Having completed 25 years in the fashion industry, ace designer Manish Malhotra has set a new benchmark for budding designers who wish to showcase the Indian couture globally. Malhotra spoke to BW Businessworld's Ruhail Amin about the future of the Indian Fashion industry, the stiff competition involving global counterparts, the uniqueness of Indian couture and more.
Excerpts:
You have completed 25 years in the fashion industry, how would you describe your journey?This year I complete 26 years as a costume designer and 11 years for my label MANISH MALHOTRA. Going ahead I want to focus a lot more on my label and create outfits that will reach a wider global audience. I want to bring in more diversity with every new collection. My focus in the coming years will be on expanding in Indian and international markets.
How do you see the Indian Fashion Industry when placed in a global context?There is a lot of global interest in India, people want to know what India is doing. Many big fashion houses get a lot of their embroidery work done in India. In terms of textile, culture, art and talent, India has a very bright future in the world of fashion.
Today international labels are establishing their footprint in India, how has this impacted the home-grown brands like yours?It has not really created an issue for me since the gene of my 11 year old label is Indian, bridal and festive wear. The influence of foreign brands actually works great since it helps push Indian brands to make gowns and outfits with a global appeal.
What are the challenges that beset the Indian fashion industry today?Today clients are offered a lot of variety from plenty exhibitions to young designers, senior designers and online sites. This at time tends to confuse the client. The future is for a designer who offers an innovative and creative product at a good price with a great finish. This will become a key in the future.
In terms of numbers how big is the Indian fashion industry and where do you see it five years from now?I am the first Indian designer to open a huge 9000 sq feet store, converting a haveli into a store and showing the path to a lot of designers to open big store formats. Two years ago, we became a 100 crore company and next year plan to grow further. I hope in the future a lot more international investors look to Indian designers to invest and take them to the next level.
What is the inspiration behind your work?To create a modern contemporary India and take that to the world. Mixing Indian craft, textile, and embroidery with global fashion.
How far is the fashion industry helping traditional artisans in India?I think the last 2 years have been great with the revival of Indian textile. I have worked extensively with Kashmiri craft. It has been 4 years working with Mijwan Welfare Society and empowering women from the Mijwan village in Uttar Pradesh. In the spirit of supporting our indigenous heritage, I started working with local weavers and artisans of Benaras and Andhra Pradesh this year. I think as responsible senior designers we must focus on our culture, textile and fabric.
Any word of advice for budding designers?Today success is very easily obtainable through media hype, digital platforms and showstoppers. What is most important is sustainability and having a constant focus to create innovative and creative designs. It is also very important to be grounded and not take anything in life for granted.
