It's the New You, says Ritu Kumar, about her collection, Threads Of Indus, that opened the sixth Lakme India Fashion Week in New Delhi on April 20.

The aim: To make designer wear more pocket-friendly.

The hidden agenda: To thrust the often unresearched, and tough handloom work, into the international design arena.

From the cotton handloom work of Kutch and Punjab, to the weaves of Leh and the beadwork of Kashmir -- and to the strains of the haunting, rustic strains of old, mostly forgotten Punjabi folk music -- this is a summer-winter leisure collection from one of India's best designers.

The collection was dominated by skirts of varied lengths and kinds, tops, churidars, harem-pant style churidars which taper to glove the ankle tightly, Capri fatigues and a couple of saris.

Text: Sita Menon
Photographs: Jewella C Miranda