Kochi: Nostalgia is one of the inherent themes adopted by creative artists, and the question is how to present it with a modern-day perspective without being dubbed as a cliché?
The answer for that can be found among the layers of the Winter-Festive collection of 'Rouka', some of which was showcased in Kochi on Wednesday ahead of its première at Lakme Fashion Week later this month.
Owned and designed by Keralite Sreejith Jeevan, the new-age woman's brand Rouka tinkles with the motifs synonymous with the state, giving a quirky touch to the collections.
It can also be paraphrased as Sreejith gathered the essential Kerala handloom complete with the kasavu border and strung together a collection that reeks of tradition but at the same time falls in line with the needs of the new-age women.
The term Rouka too traces its origin to the native tongue of Malayalam.
“Almost all clothes used during the yesteryears in Kerala were drape-arounds. It was with Rouka – dictionary meaning bodice – that Malayali woman started wearing stitched clothes. Rouka also has a Japanese meaning of corridor. And with our brand, we wish to incorporate the meanings of the word in both languages,” explained Sreejith.
“Like the corridor that connects two parts of a building, we want to be the connect between the weaver and the wearer.”
Write to me
“For our this year's collection – Write to me – we looked at an almost dying habit of writing to our dear ones. The postman, letterbox and envelopes have been reduced to mere childhood memories.”
“We have tried to recreate that nostalgia through our collection.”
The idea was duly captured on the fashion film – Rouka in & as the Postman – that was also screened for the selective audience. The one-minute video with models dressed in Rouka's winter collection showed the various stages of a letter being delivered, people waiting in anticipation – all in the lush green, rain-swept Kerala background.
Audience also got a sneak-peak of the collection that had modern renditions of a postman's attire in black and red, letterings on envelopes adorned some while yet another beauty had stamps and postcards embroidered in bright golden threads.
The dimly-lit hall at the Pepper House in Fort Kochi also added to the charm of the evening as people criss-crossed through the lines of clothings left hanging from the wooden ceiling.
Most of the people who turned up at the event vouched for Sreejith and his brand. Manisha, who runs a resort in Alleppey, said that she always opted for Sreejith's collections and came all the way to Kochi just for the event.
So what next for the designer from Kochi? "As of now, I am only concentrating at Lakme Fashion Week. It's a big event and I hope to create an impression at the big stage in Mumbai."