Top 10 highlights of PFDC 2012

From awe-inspiring ramp to the impressive choreography.

KARACHI:

Much has been written lauding PFDC as the most credible fashion platform. As the council concludes with its fifth showcase, The Express Tribune counts the 10 ways in which PFDC 2012 further cemented the claim and made the whole experience noteworthy.

The Trends Show

Taking cue from the craft shows in India, designer Fahad Hussayn mobilised all the members of the PFDC to design one garment that symbolised the essence of Pakistan for them. “The whole purpose was to use indigenous fabrics and crafts to create pieces that the local market could then pick on as trends,” explained Hussayn. He teamed up with Shammal Qureshi of Toni & Guy to design headpieces, such as traditional pagris made from hair. The result was an eclectic, yet creative presentation that had the foreign media jump with joy. This is the Pakistan they all want to see; deeply cultural, colourful, flamboyant and fun.

HSY choreography

While there can be many arguments for or against HSY’s design prowess, there is only one solid opinion on his skills as a choreographer — he is brilliant at putting together shows.  With HSY choreographing a show,  there is never a dull moment. Everything from the music to the catwalk to even cartwheels (if need be), is executed in perfect grace and oomph when this master showman takes up a task and PFDC 2012 was a testimony to that.

LUX ad unveiling

You know what’s so great about Lux unveiling its new advertisement? The fact, that Meeraji and Humaima Malik — the other Lux girls — were also there to support the cause. Now we all know that Reema and Meera have often been at daggers drawn but what added spice to the occasion was when Meera, while praising Lux, asserted that, “an actress’s value decreases when she gets married”. One can only wonder who she may be referring to.

Sunsilk blow-dry booth

It really doesn’t get any better for women to be offered free hair and make-up services at the venue of fashion week. Given that the Expo Centre Lahore, that plays host to PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week, is miles away from civilisation, women were thrilled by this service right at the entrance. It may have been a bit public, but it’s not every day that you get styled by Nabila’s NPro team for free.

Plus, one got to see Sunsilk’s new brand ambassador Mahira Khan at the finale, who literally fled from the scene after a while because the fans present at the venue went a little overboard with their affection for her.

So KFJ and Pond’s Gold Radiance

Jewellery designer Kiran Aman, who also designed the jewellery for Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy for the Oscars, came up with an innovative way of promoting Pond’s new Gold Radiance skincare range. Aman launched her new collection titled ‘Barzakh’ for her brand ‘So KFJ’ which will feature her signature beaten gold range of jewellery. Created from black onyx projections and gold, these pieces reflected the concept of ‘Barzakh’, a barrier that divides two worlds. Given their impact on the red carpet, Aman revealed delightedly that, “buyers want me to stock at Harvey Nichols”.

Foreign alliances

The PFDC formed an important rapport with the World Fashion Organisation (WFO), a non-profit global organisation that in the words of its CEO Paco de Jaimes, “Seeks to utilise fashion for empowerment and an escape from poverty.” De Jaimes is the founder of the World Fashion Week and had visited Pakistan last year where he sought an alliance with the controversial Fashion Pakistan Council at the Islamabad Fashion Week.  With the prestigious PFDC on board with the WFO, one expects to see more Pakistani designers on international fashion ramps. Also, Carol Hanlon, a buyer with two decades of fashion experience from Belmont Business Enterprise Centre in Australia, will be extending fashion nurturing programmes that will provide guidance to designers.

Cosa Nostra

With six hours of your primetime gone, those attending fashion weeks will tell you what an ordeal the whole affair is. And if that’s not bad enough, you are usually stranded starved and dehydrated at these events. This year though, Lahore’s famed Italian restaurant Cosa Nostra set up a make shift cafe where one could order their hugely popular pizzas in seven minutes along with their equally mouth-watering Italian gelato.

Ramp

Built for clearly creating an awe-inspiring impact, this 100-feet ramp and 50 x 25 feet long stage was fitted with LCDs all along its perimeter. “It’s the longest and highest ramp ever built for any fashion week in Pakistan. We used the TV screens to add an element of the technical to the whole affair,” informed PFDC Creative Director HSY proudly.

Videos

To make each collection stand out as an intimate creation, the PFDC produced individual videos of the designers, stylists and make-up artists. Though some of the videos were a bit long, the concept allowed for the general public in attendance to get an idea of what was to follow. The ones that stood out were of Ammar Belal’s Reunion, Kamiar Rokni’s florals that Maram and Aabroo created and a magnificent short film that Abdullah Harris shot for Republic.

Exhibition area and lawn shows

To seriously drive the point home that the PFDC means business, the council held voile lawn shows in the afternoon and created a vast exhibition area that housed all the designers’ work. These were presented at the fashion week along with fabric samples, mood boards, portfolios and prices in US dollars for foreign buyers.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 23^rd, 2012.