PFDC Fashion Week Of Glitz, Glamour & Business!

The fourth edition of PFDC Fashion Week, in collaboration with the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) and Expo Pakistan, set its sights firmly on increasing business and institutionalising the infant industry to become an integral part of Pakistan's global exports. The event saw 23 designers showcase their prêt-a-porter collection on ramp and exhibitions, over four tumultuous days of high quality fashion that brought together a bevy of prospective buyers, media men and the who's who of Pakistan's fashion circle. Day 1 kick started with Maria B's Neo Natives collection that was inspired by the Aztec and Persian cultures. The collection had a wide variety of ensembles with fused palazzo pants, tunics, evening gowns et cetera, all with sophisticated geometric prints along the hemlines and on the edges of free-flowing sleeves. The colour palette sported predominantly black, whites and crème, with an occasional influx of colour in some ensembles. Maria B's collection was followed by Aurora Luminescence – The Glowing Murk, Zonia's men's and women's wear debut collection. The outfits employed unique and unusual fabrics without embroidery and were designed with ruffles and layering. Her collection was signified by the use of luminous fabric that glowed in the dark, but failed to live up to the expectations. Next up was Zaheer Abbas, whose Myth took the audiences back to the Roman era, when wet-draping technique was employed by artists to create a fluid look of the fabric. Zaheer craftily infused this element in his collection with the use of chiffons on tenne and gamboge shades of orange with complementing motifs. Nida Azwer initiated with her collection Foliaceous that incorporated shades of green and navy with prominent use of brown on hemlines and necklines. The collection highlighted her source of inspiration with leafy prints and textures in flowy silhouettes in cotton, linen and occasional satin silk base. This was followed by collections presented by eight young aspiring designer students of PIFD, who put together an amalgam of retro and modern apparel with skirts, long shirts, gowns and tops. In the backdrop of a techno beat, the first collection had futuristic pieces with shots of brown and blacks paired with contrasting orange belts and Lady Gaga-inspired headgear. The collection seemed to specifically target foreign buyers evident from the western influence on the dresses. Next up were soft pastel greens infused with dark pinks, pearl white and crème shaded Greek goddess gowns, khaddar wrap-arounds with Peshawari topis and a dash of colour and intricate detailing. One particular collection that caught attention was the Rajasthan-inspired dresses with modified angarkhas and lehngas. The palette had unorthodox choice of colours and drifted away from the usual red and maroon combination with the inclusion of pinks, greens and blues. Akif Mehmood lived up to the expectation set by his critically acclaimed Kailash inspired collection of last year. This year he brought forth a sartorial anthology that wooed audiences again – Mast Patang drew inspiration from the festival of Basant. The designer employed the use of velvets, linens, chiffons and cotton as the base for a bright vibrant colour palette highlighted by desi rhombus shaped embroidery. The ensembles included waistcoats, jackets, jumpsuits all imbued with a touch of Basant's tradition. The second day of the fashion week commenced with Nickie Nina's Sous-Marine that was inspired by the aquatic world. The oceanographic collection made use of raw silk, crepe de chine and chiffon, with pleats and minimal cuts. The outfits were emphasised by pearl and chain embellishments and cotton ball laces and tassels along the hemlines. This was followed by Zainab Sajid's Hala-Lujah that failed to bring forth something different. Chiffons and silks were predominantly used with clichéd flowy silhouettes and motifs. Mohsin's Drawing The Line went flat out with bold use of traffic-signal colours on a black base. The black in his ensembles were mainly contrasted with pastel red, blue, green and yellow hues in sharp geometric patterns. His skirts and shirts, all sported contrasting cuffs and collars in the initial outfits, which were later followed by long skirts with white and black striped patterns. The second act had Sania Maskatiya, debutante M. Irfan Ali and FNKAsia showcasing their collections on the ramp. Sania's luxury collection was focused more towards cuts and draping, and used block, screen and digital printing on pure chiffons, silk and crepe, with a minimal crystal and metallic embellishments. This was followed by M. Irfan Ali's Marachay – The Melting Pot Of Punjab. Models sashayed down the ramp dressed in puffed skirts and shirts, with velvet appliqué and patchwork and traditional motifs. The ensembles with their round daamans, collars and the cautious use of reds and yellows over white gave them a traditional Punjabi feel. The colour palette then shifted to brighter hues with blues, yellows and floral patterns accentuated with birdcages as headdresses. The colour palette of Suzani, FNKAsia's collection at the fashion week seemed to be even with the upcoming season. The label maintained its element of funk in its outfits despite the influx of traditional Suzani needlework inspired from Uzbekistan and Bukhara. Darker shades of brown with needlework on the neckline and the selective use of paraphernalia on the periphery of these outfits reinforced Huma Adnan's high street label's philosophy – to "recreate indigenous local crafts and take them from almost extinction to the future of fashion." Day three had a coquettish affair with Adnan Pardesy's Coquetry that stood out because of its vibrant use of colours and outstanding craftwork of the designer with the simplest of simplest fabrics – the muslin cloth. The designer redefined glamour with his bright monotone dresses for men and women both and set new standards for young designers like Batur to follow. The latter's Entrapment came next with a rebellious Iraj-strut as the opening sequence. Dressed in red, with a frilly top and leather blouse, and super stilettos, she set the tone for the rest of the act. Batur's ensembles added the glam-factor that had been missing in this show, but the collection seemed to be best suited for the racks because of its futuristic designs, mainly the structured shoulders and the redundant head-wear. Yahsir Waheed's men's prêt-a-porter collection titled Back To Life was inspired by the Indus Valley Civilisation. The designer brought forth an array of men's apparel from loose tapered pants to double-breast jackets. Waheed's collection emanated its casual feel because of the use of cotton, linen, ajrak and hand woven fabric. Khadi made the third day khaas by its tribute to the heart of Pakistan. The collection titled The City Within explored new creative territories as it put forward a collection that absolutely triumphed the audience. Computer graphically printed collage of Urdu newspapers, with their well-defined legible kitabat, postage stamps, extinct coins, truck art and what not. Elements that make Karachi the city it is were captured on fabric and displayed with poise. Lollywood cinema posters, architectural heritage from the Burnes Road and Kharadar area and the special dose of colours, with irregular hemlines, and pleats made the collection stand out from the rest. Next up was Hammad-ur-Rehman whose collection titled Zarrkhanam explored and infused Pashtun flavours in his ensembles with the perfect background music. Heavy golden embroidery on black chiffons, gowns, net saris for formal wear in dark tones, made prominent use of golden and maroon along the periphery and embroidery on the cuffs. Ammar Belal then changed the mood of the show with his Disco Inferno. Inspired from the disco fever of the 1970's, Belal's upbeat western collection had jeans, flared pants and bohemian outfits. Bright and colourful, the amalgam of candy colours and polka dots clearly defined the essence of the 70's disco culture, with the groovy tunes of Bee Gees' Stayin' Alive in the backdrop accented the act. The final day of the fourth installment of PFDC Fashion Week had fashion big gun Kamiar Rokni in its opening act. This time around, Rokni employed "a minimalist approach to cut with a maximised take on colour." His Modernist pieces explored bold use of colours in silk crepe, viscose and stretch jersey fabrics with chic, urban and wearable outfits. Republic by Omar Farooq showcased a prêt-a-porter menswear collection titled Blaak Chrome inspired from tribal prints and modern architecture. The fabrics used for his ensembles were a concoction of cotton twills, microfiber, suede and leather. His outfits seemed to mark the return of the double-breast blazers and jackets that had long been extinct. This was followed by Ayesha Hashwani's clichéd collection that did not have anything new, the drapes and silhouettes on chiffon, silk and charmeuse embellished with beads, crystals and embroidery seemed too stale and did not live up to the designer's reputation. Later on Muse put forward its Confectionary collection with a candy pink and ice blue colours contrasted with black, creme and black white stripes. The collection had included jumpsuits, shirts, flared pants with prominent incorporation of pleats and wrinkles. Muse's act was preceded by Pakistani fashion stalwart HSY, who, this time came up with a short and sweet collection with sunshine yellows and navy blue as central colours. His pret-a-porter women's collection was predominantly fusion wear, with saris paired with short jackets, summer dresses and long flowy dresses. His men's wear was primarily navy blue with minimal yellow contrasts, the look was accentuated with yellow painted kolhapuris. The grand finale of the event was preceded by a short speech by PFDC spokesperson HSY who thanked the official sponsors, media partners, crew and the organizer for making this event a success. He then described the grand finale of the event, the Design Collaboration Project titled Glamour In Red. This project comprised of 24 designers who designed a red dress each with absolutely no creative limitations in defining glamour as they saw it. Models strutted down the ramp in pure red ensembles to close the event with a final dose of glamour!