Fashion Pakistan Week bounces back

Fashion bigwigs will present their collections at the four-day event.

KARACHI:

Whoever said that “Delays are sometimes denials” could not have been farther from the truth — for all those who had their fingers crossed, there is good news; the Fashion Pakistan Week (FPW) is finally back after a two-year hiatus. Fashion Pakistan Week 3, which was initially scheduled for December 2011, will now take place in Karachi in April this year.

Almost all the fashion biggies — Bunto Kazmi, Sana Safinaz, Faiza Samee, Kamiar Rokni, Maheen Khan and Deepak Perwani, Fahad Hussayn, Feeha Jamshed, Sanam Chaudhri, Syed Rizwanullah, Fayez Agariah, Sania Maskatiya, Zaheer Abbas — are expected to showcase their collections at the four-day event. However, the conspicuous absence of Rizwan Beyg raises eyebrows.

Chairman Fashion Pakistan Council Shamaeel Ansari shares some details about the upcoming event.

FPW3 is set to take place in April this year. Do you believe this particular council caters only to those who understand high fashion at its best?

No, FPW does not only cater to those who understand high fashion at its best. A few years back, FPW1 launched a lot of new talent

There are a number of fashion powerhouses taking part in this event. How come Rizwan Beyg is missing from the list?

Rizwan Beyg, who is also a member of the council, did not participate in FPW2 either. However, a letter of invitation has been sent to him. A number of slots have been booked already so whoever plans to make it, he or she better be fast.

Syed Rizwanullah participated in the Karachi Fashion Week last year while still being a member of Fashion Pakistan Council. Do you think it hindered his chances of participating in the FPW this year?

The Fashion Pakistan Council does not restrict anybody from participating in other fashion weeks. Rather, we are known to help young talent to grow and that is exactly what we have done.

Is it important for the council to not just host fashion shows but also take active steps to develop the industry? How would you go about doing this?

This time around, we plan to launch more and more young talent through this upcoming fashion week. We have a Fashion Pakistan Lounge in Lahore, where designers are given a platform to showcase their creativity and we now have plans to set one up in Karachi as well. Moreover, we help our designers participate in international trade shows/events. There are trade exhibitions in Singapore and Dubai coming up and we plan to visit them.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 17^th, 2012.