Varun Chakkilam’s 40 Glamorous Designs Steal The Show at Lakshmi Manchu’s Teach For Change Annual Fundraiser

You know you have had a good time at a fashion show when you remember every silhouette for its intricate craftsmanship. Such was celebrated fashion designer Varun Chakkilam’s showcase when he presented his collection Majesté Dorée at the Teach For Change Annual Fundraiser 2023 in Hyderabad.

But there was more than just fashion at this extravagant showcase, Varun’s show which was designed with the intent to celebrate fashion with a cause, with Teach For Change a social initiative brought to life by producer-actor Lakshmi Manchu and Chaitanya.

In the past, Varun has had renowned stars including Kangana Ranaut, Malaika Arora, Pooja Hegde, Sania Mirza, and Vijay Devarakonda adorn his designs with elan. And this fashion showcase was no different.

The starry showcase featured 40 celebrities including actors, models and sports persons such as Rakul Preet Singh, Jackky Bhagnani, Saina Nehwal, Seerat Kapoor, Pragya Jaiswal, Elnaaz Nourazi and Regina Cassandra to name a few sashays down the runway in Varun’s collection Majesté Dorée, inspired by the Palace of Versailles.

Dressed in a black suit, the younger designer told New18 that this was his third season and he made his runway debut with Teach For Change. “Teach for Change has been very special for me because I have been associated with Lakshmi [Manchu] and Chaitanya. And this is my third season with them. I made my debut on the ramp with Teach For Change. It was in 2018 when Chaitanya had pushed me to do menswear. He told me that menswear has a lot of scopes, so why don’t you try it. And then I did that show, and then there was no looking back,” expresses Varun, adding, “The first collection I showcased was at Taj Falaknuma Palace [Hyderabad] and Vijay Deverakonda and many others had walked for the cause. For me, giving back to society is very important, especially providing education to children is very important, so being associated with such a beautiful cause is just amazing.

Putting together 40 designs for 40 celebs is not a small feat, but three months of dedication brought Varun’s collection Majesté Dorée to life. When asked the inspiration behind the extravagant collection, Varun shared that he was inspired by the Palace of Versailles. “The collection Majesté Dorée draws inspiration from the Palace of Versailles, where the architectural influences have been incorporated in the designs and have been infused with Indian craftsmanship,” adds Varun.

According to Varun, the palace’s pillars are ornamented with Baroque designs and he did incorporate it in an array of silhouettes including lehengas, sarees and gowns. To enhance the art, Varun stuck with the natural organic flow of the design and tried to recreate it in his luxurious collection.

Known for his tone-on-tone embroidery, the collection was accentuated with glass beads and ari work, each ensemble exuded royalty, elegance and glamour on the runway. The highlight of the collection was the colour palette which included shades of ivory, nude, pastel pink, lilac, midnight blue and black.

With the upcoming wedding season, Varun’s design aesthetics fit perfectly for the modern Indian bride and groom. When Rakul Preet Singh and Jackky Bhagnani adorned ensembles designed by Varun on the runway, they looked like the perfect bride and groom. According to Varun, Rakul’s salmon pink lehenga which was studded with glass beads featured tiny chandelier motifs inspired by the chandelier at the Palace of Versailles.

“We recreated the chandelier from the Palace of Versailles into tiny chandelier motifs and placed them all over the lehenga. Thus, giving it an extravagant luxurious feel to the garment. Rakul’s lehenga had 15 people working on it for almost 1000 hours,” says Varun, adding, “For Jackky, we kept it subtle with the colour tone and used a very light grey. However, we embellished it with silver glass beads, mother of pearls which were all fused together with a thread.Thus adding an extravagant touch to it.”

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