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What makes Fahad Hussayn so angry?

What makes Fahad Hussayn so angry?

Fahad Hussayn's grand PLBW finale was partly marred by his outburst backstage. What caused it?
Updated 19 Oct, 2017

You know that there’s a Fahad Hussayn show in the offing when you roam off backstage and encounter a model whose face is masked by a large number of diamontes and metal sequins.

Encountered backstage at PLBW
Encountered backstage at PLBW

“I can’t really talk,” she told me as I clicked at her face with my phone and floated out the image onto the Internet. Further ahead, there’s a table cluttered with large golden head accessories, waiting to be propped upon models’ heads before they take to the runway. It’s surreal, fantastical and quintessentially Fahad.

Even the show’s title pays ode to the designer’s love for epic fantasies: Hoshruba: Dara Shikoh aur Sunehri Churail. Leaving the theatrics aside, Fahad also creates beautifully crafted clothes that invariably reflect his signature. It’s an enticing concoction of drama meets fashion that makes one look forward to his shows – as I did, at the recently culminated PFDC L’Oreal Paris Bridal Week (PLBW).

Leaving the theatrics aside, Fahad also creates beautifully crafted clothes that invariably reflect his signature
Leaving the theatrics aside, Fahad also creates beautifully crafted clothes that invariably reflect his signature

Unfortunately, you also know that there’s a Fahad Hussayn show in the offing when you hear quite a bit of shouting backstage. The designer’s temper is notorious and sitting in the audience, it was noticeable that something had gone amiss. Damage control was quickly implemented and the show – the finale for the three-day PLBW - that followed was beautiful. But for Fahad, it was marred by the fact that he had gotten angry again.

What makes him so angry, I asked him later, when he has created an enthralling collection for the fashion week finale?

“It’s just that I work very hard,” he says. “I invest a lot of time into every collection, devising everything from the prints to the embroidery to the accessories for the catwalk to the write-up and the music.

"For this collection, I got posters created to go with the storyline and booked my celebrity showstoppers months beforehand. Mikaal Zulfiqar and Amna Ilyas were actually going to perform a part of the story on the catwalk and it is only when I realised that there wasn’t going to be a head ramp that I dismissed the idea.

I had booked my celebrity showstoppers months in advance, tells Fahad about his preparations for the finale
I had booked my celebrity showstoppers months in advance, tells Fahad about his preparations for the finale

"Saad Sultan especially produced a song for the show which was then sung by Ali Sethi and Zeb Bangash. Even the backdrops were specially created. Then, after so much time and energy, when things go amiss backstage, it makes me angry.”

One could put it down to bad luck. Fahad’s finale was on a day that was thronged by celebrities on the catwalk. The backstage area inevitably got clustered by media trying to interview the actors once they had left the ramp. According to the designer, he tried to keep things at hand but ultimately, he had to take a stand.

“When there is a star there, even your own tailor leaves his work and goes off in the quest of a selfie,” laughs a now chilled-out Fahad. “I couldn’t access my clothes or the turbans for the men that I had particularly taken pride in. A lot of the styling got late. Some of the accessories I had created got lost and when my show started, three of the models weren’t even dressed.”

“By the time they got ready, the segment in which they had to walk had already ended and I told them not to go on to the catwalk. It was harrowing. One of the outfits that I couldn’t showcase had been my favourite. It had taken a year and a half to create. How could I not be upset?”

Fahad Hussayn's showcase was also big on performance
Fahad Hussayn's showcase was also big on performance

Kamiar Rokni, spokesperson for the Pakistan Fashion Design Council (PFDC) observes, “Fahad is generally very tempestuous and so, he’s the worst person that this could have happened to. He is very emotionally invested in his collections and doesn’t want to delegate when it comes to putting in the final touches. As a designer, I understand why he was upset and I wouldn’t have liked it if it had happened to me. Then again, these things happen and sometimes you just have to roll with the punches.”

“When there is a star [backstage], even your own tailor leaves his work and goes off in the quest of a selfie,” laughs a now chilled-out Fahad.

Regardless, Fahad’s show exemplified how catwalk theatrics can go hand in hand with great fashion. Even the profusion of celebrities that he sent down the catwalk couldn’t draw attention away from the labyrinthine handwork and unique amalgamations within his designs.

“People often don’t notice things which is why I opt for celebrity showstoppers,” he explains. “Once I have their attention, they begin to appreciate the designs. The celebrities who took part in the show for me actually believed in my theme, the story it narrated, the drama it sought to create and the traditional music that assisted in the narrative.”

“Fashion week is exhausting, though. Perhaps I shouldn’t have taken the finale slot,” he admits. “I am very particular about the way I want my show to be. It’s why I like opening acts. They give me time to have everything ready just the way I want it to be. The Pakistan Fashion Design Council has always been very kind to me and in retrospect, I am glad that the show went well although I do have some sad memories of it.”

Till another fashion week, then. “I have technically learnt how to deal with people,” vouches Fahad.

But hell hath no fury like a designer scorned – especially if the said designer is Fahad Hussayn.

Comments

Falcon1 Oct 19, 2017 07:16pm
His own freak show perhaps!? It should make anyone freaky and angry at mismash of immitations and nonsensical dos put out as 'fashion show' from Third Rock from the Sun.
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ozman Oct 19, 2017 07:52pm
oh Yeah!Pretty ordinary collection!
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Taimoor Oct 19, 2017 11:29pm
Fawad "Hussayn"? Michael Hussey? Stop being western wannabe tweeking the names to sound more western.
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Babar Oct 20, 2017 09:49am
Eccentric.
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ady Oct 20, 2017 11:24am
Every dress has a lot of time and art work invested in. People in Pakistan don't appreciate and value hard work in general. You can see the mentality in the comments. They don't deserve these work of arts. His anger is justified.
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Sana Oct 23, 2017 03:43pm
His collection was fabulous and when you compare it to what other designers put on that ramp and quality of their work you realise what a waste he is for people in Pakistan who do not value what he showcases but instead want to write an article on anger issues. How about you instead focus on how that platform can be better utilised and those hiccups can be avoided and perhaps that'll be a worthy contribution and criticism. It is a business game of who gets what based on contacts and money. If I put even a ten percent of the amount of work, energy and time that he puts in I would have probably set the stage on fire had things gone left for me. We all want smooth running for our errands so yeah! Write something constructive.
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