The real reasons Jani and Khosla marched out on Couture Week

HDIL Couture Week got off to a shaky start when Sunday’s prime-time act, couturiers Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla, pulled out fewer than 48 hours before show time, citing disrespectfulness on the part of event management staff and failure to provide enough seats for the pair’s sizeable celebrity clientele.

“We regret this announcement on the eve of our show, but cannot risk our guests being offended," the pair stated "As any of our guests will testify, mehmaan nawazi is not an obligation, it is an understood happy assurance from our end always and in a scenario where we are not assured of it, we consider it better not to invite our guests and withdraw from the show.”

“Eight stories unfold in one evening; we refuse to bore you with one chapter,” Khosla revealed before name-dropping a cavalcade of stars.

The show, christened ‘Dance of Decadence,’ was to start with actor Hrithik Roshan and wife Susanne sporting Gothic blacks. The Bachchan siblings, Shweta Nanda and Abhishek Bachchan, would be featured in "golden sheaths." Former model and actress Sonali Bendre was to model a reprise of the designers' famed, voluminous winter coat with a million mirrors attached to it. Actress Vidya Balan and ex-F1 racer David Coulthard (in town to race the Sealink for Red Bull) were to wear classic chikan embroidered with sequins. Finally, actors Amitabh Bachchan and Tabu would have worn pieces from a slim, white Indo-French line. All on the mirrored ramp were to have sparkled in jewelry from Bond Street designer Moussaieff.

“Embroidery and our versions of contemporized Indian cuts have always been a USP, but the only thing constant for us is change,” said Khosla, noting the pair's 23-year fashion career. "It’s easy to stay in a time warp, but you’ve got to get the sensibility right.”

The Jani and Khosla fiasco is a loss for the entire week, though now more than ever the focus falls on Couture Week's Friday finale, when filmmaker Karan Johar will introduce his first fashion line with an all-star cast, marrying Bollywood and bespoke bridal couture after that pair's own historic and heavily sequined affair.