Puja special: Actor Ishaa Saha dazzles in ensembles from designer Saroj Jalan’s new festive edit

Our festive winter collection, Eternal Reverie, embodies the beauty of nostalgia with a modern twist. We’ve delved into deep, rich tones like wine red, royal blue and forest green, contrasted with softer hues like blush pink and ivory. The fabrics are a luxurious blend of satin, organza, and handwoven silks, complemented by intricate embellishments and 3D embroidery. Silhouettes range from traditional lehengas to modern draped saris, jackets and gowns, all meticulously crafted to celebrate both tradition and contemporary elegance.

The idea behind Eternal Reverie is to create a visual narrative of nostalgia, taking inspiration from the beauty of Indian craftsmanship. Each piece in this collection is designed to evoke memories of home, family and love while bringing a modern sensibility to traditional aesthetics. We’ve focused on blending intricate handwork, timeless motifs and fluid silhouettes that embody freedom, elegance and the joy of celebrations.

In this collection, we’ve taken our signature storytelling approach a step further by incorporating personal narratives of brides and their cultural roots into the designs. Unlike previous collections, Eternal Reverie introduces bolder textures and modern cuts like draped saris and fusion jackets, giving brides a choice to wear something uniquely Indian yet contemporary. The motifs and patterns also carry personal symbols and references, creating an emotional connection between the wearer and the garment.

This festive season, the trend leans toward combining modern silhouettes with age-old traditional embroidery. Draped saris, contemporary lehengas with pockets and fusion jackets are all making waves. Rich jewel tones paired with metallic embroidery and intricate 3D embellishments will dominate. Brides and fashion lovers alike are opting for timeless pieces that carry sentimental value, embracing the beauty of handcrafted nostalgia.

This year’s must-haves include statement lehengas that tell a story through their motifs, draped saris for a chic yet traditional look and jackets paired with saris for a modern edge. Accessories like embroidered belts, capes and detachable dupattas are also trending, offering versatility and personalisation to festive outfits.

Our bridal collection this winter, Timeless Tapestry, is all about translating a bride’s journey and emotions into her wedding attire. Each lehenga in the collection features hand-embroidered motifs that narrate personal stories, using traditional techniques with a modern touch. We’ve added unique details like boots under lehengas for bold brides and intricate 3D embroidery to create a sense of movement and luxury. The colour palette stays true to regal reds, golds and blush tones, making each piece an heirloom to be cherished for generations.

This winter, bridal trends will lean heavily on personalisation — each bride wanting a unique, customised touch to her outfit. Expect to see a lot of lehengas with pockets, intricate 3D floral embroidery and bold accessories like embroidered boots and belts. Mix-and-match elements like capes, detachable dupattas and statement jewellery will give brides more versatility.

Our upcoming collections will continue to focus on nostalgia but with a contemporary twist. We’re working on expanding our ready-to-wear line for modern brides, featuring playful yet elegant outfits like draped saris, fusion lehengas and jackets with intricate hand embroidery. We’re also launching a sustainable line, incorporating eco-friendly fabrics and dyes while maintaining the brand’s luxurious appeal.

Sustainability is at the heart of what we do. From sourcing eco-friendly fabrics to using natural dyes and ensuring our production processes minimise waste, we are committed to making fashion more responsible. We also work with local artisans, providing them with opportunities to hone their craft and ensure that traditional techniques are preserved. Sustainability isn’t just a trend for us — it’s a core value that runs through every collection we create.

On any given day, my go-to outfit is a pair of jeans and t-shirt. I am a comfort dresser and I love relaxed wear, so besides jeans, I love Korean pants and loose trousers in linen and cotton too. For formal dos I like comfortable pantsuits or trousers with blazers in different colours and designs. But for wedding and festive occasions like Pujas, it’s undoubtedly saris that I pair with all kinds of blouses. I mostly like wearing handloom saris and nice silks but I cannot manage organza. I like saris in rich tones and colours may vary according to my mood of the day, in general, I like all colours.

Nice mulmul saris and solid silks besides a few gorgeous saris with sequins to carry us through the events, jeans and a white shirt, a stylish blazer, trousers in black and beige and a pair of shoes in nude.

I love wearing silver and oxidised jewellery. I love wearing septums and jhumkas. I like old and antique jhumkas, both sleek and chunky ones, they have a timeless appeal and can lift up any ethnic look. I also love watches and wear them a lot.

Pujas actually mean a holiday and a break from work because nothing related to work happens during the Pujas. Also, I am lucky enough to get to see the stunning pandals around the city before the Puja kickstarts thanks to the Puja Parikramas. So the five days mean unadulterated adda with friends at home, lazing around and going for anjalis at our society’s Puja.

Puja Food: It has to be all things Bengali, various kinds of fish preparations and of course, the lip smacking Puja bhog is a must.

Usually I don’t go for much makeup during the Pujas, it’s just a concealer, blush on my cheeks and mascara, and I am done.

Going with my grandparents to Belur Math every year to watch the Puja there plonked between them in a rickshaw with balloons in my hand.

Joydeep Mukherjee’s Aparichito and Kaushik Ganguly’s Osukh Bisukh.