India Beach Fashion Week caters to young, bold fashion connoisseurs

The 9^th edition of the India Beach Fashion Week Showcase was celebrated through 13^th & 14^th February at the Mercure Goa Devaaya Resort in Divar, an 18^th century island in the heart of Goa. This is one the most prominent calendar events in country.

Muted luxury in the tropical paradise, surrounded with its lush forests, winding roads cutting through emerald green paddy fields and the gorgeous Mandovi river, were perfect setting for resort and travel destination wear. The Divar Island is also known as “the island of love”, not surprisingly because one instantly falls in love with the aura of the place!

Nine shows exhibited 14 design talent & brands over two days from USA & all over India. The venue had 3 highly experiential locations in its beautiful Portuguese-style colonial villas, the tropical gardens and the riverfront. The world witnessed India’s longest fashion runway at 150 feet, a refreshing change from old style ball-room set ups, making IBFW SHOWCASE a one-of-its-kind fashion event.

The timing was perfect. Goa’s Island of Love turned pink, purple and all shades of A’mor as Valentine’s Day wove its magic. Sceptics and cynics may well argue that February 14 is just another day while romantics assert that it is every day. In the words of novelist Elinor Glyn, “Romance is the glamour which turns the dust of everyday life into a golden haze”, and this was all too evident on Divar over the last two days as magic played itself on the runway and the Dubai-based Royal Falcon Music Production’s live band filled the air with music.

The Conclave powered by Dive Resort Collective was conceptualised by Jitin Hingorani, a seasoned journalist from New York, to discuss the evolution of fashion and future for the business in various elements of fashion. Panelists included Rayed Merchant, Deepak Chabbra, Pradnya Somesh Popade, Puneet Motiani, and Pallav Ojha. They discussed key points to stand out as a global stylish brand and how brands have maintained momentum during and post the pandemic.

Panelists also discussed the future of Indian fashion for a tech-driven, AI generation living by the mantra of “reduce, reuse, recycle”. The second-panel discussion focused on the need to be inclusive of IT & tech driven changes in market and inclusive in amidst the growing demand of global consumerism.

The panelists included Dive founder & CEO Neha Asthana, Band-It founder Satyajit Vetoskar, The Ferias House director and co-founder Ayushi Chauhan and Shruty Tiwari. They emphasized the need to make something common with uncommon materials, make products by recycling materials using high-end technology, and reduce single use waste. Reusing and recycling are integral to India’s culture and should be considered a fashion mantra.

The ninth edition of the India Beach Fashion Week was both a visual delight and a lesson in introspection. It went beyond fashion to promote Goa as a travel destination, building a large-scale platform for lifestyle tourism around the island state and its island of love. A Fashion festival celebration like no other!