ID :
338893
Mon, 08/25/2014 - 08:44
Auther :

India's Booming Fashion Industry Beckons Young Designers

By Saraswathi Muniappan NEW DELHI, Aug 25 (Bernama) -- "I design to express myself, it is my passion", said Ravi Tirkey, 22, (left) who is among the thousands of young Indians dreaming of etching a name in India's glamourous fashion world. "It’s common in any Indian family for the parents to force us to do a professional course, for instance engineering. But I knew designing is what I wanted and I was persistent in chasing after my dream", he shared. Ravi is hopeful that though India's fashion scene is dominated by the fairer sex, he too could follow the footsteps of the country's world-renowned male designers like Rohit Bal, Manish Arora, Tarun Tahiliani and Manish Malhotra, just to name a few. "It literally took me one year to convince my parents to allow me to take up this career and where to be based", Ravi said in jest to this writer. "Finally they decided to go my way and enrolled me in Raffles Millennium International in New Delhi", said the aspiring designer, one of the two top students to graduate from the college this year. Raffles Millennium, is a joint venture between Raffles Education Corp Ltd, Singapore and Educomp Solutions Ltd, India. A RATHER EASIER ROUTE FOR VRINDA MONGA However, it was totally the opposite for the other top student, Vrinda Monga, 22. "My parents have always told me to go after what I wanted and what I liked", she said to Bernama. Hence, for Vrinda, whose parents were already in the garment industry, the journey towards her dream career was rather smooth. Ravi and Vrinda majored in Fashion Design and are among thousands of students who enter the burgeoning industry every year in the country of 1.3 billion people. With more than 81 per cent of the population below 45 years of age being fashion conscious, there is always a market for new trends in fashion. MAKING A MARK The industry worth about Rs20,000 crore (US$3.31 billion) holds vast potential, but it is not easy to make the mark, admitted Ravi. "I am planning to come up with my own label, Augustus Designer, taking after my father’s name. I am going to be based in New Delhi", he said, adding that he is targeting the niche market. Ravi is confident of making a difference in the industry. He wants to focus on creating a sustainable fashion industry from the environment perspective. I am doing some research. I have seen how chemicals and dyes are used extensively in the industry. There is an issue of sustainability of the environment at hand. There are already companies that have taken some initiatives on this. I want to take the same path and make a difference", said the environmentalist at heart. Meanwhile, Vrinda is keen to venture into the commercial fashion market. "I always looked up to my father, but he does very different stuff than what I am doing or planning to do. He is into block printing, Rajasthani kind of designs", she said. Although, she has only got a glimpse of the vast industry, Vrinda aims to go beyond India someday. "I will continue to maintain the Indian cultural attributes in my designs but with a Western touch", she said, adding that her recent collections were mostly of Western design combined with Indian traditional embroidery. "Many of the top designers’ in India will initially do Western designs and then return to their Indian roots. This is what India is all about. The richness in its culture. So, if you want to sell in India, you have to retain the Indian attributes in your design", said Vrinda. INDIA’S DIVERSITY AND POTENTIALS India's diverse culture and rich traditions were definitely the strength, said Raffles Education Corp’s Vice President, India, Mike Yam Keong Chee. "India is a huge exporter of fabrics and accessories. In the world market, India is the third largest producer of cotton, the second largest producer of silk and the fifth largest producer of man-made fibres. In addition, it also offers cheaper skilled work force", he said. India supplies fabrics to the international fashion houses at competitive prices. Another area in demand in the foreign fashion market is the intricate hand embroidery on garments including bead work that can be found in India. "With all this demand and supply, Indian Fashion industry is booming. International Fashion and Lifestyle brands like Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, Swarovski, Cartier, Tiffany, Omega, Mont Blanc have already established their shops in the country", Yam, a Malaysian, told Bernama. All these were happening only because international companies have identified the rate where Indian fashion industry is growing, he said. Many fashion designers and management experts foresee an average growth of about 10-12 per cent for the Indian fashion industry in the coming years. The growth rate could be more than 15 per cent, if infrastructural, other logistical bottlenecks and drawbacks are overcome. Thus there is a good chance for people like Ravi and Vrinda in achieving their dreams. (photoBERNAMA) -- BERNAMA

X