Politically Pumped

Pushing positivity and encouraging inclusivity at a time when the political landscape is so uncertain, Ashish’s AW17 collection stepped away from the exploration of his Indian heritage (as seen in his SS17 offering) and instead sought to make a serious political statement. Paying homage to America with striking baseball inspired tees and shirts, the collection exhibited apparel with slogans including “Pussy grabs back” and “More Glitter, Less Twitter” – potential references to Trump’s much-discussed pussy grabbing furore and his frequent outbursts across social media. Other slogans included “Don’t Give Up The Daydream”, “Love Sees No Colour” and our fave “Stay Woke”. Spectators erupted into applause as one bearded, leather-glove clad model, serving up “bear” vibes, hit the runway donning a blue glittered tee brandishing the words “WHY BE BLUE WHEN YOU CAN BE GAY”.

Follow The Yellow Brick Road

With a snaking, golden glittered runway and a giant red broken heart through which the models entered, the Ashish show was a trip into a magical fairytale wonderland with bursts of glitter, gold and bright delights. Faux glittered poppies lined the glitter and gold runway, perfectly matching the bright and bold collection. Adding to the adventurous vibe, face paint in a plethora of hues decorated the faces of models, with Mexican wrestler inspired designs ensuring Ashish’s dynamic eye for outlandish design was firmly solidified.

There’s Magic In The Music

With re-imaginings of John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’ and Radiohead’s ‘Creep’, finishing off on a positive note with ‘We Are Family’, the emotive music added an extra layer to the collection, inducing tears from spectators as they observed the though-provoking collection. Despite the glitz and glam served up by the designer, the underlying message carried a very adult and serious subject matter. Ashish was one of only a few designers that used their collection to publicly speak out on the current political climate. Elsewhere, House of Holland reminded us to think of America with his USA pumped collection and Gareth Pugh’s eye-popping offering sought to make a statement. With glitter, gold and the runway of our dreams, Ashish was the perfect ending to our Monday.