(From top) Jesse Randhawa sports a Pria Kataria Puri creation; Raima Sen, Indrani Dasgupta and Katrina Kaif walk the ramp in the grand finale of the Lakme Fashion Week by Sabyasachi; Anchal Kumar flaunts an outfit by James Ferriera; Nina Manuel showcases a Sabyasachi design. Pictures by Gajanan Dudhalkar

The brilliance of The Snail, his much-acclaimed autumn-winter 2007-08 line, was lacking, but Sabyasachi Mukherjee did manage to stitch together an impressive interpretation of Lakme’s winter statement, Free Spirit.

The grand finale of the Lakme Fashion Week in Mumbai was the show all eyes were on, and Sabyasachi did not disappoint on Saturday evening.

“The finale has to be larger than life and one has to play to the galleries. More than a Sabyasachi show, this was a Lakme show. But I am very happy with the whole presentation,” smiled Sabya, back from a successful stint at the Olympus Fashion Week in New York.

Unlike most finale shows, this one, though, saw less jazz and more serious fashion.

The first surprise of the evening was the front-row line-up — while one expected a star-studded audience (obviously led by Rani Baabul Mukherjee), the crowd boasted just a Bollywood sprinkle in the form of Tabu, Milind Soman, Riya Sen and Madhoo.

An audio-visual presentation of Free Spirit (that looked too much like a Lakme ad) flagged off the show. The AV screen forming the ramp background flashed images explaining the theme throughout the catwalk.

The designer’s presentation of Free Spirit by Day and by Night boasted the Sabya trademark — the trapeze dresses, the coats, the elegant saris with dramatic blouses, the pile-ons and the signature techniques. Perfectly-tailored pinafores, cutaway armhole smocks, skirts, frocks and trenchcoats in brocade and silk, long gowns, short blousons made up this all-out international line. The simple saris were teamed with black-knit cholis topped with corsets.

Embellishments were tonal with embroidery, quilting and piping playing a vital role. As the line moved from daytime elegance to night glamour, the colours ranged from whites and ivories to deeper tones of brown, black, grey, khaki and olive with a touch of bright red and gold. The idea was to portray a kaleidoscope of cultures “that ranged from Rajasthan to Mexico and then to Kanyakumari and the fast-paced life of New York”. Coloured leggings and tights were teamed with the dresses, and stylish caps, turbans and artificial flowers adorned the models’ heads.

The showstoppers were the three faces of Lakme — Indrani Dasgupta in a striking green trenchcoat, Raima Sen in a black-and-gold sari with her hair tied back in a long plait, Katrina Kaif in a long voluminous black gown.

“The collection had influences from The Snail and has evolved from the New York line. Many people thought it was my best show ever,” concluded Sabya.

Earlier in the day…

Saturday evening also saw the only couture collection of LFW, by designer Pria Kataria Puri. Titled Elita – The Chosen One, the collection portrayed the style story of Elita, a fictitious French high-society lady.

“I created this imaginary character Elita, who is extremely glamorous and well-travelled. She has been the muse for my collection and through her I have explored French styles,” explained Pria.

More than a generous dose of stones, crystals, sequins, beads and pearls cluttered the stylish silhouettes, lending them an overloaded look. The fabrics were luxurious — chiffons, laces, satins, silks and tulle.

The colour palette ranged from powder blue to midnight blue, pale pink to rose pink, gold, olive and off-whites to pale grey and charcoal. Appliques with laces and hand-embroidery created textures that were often overshadowed by the shine and shimmer.

The silhouettes were impressive, cut closer to the body, be it the knee-length skirts and dresses, the floor-sweeping maxis or the jackets. “Parisian art deco and Renaissance prints play an important role in the collection. The other highlight is the variety of sleeves, from short to kimono to large puff,” added the designer.

If France found favour with Pria, for designer James Ferriera, who showcased earlier in the day, it was Mumbai all the way, with a detour to Tokyo. Titled Bombay Tokyo, the collection boasted western silhouettes crafted from the rich textiles of Maharashtra.

The collection was split into seven distinctly different lines. Worli, the first range, drew from the tribal art form of Maharashtra, while Devanagari had script-textured dhotis, dresses, skirts and tops made from the dhoti fabric.

The third line — The Sholapur Story — was made up of sexy separates made from Sholapur chaddars. Diwali used the marigold and mango leaf toran motifs on black voiles. The Hardy Traditional Towels had towels dyed in black and shaped as cocktail dresses. The Sari comprised cocktail dresses made out of traditional Maharashtrian saris, teamed with gold tissue churidars. The final line, Black Magic, boasted georgette dresses with bright appliques and gold pita work.

Starspotting: Madhur Bhandarkar and Pooja Bedi (but all covered up in a black embroidered sari!) for Pria’s show and Greg Chappell (with Bob Willis and Co.) for James’s show.