The fashion show was also a fundraiser to support Sungava, an organization that works towards rehabilitating and providing life skills training to girl children with learning difficulties, particularly those with Down’s syndrome. Sungava was started in 1995 by a group of mothers of children who are differently-abled.
It currently comprises of 16 girls who are learning life skills and becoming self dependent. The fashion show was followed by performances by the girls of Sungava which were entertaining, as the audience clapped throughout the performance while some even joined the girls and it was heart touching to see the girls overcome mental adversities and succeed in life.
“This show is a beginning of a friendship between the development world and fashion,” said Soni Joshi, the chair of Center for Health, Education, Training and Advocacy (CHETANA), the organizer of the event.
“I was looking for a charity to contribute to after being a part of a fundraiser organized by the student organization of the British School and when I was introduced to CHETANA by my aunt, the collaboration started,” said Astik Shercha of Astik Design, adding, “Being a part of a fundraiser makes sense to me because fashion gets a lot of attention and we can use to it shed light on important issues.”
In terms of fashion, Astik did not showcase a single black outfit (apart from a few attires with black and white swirls), instantly making it different from his previous collection. He played with colors, though most were pastel with a handful of few solid colors, the collection reflected Astik’s desire to be different from his previously serious lines. And neither were the clothes as structured as before. Nonetheless, they were all simple and basic thus reverberating Astik’s design sensibilities that will definitely appeal to a larger audience.
The free flowing fabrics most of which were cotton, satin and linen with hemp like added to the laidback and fun vibe that a picnic has. “I didn’t want to be perfect with this collection and wanted to give it a more relaxed feel,” said the designer. The collection consisted of cute dresses, shorts, capris, maxi dresses, skirts, straight pants among others, modeled by women from different walks of life (one of whom was pregnant) along with professional models.
“Through my selection of models for the show I wanted to show that my clothes are not limited to women of a specific size, and if you look at the collection everybody can find something to wear from it,” said the designer. And we definitely did, not just one but several.
For more information on Sungava please visit www.catmando.com/sungava/
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