A self-proclaimed advocate of art and fashion, young entrepreneur Divya Gupta’s vision to give Bengaluru’s fashion quotient a label boost, is set to come to fruition, come March 9. Hailing from the culture-rich Kolkata, Divya moved here in late 2009, and to her dismay, found that the city was simply not up to mark in the art and design departments. A few years on, Paraphernalia 2013 —  is set to give Bengalureans a fair dose of niche and novel products. We speak to the Purdue graduate about the show, her vision for a style-savvy city and her entrepreneurial dreams.

For the astute biz-brain, the show is a platform for young, upcoming designers and entrepreneurs to showcase their products. “And it is unique because all the participants are handpicked,” starts off Divya, “We’ve gone around and seen a lot of the exhibitors, some of the products I’ve used personally, or I check them out online, before getting them on board.” Naturally, one would assume the entrepreneur has solid experience in design. But, that is not so. “I am a Bachelor of Science in management and finance. I was in the US for five years, where I studied and worked for a while. Then, I was in the Middle East for a year. This exposed me to a lot of different fashion sensibilities,” she says, adding, “And then, there’s the fact that I grew up in Kolkata, a major cultural hub, and hotbed for designers.” But, when she came to the city, she found that there was a dearth of fashion labels. “The kind of exhibitions here are different from the ones in Mumbai and Kolkata, where there are highly exclusive shows,” she points out.

After her move here, she was always on the lookout for entrepreneurial opportunities, not wanting to continue in the Big Four sphere. “When I worked in MNCs like KPMG and PWHC, as a management consultant, I had access to a wide range of industries, including fashion. Paraphernalia seemed like the perfect way to kick start on my own independently,” she admits. She makes it a point to add, “It is not just solely interest in art or fashion that has created the event. But, it really boils down to business acumen. The passion is there, of course — it is what helped me diversify.”

So, what is her vision, to give Bengaluru a stylish makeover? “This is a very young city, a very cosmopolitan city. People are open to different kinds of fashion— in fact, I see a lot of Mumbai in Bengaluru. My vision is to give the city more variety, keeping in mind traditions and tastes,” she gushes.Divya doesn’t want to look too much into the future now, wanting instead to just see how her impending show is received. “Depending on how it takes off, and based on my goals and objectives, I want to make this a biannual event, ” she explains.

source: http://www.DeccanChronicle.com / Home> LifeStyle> Fashion / DC, by Anusha Vincent / March 02nd, 2013

Budding Designers

Wills Lifestyle hosted the seventh edition of ‘The Debut’, an initiative for young fashion students, the future designers of the country, to promote their creativity and showcase their skills.

The event, held recently at Orion Mall, saw 13 students presenting their works to a panel of judges comprising eminent designers Manoviraj Khosla, Raj Shroff and Cora Goteman, head of department, fashion design, Pearl Academy.

These candidates were shortlisted after qualifying in a previous round, wherein their illustration-based design portfolios were evaluated. In this round, they were judged on parameters like creativity, technicality and commercial viability.

“‘The Debut’ is a unique platform that nurtures and recognises young talent in the field of fashion design. We are delighted at the response received and are sure that the initiative will only become stronger in the years to come,” says Atul Chand of ITC’s lifestyle retailing business division.

Stunning hand-tailored outfits by the students were displayed by the City’s models and the regional round saw some really good designs and themes explored. From ‘Retro Circus’, using clown collars and circus tents as inspiration to ‘Op Art’, using 3D structures and lines to ‘Indomania’, which concerned the country’s past — it was evident that a lot of time, thought and effort had gone into each collection.
Even the judges were quite impressed by the craftsmanship. “I was pleasantly surprised by what I saw. At the end of the day, clothes need to be commercially viable because someone will wear it. Some of these students have understood that and have a lot of potential to make a difference in the industry,” expresses designer Manoviraj Khosla.

It was quite interesting to hear the designers speak about the look they chose and describe the inspiration behind it. “It took me three weeks to make my collection. I focussed on the hippie culture and recreated the ‘Summer of Love’ in 1967,” shares an excited Sanjana Jain of Pearl Academy, Chennai, one of the winners of this round for her turquoise gypsy dress and hipster shorts. She informs that she is already planning her third outfit for the finals.

The other short-listed participants to go the finals in New Delhi are Anubha Jain (Pearl Academy, Delhi), Mridul Jacob (Pearl Academy, Chennai), Raunaq Arora (NIFT, Hyderabad) and Padmaraj (NIFT, Bangalore).

source: http://www.DeccanHerald.com / Home> Supplements>MetroLife / by DHNS / February 26th, 2013