Diamond Producers Association (DPA), at an event in Mumbai last week, announced the winners of ‘The Real Cut’, a talent hunt held in association with Lakmé Fashion Week (LFW) to choose diamond jewellery designers to participate in LFW shows.

The winners were selected by as eminent panel of judges, all established names in the jewellery and fashion fraternity. They are Shazia Motiwala of A.S Motiwala, Bhavana Jhakia of Om Jewellers, Rupam Singhal of Orra, Akshita Garg of Chiripal Jewellers, C. Raghu of Kirtilals and Rajeshwary Singh of Senco.

They will showcase their work at Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2019 with designer labels Rara Avis by Sonal Verma, Verandah by Anjali Patel Mehta, and Saaksha & Kinni by Saaksha Bhat and Kinnari Kamat, the organisers said.

The jury, which made the selection from the over 80 entries received, comprised Richa Singh – Managing Director at Diamond Producers Association, Monica Shah – Fashion Designer (Jade), Rahul Vijay – Fashion Editor Elle, Nisha JamVwal – Luxury Brand Consultant and Jaspreet Chandok – Vice President and Head of Fashion, IMG Reliance.

“The Real Cut” contest was open to all diamond jewellery designers associated with leading jewellery brands and with experience of between 3 to 8 years. They were required to display a selection of their designs in everyday diamond jewellery with each piece not exceeding 20 cents. The designs were judged both for their artistic composition of form, shape, colour and pattern as well as for creative experimentation and exploration using design techniques from other relevant creative disciplines such as art, music, sculpture, etc.

Richa Singh, MD, DPA, said: “Diamonds are an integral part of Indian fashion enhancing every look, bridal or everyday pret wear, so it made perfect sense for us to partner with Lakmé Fashion Week which is the country’s leading fashion & lifestyle platform. I was excited by the diverse designs showcased by all the talented emerging diamond jewellery designers from across India. I look forward to seeing their trend-setting winning collections on the runway which will beautifully highlight the fit of everyday wear diamond jewellery with contemporary outfits. The Real Cut is a disruptive platform which will surely provide a starting point for these young turks.”

Jaspreet Chandok, Vice President and Fashion Head- IMG Reliance, said: “Lakmé Fashion Week is proud to have associated with the Diamond Producers Association to launch the Real Cut. We are sure that the winners are going to work together with the fashion designers to create a line which will reach out to wider audiences.”

Pic caption: The jury comprising (from l) Jaspreet Chandok – Vice President and Head of Fashion, IMG Reliance; Monica Shah – Fashion Designer (Jade); Richa Singh – MD at Diamond Producers Association; Nisha JamVwal – Luxury Brand Consultant; and Rahul Vijay – Fashion Editor Elle.