Manish creates Magic @ Paris Fashion Week

What Manish Arora showcased in Paris yesterday was something I have not seen earlier. His signature quirkiness was definitely there but colours were less flashy. In fact there were plenty of ensembles, particularly the silk-satin dresses and gowns that were totally wearable. I loved the hairdo Manish gave the models – kind of a bouffant that sat like a cap on their head. For fall-winter 2011-12, Manish Arora added magic to the mix, opening the show with a materialization act worth of Houdini. Magician Benjamin Dukhan wheeled an empty metal cage into the middle of the catwalk, covered it with a cape and, ta-da, a model appeared inside.

Manish’s each look was so elaborate it would take reams to describe exhaustively. A catsuit printed with what appeared to be magnified images of crystal formations was paired with a gleaming gold girdle that sat jauntily on the model’s hips. The eyes of a fox stole glowed eerily with green lights and wore a bejeweled crown. A floor-length ballgown looked as if it was made out of stiff colored paper cut like a paper snowflake and the beige dress with blue beaded string mesh were intricate craft-manship at its best.

The collection was yet another tour de force from Arora, who was recently appointed artistic director at Paco Rabanne in a bid to revive the iconic brand that help define futuristic fashion in the 1960s. Arora is to present his first collection for the house in October, and already fashion insiders were waiting with bated breath to see what over-the-top looks he’d unveil.