Still Weak

The economic slowdown might have helped designers reconcile to the idea of a merger between different factions in Indian fashion,but till yesterday the talks hadn’t led to anything concrete. However,in a surprise move,the Fashion and Design Promotion Council (FDPC) has announced the dates for the spring-summer edition of what they call “the first ever India Fashion and Design Week” between October 23-27 in Delhi. The reason,says Vijay Singh,(inset) Secretary General & CEO,FDPC,is to put to rest any confusion among international buyers about the status of the fashion week in India. “We are still in talks with the Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI) and are confident of a merger,but we needed to get the dates out so the buyers can plan their visit,” says Singh. When contacted,FDCI president,Sunil Sethi sounded surprised at the move. “We are still in the middle of negotiations,so this announcement is quite unexpected and unethical. We are committed to our sponsors and in case the two groups come together,we go in with our sponsors,” he said,adding in the same vein,that he too is hopeful of the fashion bodies merging under one platform.

As of now,confirmation of participation at the new week has come from veterans like Tarun Tahiliani,Raghavendra Rathore,Rajesh Pratap Singh,Manish Arora,Anamika Khanna,Namrata Joshipura,Sanchita Ajjampur and young designers like Gaurav Gupta,Atsu Sekhose and Varun Sardana. Singh is hopeful of at least 45 designers participating,in case they have to hold it independently. “Otherwise,we are looking at figures like 120-130 designers in which case the number of days will be increased,” says Singh. Among the tentative venues is Pragati Maidan,but that,along with the list of sponsors will be announced shortly. Incidentally,Sumeet Nair,of the erstwhile Delhi Fashion Week has been roped in as the event manager for this fashion week.