"Couture must be clever!" There is something complete about these four words shared by Shahab Durazi on Instagram. That the post coincided with India Couture Week [ICW] streamed digitally for the first time due to the pandemic is not accidental. "The presentations were so incestuous; eight to 10 models drawing into space, slow motion cinematography against the palace backdrop," the couturier told mid-day in a phone interview.

It's been a hellish seven months for high fashion where special events fell like dominoes, clothes were deemed "non-essential" and physical shows were postponed indefinitely. Timing the 2020 edition of ICW between September 18 and 23, psychologically made sense then, maybe more than ever.