Fashion or style in India has been influenced by thousands of years of tradition behind it. It is said so, because of the varied culture and traditional dresses that one gets to see from each region. They have a history of their own and are related to the clothing and accessories of people living in that era. India is the largest exporter of fabric and second largest producer of silk, which itself establishes it on a global platform in terms of Fashion.
With time and exposure, Indian fashion industry has blossomed. We have come a long way from unsewed clothes to designer wear. The journey though hasn’t been easy for designers initially, but with travel and constant learning, they have managed to travel the path to success. Today, Indian designers are at par with any of their counterpart from the West.
There are various aspects to Fashion Design. The main focus being on Apparels, accessories to go with it have become equally important. That has opened a door for Accessory designers too. The evolution of all this has lot to do with western culture and its influence in our day to day life. That is also why; we see costumes like Jeans with Kurtis or Spaghetti with Sarees widely worn by urban women. Also, many western brands have now found places in Indian wardrobes. Fashion is a lot about comfort too. That’s why people do not mind spending a hefty amount for a product once those buyer- products connect is built between them.
With the presence of Bollywood and many celebrated Fashionistas, Mumbai is considered to be the fashion capital of India. Not very far behind are Delhi and cities like Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Indore etc. Therefore, the venues for most of the Fashion events revolve around these cities.
The purpose of Fashion events is to showcase the creations of Indian designers. Lakme Fashion Week, Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week, Indian Bridal Fashion Week are the top most Fashion events that take place in India. These events promote the Indian Fashion Design Industry on a wider scale also drawing attention from global market. Various mediums like Digital media, Television and Press help in grabbing the eyeballs. Parallel to it, Magazines and Newspapers educate people of the upcoming fashion events. Movies have equally contributed in increasing awareness of audience, forcing designers to constantly experiment and do better.
The steady rise in Fashion industry has encouraged many youngsters to choose Fashion Technology as their careers. Institutes like NIFT and IIFT boast of holding young talented fashion aspirers, promising a secured and bright future to them in this field.
Colleges and Youth Festivals celebrate Fashion by organizing Fashion Shows in-house, allowing youngsters to participate. For this, youngsters remain abreast of recent trends and happenings in this industry. Window shopping and presence of Designer boutique in shopping malls provide them the necessary access to keep in touch with the latest trends.
Designers like Ritu Kumar, Ritu Beri, Manish Malhotra, J.J. Valaya ,Tarun Tahiliani and Satya Paul have placed India on high pedestal in global Fashion Industry platform. Their creations are inspiring a whole new breed of designers who are ready to take the Fashion World by storm.