shweta Kapoor, Tanieya Khanuja and Nitin Bal Chauhan. While Nachiket along with the ever-glamourous actor Sanya Malhotra showcased his collection ‘La Dolce Vita’, marrying travel-inspired elements with a striking palette of black and gold, the Fashion NXT Spotlight presented emerging fashion trends across 3 unique themes that are at the apex of evolving fashion: WANDERLUXE, representing influence of luxury in holiday wear; GLOSS & GLAM, representing modern glamour in high fashion; and INTERGLAMATIC, representing fashion inspired by futurism.
The evening peaked with electrifying music performances featuring an opening act by DJ Rabab, upbeat show by Progressive Brothers and a foot-tapping show by none other than Ritviz, making festival goers groove through the evening. The evening was hosted by VJ and actor Anusha Dandekar who only added to the style quotient of the festival.
The festival also featured a lineup of stellar collaborations with sought-after lifestyle brands like Nasher Miles, All You Can Street, Doodle Mapuls, Beardo and The Styling Room by Anisha Gandhi. These brands hosted a series of pop-ups with innovative DIY experiences, live art of merch, styling stations and much more, keeping festival goers engaged and entertained throughout the evening.
Kartik Mohindra, Chief Marketing Officer, Pernod Ricard India said, “As we continue to trailblaze the fashion landscape in India, Blenders Pride Fashion NXT Festivals bring an impressive new format that diversifies our experiences into newer towns. We’re excited to collaborate with some of India’s best fashion designers, celebrities and lifestyle brands, that share our vision in becoming an immersive gateway into the world of style and glamour.”
Talking about the Fashion NXT Festival, designer Nachiket Barve said “Blenders Pride Fashion NXT Festival in Bhubaneswar has set an example for what it means to take fashion beyond the runway, that’s more immersive for younger people. Together with Sanya Malhotra, I am very proud to be here to redefine the future of fashion experiences in India.”
Actor Sanya Malhotra said, “It is exciting to be a part of India’s first fashion festival! The experience Blenders Pride Fashion NXT Festival has put together for Bhubaneswar is magnetic. Nachiket’s collection is a glamourous interpretation of the next in red carpet fashion, and it was incredible to walk the ramp in his creation.”
Ashish Soni, Curator-in-Chief, Blenders Pride Glassware Fashion NXT, said, “Blenders Pride Fashion NXT Festival presents an exciting evolution of fashion experiences in India. It’s not just a showcase of future trends, but a platform that brings a world of high fashion, glamourous style & an exciting festival experience to newer audiences, like it has never been done before.”
Commenting on their long-standing association with the brand, Sunil Sethi, Chairman, FDCI said, “Fashion Design Council of India is proud to be a part of Blenders Pride Fashion NXT Festival. We’re excited to curate FASHION NXT SPOTLIGHT, a powerful showcase of emerging style trends by some of most forward-thinking designers in India.”
Up next, Blenders Pride Fashion NXT Festival is set to travel to Pune with designer Varun Bahl, actor Aditi Rao Hydari, and music artists Kayan & Ritviz on March 9, 2024.
