Bibhu Mohapatra Takes Inspiration From Amrita Sher-Gil To Scorch NYFW

Bibhu Mohapatra Takes Inspiration From Amrita Sher-Gil To Scorch NYFW

Odisha-born fashion designer Bibhu Mohapatra has scorched the New York Fashion Week with his Spring/Summer 2021 (SS 21) collection. Inspired by the Hungarian-Indian revolutionary avant-garde painter, Amrita Sher-Gil, the New York-based designer unveiled his 26 piece collection on September 16.

The SS 21 collection came as a revelation to Bibhu as he spent time cooped up in his upstate home in Hudson, NY during the pandemic. While spending time planting a vegetable garden and tending to chickens, he wondered about the 10 years behind him and the current situation that was unfolding around him and if he would even do a collection. 

However, as he dug deeper into the process of change and transformation, the SS21 collection was born which is bold, fearless and a bit casual. 

Bibhu’s collections have always been inspired by strong women. So it’s with his latest muse, Amrita Sher-Gil, a bold and daring artist whose rebellious spirit blazed a trail for future generations. Her challenge to established societal norms continues to inspire people even today.

Bibhu’s choice of bold colours to represent Amrita’s spirit of breaking barriers brings together optimism and bravery. The use of the colour chartreuse is the highlight of the collection. It is used across multiple fabrics like tulle, Chantilly lace and crepe. As Bibhu is known for his appealing dramatic evening wear and romantic aesthetics, this collection is sprinkled with it too along with some formal wear. 

Some of the standouts from the collection are a chartreuse twist drape into a slim-fit long sleeve dress with a lace skirt, sheer black tulle with avant-garde looking mirror shard and a raffia embroidery over a fringe trim skirt. Some of the casual-dressy options are a pale-blue crepe cape effect dress with delicate black-tie details, a pale-blue denim shirtdress with fun fringe and a super-chic white denim tailored blazer with crystal paisley embroidery at the lapel (which is one of several trimmings he up-cycled from his studio archive) worn with a flared white denim skirt with oversize patch pockets.

The uninhibited separates in cotton, denim and twill are eye-candies meant for zoom calls and meetings. This idea was born as Bibhu started receiving emails from his clients and stores about clothes that can be worn at home or online events. 

One of his clients is a judge from Maryland who wanted to order clothing from Neiman Marcus for a family wedding in August. 

Bibhu feels that women want to feel good and confident even when at home, which is a more relaxed and casual milieu. He added a dash of embroidery and handiwork to add some chutzpah to the collection.

The Forevermark bijouterie and ic! berlin sunglasses accentuate the collection up a notch. Bibhu brought the collection to life with a short film which he created with New York-based filmmaker and his friend, Shruti Ganguly, and photographer JD Urban. The 2 minutes 40-second film celebrates the life of Amrita and her legacy. 

“It is important to tell a story of artists coming together because they play a role in change, beyond boundaries, beyond cultures,” said Bibhu about the film which has a story arc of getting through a creative block. 

The film was shot at an old opera house and outdoors at Olana State Park, giving it an earthy glamour. It features Tony-nominated actress and Hamilton alum, Ariana DeBose, the star of the upcoming Spielberg-directed “West Side Story” and Ryan Murphy’s Netflix project “The Prom” who plays the main Muse. Actress Surina Jindal plays the role of Amrita.