Vaishali Shadangule: First Indian female designer to showcase at Milan Fashion Week – Times of India

Designer Vaishali Shadangule might be coy and reticent but she is letting her work do all the talking. After making her Paris Haute Couture Week debut last year, she has now showcased her collection titled Srauta at the ongoing Milan Fashion Week. With this, Vaishali is now officially the first Indian female designer to partake at Milan Fashion Week. The show also marked the global launch of Vaishali S’ prêt-à-porter line. The designer has been proudly positioning Indian weaves at the top of international luxury through her eclectic silhouettes.

Fashion influencer Masoom Minawala turned showstopper for the designer. And it was also the first time that an Indian content creator got to walk the ramp as a showstopper during the Milan Fashion Week.

Masoom has been a fan of Vaishali’s work and she has been wearing her creations for her public appearances. Sharing her excitement on turning showstopper for Vaishali, she said, “I’m overwhelmed with emotions. I feel empowered for walking the ramp for India’s first female designer to showcase her collection at the Milan fashion week. I feel proud for representing the intricacy of Indian craftsmanship on a global stage. The most prominent feeling is definitely being grateful for this opportunity, it’s a milestone.”

Talking more about Vaishali’s work she added, “I absolutely adore the structured silhouette, it’s creating the illusion of a calming movement. The fact that the collection is handspun and homegrown just fills my heart with so much pride. ”

An elated Vaishali spoke to us over a telephonic conversation and shared her experience. “It was a special evening and a different kind of show for the brand and me. Showcasing in Milan, my partner Alessandro Giuliani’s native city and the world’s fashion Capital was truly very special. More than 250 people from media and the who’s-who of Milan, were treated to this special fashion show with glasses of Prosecco, in a stunning location of our friends, EDRA and Simone Vago, with models from Milan society and make-up from Astra. Overall a special show that is now already flooding us of business enquiries.” she said.

The collection featured 40 garments. There were not only embroideries but full-fledged haute couture design and fabrics in a fresh prêt avatar, that shone the spotlight on hand-woven Indian textiles. The collection emphasised excellence in workmanship, with sustainability, zero waste and has circularity at its core. To ensure continued support and positive social impact on craft clusters, Vaishali also employed weaves used in the past in this collection as well.

Employing her unique flair for effortlessly blending traditional weaves and techniques with dramatic silhouettes, Vaishali’s Srauta collection, amongst other fabrics, extensively explores the use of hand-woven Merino wool from Bengal, and Pashmina from Ladakh, both of which will keep the wearer warm in colder seasons and surprising cool in the warmer months.

Known widely as `wearable art”, the collection comprised of jewel tones such as deep aquamarines, ruby reds, shimmering amethysts, pearly whites, jade greens, and slate greys, all of which are very well suited to the Autumn-Winter season. The garments alsio featured the designer’s researched approach to blends and weaving and a deeply creative process along the seamless journey of Vaishali’s self-expression.