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The traditionalist
Amir Adnan, the man who began his career by designing ties for the fun of it, is now the leading designer in men’s fashion in Pakistan. In just over a decade, contrary to the difficulties faced by most successful people, Adnan’s climb to fame has been a smooth one
Life is good if there is intrinsic satisfaction. According to Maslow’s hierarchy, the highest form of achievement is self-actualization and life is good to a person when his personal goals are being materialized. To me, life is all about achieving goals and ambitions. It also means proving myself worthy of being here. And if I have achieved that, then I have lived a good life.
I feel one should excel in whatever one does. But there should be compassion for everyone, not just for yourself. I learnt something from my mother a long time ago, and that is to make the best of what you have in life. Be content with what you have, then life becomes good, but you have to kill your ego first. If you have made a mistake or hurt someone and realize your mistake, that is what life is all about. I am a strong believer in fate. What is destined for you will happen, but how you get it done is in your hands. Not going against the system, paying your taxes, doing what you have to do to be a good citizen is very important. Work requires a lot of genuineness. If you don’t have that, you won’t get results either.
When I started my career in 1990, I got into it by sheer coincidence. It wasn’t planned. I was a banker and this happened out of the blue. I made some ties for myself, as I had a knack for designing, and friends liked it. Soon enough, it became a commercial thing. That was just destiny at work. My growth early on in my career was so fast that I didn’t even have time to think where I was heading. My first exhibition, which was done purely for fun, led me to become a known tie designer within a year. From there, one thing led to another and I had no idea what to do next. But what I strongly believed in was that whatever was being done would be done in the correct way, and things would automatically work out themselves. That is why I have never felt the need to plan as things take shape on their own if you have faith in God. What God has ordained for you, you will get.
When I was a student, I loved storytelling. I used to travel and heard folk tales from old people, which I noted down. This is what I really wanted to do in life, to write and do plays. What I am saying is that you only get to do what you are destined to, but how you do it is up to you.
Many years ago, someone asked me if I considered myself a successful designer. I answered that if I see a copy of my designs on the road or in shops, then I could consider myself successful. Now, when I look around, I inevitably see things similar to what I have done and that gives me a lot of satisfaction. I have achieved my goal. We want to make designer products available to the masses at much lower prices so that they are affordable to them, starting with Eid. They do it in the West when they have special occasions. We can do it on our occasions. But it has to be genuine, not a marketing gimmick.
I give myself full credit for making traditional clothing fashionable and turning it into a status symbol. It is nice to see people who can afford to buy an outfit from any designer of the world, yet still choose to wear an Amir Adnan outfit in some of the most important events of their life. A prime example is when General Pervez Musharraf went to India, he asked me to design a sherwani. It made him a fashion icon there. When he went to the United Nations, he was wearing a black sherwani when he gave a speech, which was also designed by me. Since then, many bigwigs have started wearing my clothes.
Teejays was the pioneer of fashion, especially traditional fashion. He is the first person who gave shalwar kameez a fashionable status. Then came Rizwan Beyg, who started women’s couture, bringing in high fashion for women’s clothing. Then came my label, which made men’s wear fashionable in Pakistan and got men to revert to traditional clothing with pride.
I wanted to make Amir Adnan a household name, which I have achieved and now, I’d like to do the same abroad. We’re in the process of establishing Amir Adnan outlets overseas and exporting the label. I’m also contemplating opening a fashion school which would not just impart training to students to become designers, but also to market the products and give training in fields related to fashion. Here, there is no institution to teach them. I think I owe it to this industry. I did it the hard way. I don’t want others going through a rough time as I did.
We are also the first to take out a designer label for children. We have taken out a line for kids similar to men’s wear, e.g. shalwar kurta, which children usually wouldn’t wear. Designed in a certain way, they are acceptable to a certain class. This is our culture and we don’t take pride in our clothes, which is sad. Youngsters will not love their culture and traditions if we don’t teach them values. We have to take pride in ourselves, our clothing, our lifestyle, and in being Pakistani. We need to rekindle our self-confidence, we should be proud of what we are. Why don’t we wear shalwar kameez on important occasions? It’s because we have lost confidence in ourselves. Why is Nusrat Fateh Ali popular? He was creative in his qawwalis and he did it with full confidence. We should follow this thought in every walk of life. If you present a beautiful garment in any format abroad, they will still appreciate its beauty.
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