Fashion Lesson No.1
Express Correspondent Somya Lakhani relays from the ramp all the inside stories of this fashion week.
It was a tough night,full of dilemmas and intense decision-making. I couldn’t sleep and sifted through my miniscule collection of clothes for hours. I needed the perfect look to make that powerful impact on the first day of Wills Lifestyle Fashion Week. It was my first time,after all. Ethnic or western? Rebellious or coy? Designer or thrift? These questions raged in my head all night long and I even considered shopping before making my grand entrance at the venue,Pragati Maidan. Hair and heels,makeup and bag had to do the talking for me. With this nervous twitch and a basic chart mapped in my mind,I slept.
But the morning wasn’t as easy as I had thought. The dress was not ironed,the heels were dirty,one earring was missing and the nail paint was chipped. I finally decided upon the basics- a pair of black pants,a striped shirt (to show off the curves),denims sandals and a Chanel look-alike bag bought from the street. My debut wasn’t as fashionable,after all and yes,I was disheartened. I felt like a fashion outcast.
So I shifted my attention from myself to others at WIFW and it was exciting,to say the least. For starters,air-kissing is not a myth and Madhur Bhandarkar did not exaggerate its impact in his film,Page 3 . Secondly,the ‘socialite’ plays a very important part in the fashion circuit- she dots the first row,gives quotes freely,poses for your photographer,gives gossip and moves around with her fashion fiefdom. Thirdly and most importantly,everybody knows everybody,even if they don’t remember each others’ name,they must smile. It’s a little intimidating and tiring. Intimidating,because if I have to make my mark as a fashion journalist then I must chit-chat with everyone and I must learn how to giggle. Tiring because,it just hurts to smile so much.
Soon,I found my way inside the hall- with the ramp in the middle that divided the media from socialites,wannabes and buyers. Before I could transfer all this excitement on Facebook through my phone,the lights dimmed and pumpy music filled the hall. Really tall and almost-anorexic models in designer Neeru Kumar’s ‘organic’ collection moved up and down the ramp. Blank,expressionless desi models and the Olgas posed for the cameras and the photographers hooted on and off. Across the ramp and opposite my third row seat,the front row-ers discussed the collection,the designer and the models. One thing that I kept troubling me at that time was the waistlines of the models. No,I wasn’t exactly worried for the,I was just envious of the 24 inch waistlines.
And when the show got over and I looked around,I realised I had probably dressed the simplest but isn’t that how journalists are expected to be? I guess not- WIFW is an exception. Journalists from across newspapers,magazines and news channels wore their best sarees from Raw Mango and Sabyasachi and the younger ones flaunted their Vizyone dresses and manicured nails. Before I could curse myself for being so ill-prepared,a girl seated next to me introduced herself and confessed how nervous she was- it was her first time too. Relief at last- also,she was dressed casually in a pair of denims. Relief at last.
But I know this won’t last too long as WIFW is on till Sunday and each day I will struggle to look stylish in my own thrift-quirky way. I may sound absolutely narcissistic but it really does matter how you dress up at a fashion event and my lessons have just begun.
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