Designer Hara Pranay’s latest edit takes a leaf from the royal fruit, pomegranate
Hyderabad based pret-a-porter label Vasthralekha’s latest collection, Anaar-E-Kahaani, is an exploration of the women’s occasion wear. A poetic ode to abundance, vitality, and royalty, the collection by founder-designer Hara Pranay features a mosaic of patterns, bright colours, textures, and codes. Handcrafted from exquisite handwoven silk cottons and silks sourced from Mangalagiri, the ensembles come in rich, nature-inspired tones of crimson, scarlet, and green that celebrate the harmony of the natural world. Hara takes us through the edit.
How different is this collection from your previous ones?
This is bold, bright, yet classic. The embroideries are rich yet play a subtle game of minimalism and elegance. Anaar-E-Kahaaniis inspired by the historical significance of pomegranate, which represents abundance, fertility, life, love, beauty, and royalty across civilisations. This fruit has been a source of motivation across all fields, including art, architecture, fashion, and poetry, and we wanted to interpret that in our own language.
What’s ruling this summer season in occasion wear and wedding fashion?
While people are experimenting with drapes and styles, the streak of lehengas and saris is nowhere near its end. The trend will continue this summer season, perhaps through a new lens of styling and draping.
What are occasion wardrobe must-haves?
Apart from the classic lehenga and sharara, I would say a handcrafted dupatta, which can be used for layering and styling, is a wardrobe must-have.
What inspires you?
I draw inspiration from history, culture, and nature, which I try to interpret in my own way, expressed through my outfits while keeping trends and customer choices in mind.
What are some of the things one should keep in mind while dressing up for weddings?
The main thing to consider is your role! Whether you are the bride’s sister, in the bestie squad, family, or a guest, you should be mindful not to overpower the bride just because you have or want to wear something really heavy and expensive. The same rule applies to men too. Other key things to consider would be the season, type of event, and dress code if any.
Who’s the best dressed celeb?
Sonam Kapoor—her styling game is top-notch. She is not afraid to experiment and gives enough importance to home-grown labels focusing on handlooms and heritage weaves.
Tell us about the collections you are currently working on.
We are currently working on our AW 2025 collection while planning to launch one more print-based range for this summer, both of which will incorporate handwoven textiles.