Ace Designer Manali Jagtap launches new line ‘Kaliyan’ post battling endometrial cancer

Mumbai (Maharashtra): "The comeback is always stronger than the setback," says Manali Jagtap who is back in action after a brief hiatus. The designer was battling endometrial cancer & had to go through 12 rounds of chemotherapy. Now, she is ready to launch her new line ‘Kaliyan’ and is trying to bring back a sense of normalcy to her altered life, smiling through her trials and tribulations.

The evening of the line launch saw the presence of Sharad Malhotra, Surbhi Chandna, Sudhanshu Pandey, Madalsa Sharma, Nidhi Shah, Smita Thackeray, Aslam Shaikh, Prashant Virendra Sharma, Smita Gondkar, Madhur Bhandarkar, Shreya Kadam, Vahbiz Dorabjee, Mohamed Morani, Achala Sachdev, Sonali Kulkarni, Mugdha Godse, Wahid Ali Khan, Vandana Sajnani Khattar, Shweta Pandit, Anupama Verma, Aakruti Kakkar, Aishwarya Bhende, Manju Bhende, Juhi Godambe, & many more.

The show was directed by Shie Lobo and presented by AS Reality while Rashami Desai, Shalmali Kholgade, Vartika Singh and Saiee Manjrekar walked the ramp for the designer.

Manali who has done multiple shows in the past, and worked with the biggest names in the Bollywood & Television industry feels more empowered & channels her creativity via ‘Kaliyan’. "I don't think words would do justice to how beautiful it feels to be back at work, designing, styling, the whole process of making a piece of garment, it feels like a whole new experience. I needed physical, mental & emotional strength to be able to go out and resume work, now that I have, I couldn't be happier,” Manali said.

‘Kaliyan’ is synonymous with all things fantastical, couture and grand – without compromising on the practicality. An extension of her trademark grandiose and thoughtful designs, ‘Kaliyan’ features brighter colours compared to her previous designs. Beautiful gold embroidery work of buds and flowers is done on organza and cotton satin. "When I was sick & I was not in the best phase of my life, the only thing I looked forward to were the samples of my designs throughout. Bright colours, and embroidery, would cheer me up. Kaliyan was my happy space, working on this collection is a more bitter, sweet memory," the designer added.