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Men's wear on disply at the "Tradition
of Finesse" exhibition of Pakistani designer wear that opened in
Srinagar on June 12.
(Photo: Raashid
Bhat)
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Srinagar: As the
defence secretaries of India and Pakistan talked Siachen in
Islamabad Tuesday, across the border, in this Jammu and Kashmir
summer capital, renowned Pakistani designers showcased their
collections to enthusiastic response from local Kashmiris.
Name any internationally renowned Pakistani designer brand and
you'll find it on the tastefully decorated shelves of the
Tradition of Finesse exhibition.
On view at a local shopping complex is a Who's Who of the
Pakistani fashion world: Junaid Jamshed, Bareeze, Chinyere,
Working Woman, Kayseria, Leisure Club, Shahnameh and Urban
Culture, to name just a few.
Sheikh Feroz, 44, the managing director of the Alkhuddam Group of
Companies under whose aegis the exhibition-cum-sale of Pakistani
designer wear has been organised, told IANS: "I used to buy
Bareeze for myself in Dubai. I said why can't Kashmiris wear such
comfortable and traditional dresses? That was my inspiration. Our
USP is the high quality of the brands that we have on display
here."
Feroz said Junaid Jamshed and his team of designers had telephoned
him from Pakistan Tuesday morning.
"They said they had organised a special prayer meeting at their
headquarters for the success of the exhibition," Feroz said.
The exhibition is an affirmation that in spite of differences
between India and Pakistan, the people-to-people connect between
people on both sides of the frontier, which has been boosted by
cross-border bus services and trade, remains strong.
The show opened on the day the defence secretaries of the two
countries were engaged in talks in Islamabad in a bid to resolve
the differences over Kashmir's Siachen glacier, the world's
coldest and highest battlefield where the guns have been silent
since a 2003 truce.
From the traditional shalwar kameez for women to kurta pajamas for
men - and a host of other outfits in between - the exhibition is
overflowing with brands Kashmiris till now only saw on television
channels or read about in fashion magazines.
Interestingly, the exhibition managers did not invite a celebrity
to inaugurate it when it was thrown open to public Tuesday
afternoon.
"I did not invite a celebrity to inaugurate the exhibition because
VVIP movements often inconvenience the public. Our exhibition is
exclusively for the public and the power of the brands we have on
display should be enough to convey a powerful message," Feroz
said.
He said that apart from the brands on display, seven others had
also shown interest in coming the next time around.
"I told them let me start with the 12 brands we have now and wait
for the local response. I feel the tradition of ethnic wear is
immensely popular with Kashmiris and we should have enough lovers
for the brands on display here."
Although some dresses at the exhibition are highly priced, there
are affordable ones for the middle classes as well.
In the Bareeze cotton collection, for instance, women's dresses
are priced up to Rs.10,000 while Junaid Jamshed kurtas and pajamas
start at Rs.2,000.
"The Chinyere cotton wear is a riot of floral colours. I have
never seen such wonderful women's dresses sold in Kashmir," said a
woman who said she had waited eagerly for the exhibition to open.
Besides dresses for men and women, designer Peshawari sandals are
also available at the exhibition.
(Sheikh Qayoom can be contacted at sheikh.abdul@ians.in)
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