Fashion Weeks were originally buisness events wherein fashionable
outfits were displayed to seek buyers. The clothes were the
showstoppers, for they were original, arty and stylish.
With changing times, the scenario has changed there in Fashion Weeks
and more and more glamour is being drawn out on ramp by roping in
bollywood celebs. Models are surpassed by them and there popularity is
used to charm more media attention which means more buisness.
But, this is just a one-sided story and there are designers who
proudly stand apart. When designers Rohit Gandhi and Rahul Khanna were
asked why they didn’t use any celebrity on the catwalk at the India
Fashion Week, Rahul Khanna replied: “Our clothes are our showstoppers.
It’s a business event, let’s keep it that!”
But in a world of glamour where media visibility is all about ‘what’s
hot’ and ‘what’s not’ is measured by roving video cameras present,
having a movie star in front of a celebrity-hungry media really make
bad business sense??
While a few other designers publicly at the fashion week were happily
posing for the cameras, hand in hand with their celebrity
showstoppers. And the media is often just a means to a (business) end.
Rina Dhaka, one of India’s most popular designers, at home and abroad
said that when a star wears the designers clothes it helps him to sell
the product to the customers.
And publicity is one thing that always tags along with celebrities on
the runway.
Off the stage, if you happen to see a crowd in the corner, you can be
sure that a Bollywood star or a beauty queen is at the centre posing
away in front of the flashbulbs.
The Indian fashion design industry’s overall production was just
around 2.7 billion rupees in 2007, with the majority of customers
being Indian. Sunil Sethi, president of the Fashion Design Council of
India said that if celebrities are walking,people identify the success
of the designer with that.
So is it any surprise that the ongoing Lakme Fashion Week in Mumbai,
which is usually chock-a-block with celebrities, receives more media
coverage than the India Fashion Week and the Delhi Fashion Week in the
Indian capital?
As Rina Dhaka points out: "Celebrities do make a difference!"
What do you think — are you interested in buying stuff only if a
Shilpa Shetty or John Abraham look good in it?
