You win some, you lose some. This was the case with this year’s PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week (PSFW).

The catwalk was laid out, the red carpet rolled forth and PSFW braced itself for setting trends for the spring/summer. But, more than in previous years, this year’s event was a hit-and-miss affair. There were glitches, hitches, speed bumps and a certain lack of buzz that can be put down to fashion having gone into overkill, thanks to overexposure via the Internet.

Major fashion veterans were missing from the designer lineup and there were shows that could have had been edited out altogether. The red carpet was thronged primarily by the media and a very sparse scattering of celebrities and designers.

PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week should feel euphoric about putting out a good show despite longtime veterans backing out

And yet, the hits outnumbered the misses. For PSFW, cocking a challenging eyebrow at all the fashion dinosaurs who had chosen to be preoccupied with creating lawn or who had opted to be part of other shows, decided to make this year’s event all about hailing in the future.

There were new designers who showed definitive promise and fresh-faced models who were taller, slimmer and not too bad at hot-stepping down the catwalk. Continuing with the new system that had been tried out last year, shows were divided between two halls in order to control crowds.

Sticking to the theme of ‘newness’, the event experimented with two new formats for the catwalk: one, in which the ramp spread out in an ‘X’ and the other, a black, shiny, reflective path paved between the benches. It was appreciably an effort to keep things refreshing and at the onset it did look exciting.

Eventually, though, the new formats didn’t really work. The former was a tad too short with the models forced to walk a bit too slowly and the latter reflected off too much light, making photography difficult. Also, models traipsing down the ‘X’ sometimes could barely avoid bumping into each other. One felt sorry for them — the long hours and politics of fashion week are hard enough without having to veer here and there on the ramp.

But there was a lot that did work. Two major labels — Sana Safinaz and Misha Lakhani — opted out of showing at the event at the very last minute due to various reasons and the council had to go about reassembling the show schedules. But the show must go on, and so it did with highs and lows.

A PLATFORM FOR THE NEW

Young labels, historically, are prone to making blunders on the catwalk but this year’s batch was raring to go. Hira Ali, from last year’s Bank Alfalah Rising Talent crop, debuted with a collection that spoke of girl power and her penchant for upbeat, edgy design.

Hussain Rehar didn’t disappoint, making assertive, buoyant statements with power suits, stripes and peek-a-boo metal rings. The young designer had already been dabbling in the limelight by primarily dressing a range of celebrities and this debut proved that he is here to stay.

Debutante Arjumand Bano could have fared better had she not teetered towards hackneyed botanical inspirations. What did catch the eye in her collection were the designs teeming with unique flora and fauna and a beautiful colour palette.

Fledgling designer Mona Imran showed promise with a very creative, well thought-out spin to some of Picasso’s most famous works. The accessories, expressly made to complement the clothes, were probably just as eye-catching as the clothes on the runway.

Zonia Anwaar, hardly a fashion week debutante but still counted in amongst the lot of younger designers, worked with a delicious autumnal palette, creating Ikat prints and moulding them on to flirty little numbers and elegant capes and dresses.

Within the high-street, Saira Rizwan presented an uber-cool desi chic line and Image Fabrics played well to its strengths with chikan fabric.

Also initiated this year was the PEL Craft/Design show with GOLD by Reama Malik where myriad indigenous craft techniques were employed by designers Akif Mahmood, Zonia Anwaar, Hamza Bokhari and Shahroz Tariq Khan. It was a good effort but the segment needs to be developed further in order to present truly impactful design. Akif Mahmood indubitably was the best amongst the four.

THE VETERANS WHO BROUGHT THE HOUSE DOWN

Dotted amongst this bevy of newcomers were a few stolid veterans that didn’t disappoint. Nida Azwer, in fact, can be credited for having saved a somewhat desultory second day of fashion week. The designer stayed true to her signature Eastern silhouettes, tweaking them here and there and working with a treasury of indigenous craft.

Another seasoned player, Sania Maskatiya, proved her prowess with finishing and print with her kaleidoscopic ‘Colour Dash’. Saira Shakira, with their paint splattered ‘Canvas’, delved into modern, nonchalant design and presented some very wearable options.

Particularly outstanding was menswear label Republic by Omar Farooq, attempting to think out of the box rather than slink into the mundane Eastern wear rut that is usually the downfall of men’s apparel shows. Designer Omar Farooq took inspiration from Japanese Manga comic strips and played them out on to smart casual, ’90-ish apparel. There were jackets, tracks, sweatshirts and fanny packs — each very covetable — making one wish that more menswear designers could ditch their love for generic kurtas and push boundaries.

EDITING REQUIRED, PLEASE!

And then there was the show that shouldn’t have been, the one that raised eyebrows and had one wondering how the PFDC could allow such senseless theatrics to bring down their repute. New menswear label Rici Melion started off well enough with well-tailored suits before down-sliding towards unfathomable concoctions where grass grew on a suit, a stuffed tiger clambered on a model’s back and jesters and clowns pranced about.

Everyone enjoys a bit of catwalk drama but it needs to be balanced out with bona fide fashion. Cases in point are Ali Xeeshan’s countless shows and that ebullient ‘Circus’ collection spun out by Nomi Ansari ages ago. But the fashion was hard to find here and it is evident that this young brand needs to be guided on exactly how to put together a show for fashion week. Also, why didn’t the veteran PFDC step in and edit this collection? Why allow this on to their catwalk?

Droning on to the catwalk every now and then was a slew of uninspirational floral designs and mundane pastel coloured evening wear. One supposes such clothes sell well but they’re hardly fashion forward enough for fashion week.

BEJEWELLED

On a more positive note, some beautiful jewellery accessorised certain shows. GOLD by Reama Malik was a welcome addition to the indigenous craft segment while Esfir Jewels were exceptional with their jhumkas and artistic earrings in Nida Azwer’s show. Similarly, jewellery designer Sundus Talpur’s contemporary collection seen in Zonia Anwaar’s show immediately drew attention.

FASHION’S NEW HOTSTEPPERS

Bringing it all together was a new crop of models who are making fashion shows more savvy. The change has been long overdue — short stumpy models can make clothes look bad and don’t really make sense in a field where height is all-important the world over.

Standing out among the newer lot were Rabia Chaudhry, Fahmeen Ansari, Mushk Kaleem and Saman Nawaz. It’s interesting to know that some of these girls have emerged from the country’s smaller towns, moving into the city to pursue modeling careers. With big budgets pouring in via lawn and the high street and regular fashion weeks, modeling may finally be able to lose out its shadier, not-too-impressive image and become recognised as a lucrative, serious profession. This can, however, only happen if models behave professionally and if their employers — fashion weeks and designers — pay them sufficiently. This is perhaps a gripe to scrutinise some other day.

SHERO FOR THE FINALE

Wrapping up PSFW was a classic HSY finale. It was, as expected, high on energy and sheer joie de vivre; some of local fashion’s iconic models — Rachel, Cybil Chowdhry and Abdullah — were brought back on to the catwalk and ’80s and ’90s hits played out on to the catwalk. The show was called ‘Knight’, emphasising that women can stand up for themselves and don’t need male knights to validate them.

To take the final bow, the designer walked out with Mehreen Syed and his mother who he said was his own ‘knight’. Confetti blew out and some within the audience gave him a standing ovation. It was unfortunate, then, that the collection itself was far too reminiscent of earlier HSY shows, serving as part of the entire production rather than becoming the focal point.

But what a production it was! It was pure, unadulterated fashion week magic that HSY always manages to dole out expertly. And it brought fashion week to a euphoric end.

For PSFW should feel euphoric about putting out a good show despite longtime veterans backing out. Often, there is talk that established labels no longer need a fashion week to bring in publicity and they can manage to get orders via good fashion shoots and online advertising.  Should they have the wherewithal, they can simply put together a solo show and keep the focus purely on themselves.

But fashion weeks are important as platforms that promote fresh, promising talent. They are platforms where labels, old and new, are sandwiched together and contend for rave reviews.

Regardless of fluctuating designer lineups and experiments that may go wrong, PSFW remains important. You win some, you lose some … but you live to fight another day.

Published in Dawn, ICON, March 18th, 2018