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This is what Tarun Tahiliani has set out to do, as he unveils his Bridal Couture collection this week in Mumbai. _DNA_ gets a sneak-peak. _The Fourth Edition of the Tarun Tahiliani Couture

Exposition will commence with the unveiling of The Jewel Box, this Wednesday. After Hrs speaks to Tarun Tahiliani in an exclusive interview to discover and understand this edgy and modern

take on fashion, featuring a glass installation and the latest offerings from the Tarun Tahiliani Bridal Couture collection, mixed and fused for pure visual pleasure. Read on…_ Half way

through the year, how have you let 2012 inspire you, rather, what inspirations from 2012 have you incorporated into your Bridal Couture Collection for 2012? Bringing back the glamorous ‘20s,

the bridal collection this year celebrates raw sensuality and liberalization of the body. There is a play of new drapes, technique and stunning embellishments by Swarovski elements, lending

a grand yet modern feel to the collection. Primarily designed around the events that we Indians dress up for the most, the silhouettes are traditional yet infused with a new lightness and

modernity to allow freedom of movement and grace. Could you describe the colour palette and fabric scape that you’ve decided to experiment with in this collection? This year’s collection is

more comprehensive and has challenged us to go out and really find a novel expression. Couture must connect the highest forms of craft to fantastic silhouette and finish, to create something

beautiful yet iconic. I’m currently obsessed with kanjeevarams and silks and have been using them in new drapes for lehengas and saris. In terms of colours, we have also explored newer

shades of ochre, shot chiffons, off tones like jade, teal and ivory mixed with black. The idea is to evoke our own past with the renewed energy of revivalist craft and contemporary

construction. The Jewel Box seems like an interesting idea — what is the inspiration behind the idea, how did it come about and how do you plan to enhance the showcasing of your collection

with this new concept? The Jewel Box stands symbolic for the anticipation, the treasured hopes and dreams of a bride to be. When one thinks of the box, one wonders what treasures will be

unearthed, what memories will be evoked, what family traditions will be uncovered… Exquisite pieces are carefully picked out, valued and cherished. It is this precious experience that we

hope to recreate this year with AIS Glasxperts’ glass installation. We have worked very closely with Sumanth Jayakrishnan and AIS technicians on realizing this ethereal, frameless structure.

A far reaching and ambitious concept, I can only see to believe the final masterpiece! The setting would be a magnanimous glass cuboid, 14feet in height, created with modern glass panelling

and techniques. One of the cabins, that houses the mannequins features an insulated glass unit, with in-built motorized blinds sandwiched between the glass, so that models appear and

disappear creating an interesting effect. What are the trends you see developing in bridal fashion in India and on a more international level, have there been influences from international

bridal collections that have found their way into India, into your new collection in particular? There seems to be a debate between Indian and Western, international and traditional. Our

silhouette transcends these definitions, to reach a certain hybrid. This year’s collection is more comprehensive and experimental in terms of garments. A radical departure from the

traditional, we have key-hole jackets with lehengas or a versatile, modern day anarkali which can be worn traditionally or as gown. If you were planning to choose a few faces to promote and

really live your designs in this collection — who would they be? They are women who have their own identity and personas and normally are not ‘fashion victims’ and they come in all age

groups. They love quality and fit, and know that style is not just what one wears, but ‘how’ one wears it. They live in their heritage and yet are modern. Contradictions are exciting and

have a mystery! I personally admire the late Elizabeth Taylor and Mehr Rampal for those very reasons. What can one expect to see at the fourth Couture Exposition? Bringing a culturally

rooted, yet highly contemporary sensibility to the Great Indian Wedding, the Couture Exposition this year would carry a spectacular collection of 35 pieces. We have attempted to stylize the

Indian silhouette to give it a new voice. With every continuing year, we hope to stage the finest of wedding experiences and this time, we will have VU technology’s large video walls

bringing this detail and craftsmanship up-close and personal, to the viewer! Also, for this edition of the Tarun Tahiliani Couture Exposition, we’ve created our most ambitious and

spectacular lehenga with Swarovski Elements. After this, is it back to work again? As I answer this, we are working on the OTT collection to be shown at fashion weeks — simpler, cleaner and

pared down for everyday use. This is the fun, to go back and forth between different times.