Fashion fatigue

Minutes before show-time, the arc lights are dimmed, but harried designer Ranna Gill is scurrying up and down the front aisle saying, "We need to get front rows filled!" It���s Day 2 at the country���s biggest fashion extravaganza ��� the India Fashion Week (Delhi), which clashed with the Delhi Fashion Week, was close on the heels of the Couture Week (Mumbai).This was followed by the Lakme India Fashion Week (Mumbai) the very next day.
Have back-to-back fashion weeks, parallel venues and incessant media coverage induced a serious case of fashion fatigue? "Getting a tight front row is tough, because socialites who form a major part of a designer���s clientele are now torn by date clashes. There���s an overdose of fashion," exclaims Gill.
Veteran Ritu Kumar, who was missing in action after her show on the second day of the IFW, says, "I was too exhausted and couldn���t bear the thought of another fashion show!"
Perhaps in a bid to counter heavyweight, Page 3 regulars giving front benches a skip, designers like Kavita Bhartia and Shane & Falguni Peacock lured social butterflies like Feroze Gujral, Shivani Burman, Shabnam Singhal and Farah Ali Khan to the ramp.
But, even that didn���t inject much life into the insipid fashion fiesta. "We can���t possibly be shuttling between two farflung venues and jet-setting different cities to place orders," holds Turkish buyer Sercan.
"The rivalry definitely hurts business," admits Sunil Sethi, president, Fashion Design Council of India. His bitter half, Sumit Nair of the Delhi Fashion Week, asserts that the "betterment of the industry lies in multiple events at diverse venues in the same city, at the same time. During Paris Fashion Week, shows are held all over Paris at various destinations."
For now though, the fashion-rich diet hasn���t been well digested by its connoisseurs. "Designers have stopped catering to fashion forecasts or seasonal demands. From boxers to Bollywood ��� desi fashion is one big reality show," concludes Pradeep Hirani, one of the biggest domestic buyers.