Media doesn't know fashion: Manish Arora

Manish Arora is also known as 'Irreverent Arora' or 'Attitude Arora' because of his irreverent and street-smart clothes. A fashion designer with attitude, Arora thinks fashion should be unchained and without boundaries. He is edgy, and with him it is not just about style, design can be a state of mind too.

Anuradha SenGupta talks to the internationally acclaimed fashion guru and finds out what inspires him.

Anuradha SenGupta: When you have seen the kind of coverage on the Indian Fashion Weeks, do you think that the media is supplying what fashion is all about to laymen like us?

Manish Arora: The public is aware of fashion, but I am sorry to say that the media does not understand fashion. All they can ask is, “So how was your collection, tell me more?” Nobody has a specific question ever to ask, except for a few of course. So what happens is that at the end of the day you are just rattling the same thing while knowing that they do not understand what you say.

Anuradha SenGupta: Manish, is the collection that you showcased here (in Delhi) for the Fashion Week the same that you showcased in London in February?

Manish Arora: Yes, it is the same collection but styled differently.

Anuradha SenGupta: What is it called?

sree0209: Manish Arora: I do not give names to my collection but my inspiration is something like Red Riding Hood coming to India via Tokyo.

Anuradha SenGupta: What inspired you, given the fact your collection is so eclectic? I saw Tanjore paintings of gods in some of the art works in your collection.

Manish Arora: Yes, I actually do what comes to my mind when I do a collection. I do not care whether it is one idea or one inspiration or one theme. I have the idea two-three months ahead before I put it up for the show.

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Anuradha SenGupta: When you first landed on the fashion scene with your own collection, common people had a view that that it was bizzare, outlandish, funky and it is not wearable. Today the view is that it may not be wearable but it is fantastic, would you agree?

Manish Arora: Now, everybody would say that it is for us. In fact, recently a magazine wrote about me and put me up on their cover page with the tagline ‘Who wears that?’ And recently I was on their cover again. They themselves admitted that they had put it up a long time back with the question ‘Who wears that?’ The answer seems to be: everybody.

Anuradha SenGupta: Is the international recognition helping the Indian recognition?

Manish Arora: Of course, I do not have doubts about it. I knew that would happen. When somebody is accepted internationally, India wants him or her. I am not taking about fashion but in any field. If a simple thing becomes big for Americans or the French do it, Indians will follow league. Indians will not start anything on their own.

Anuradha SenGupta: To name a few there are, Abu Jani, Sandeep Khosla, Jaya Bachchan, Shahab Durazi, Aishwarya Rai, Simi Garewal, Rocky S and a whole lot of film stars. The question is who wears Manish Arora's clothes?

Manish Arora: Everybody, even Bollywood actors. I do not make clothes for people specifically. I follow a rule of not making clothes to order. So thats why you do not come to know who is wearing it. But people come to my store and buy clothes.

Anuradha SenGupta: Actually I am not trying to say whether famous people wear your clothes or not. I am trying to draw up a profile, as to say that you need guts to wear Manish Arora's clothes?

Manish Arora: Actually it is not true though your question is based on my show. I present my clothes in a very different manner. Possibly very few people will go out wearing them. And that’s my image which I am trying to create. But if you look at it individually, it is very wearable. My clothes are quite strong to be worn from top to bottom.

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Anuradha SenGupta: I was watching your show and I actually thought that they were fantastic pieces. I thought that you should make an art film, how about it?

Manish Arora: I would love to do that. I do want to make a film one day.

Anuradha SenGupta: I read a quote of yours that I don't want to design clothes; I would rather design ashtrays, lamps and clocks. You want to make the world around you don't you?

Manish Arora: For myself, yes.

Anuradha SenGupta: Are you a ‘Mumbaikar’? And you did not even support the Mumbai Fashion Week, why so?

Manish Arora: No, it is not that I did not. I decided to support the Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI). If FDCI were in Mumbai, I would have gone to Mumbai. I can’t jump from one Fashion Week to another with different sponsors. You never know there could be another Fashion Week in future, which I may want to participate in. But there is only one FDCI you know.

Anuradha SenGupta: These did not sound so good. Has it created a rift or is it the more the merrier, how do you see it?

Manish Arora: No, but I guess after what little I saw it seems like designers and audience have fallen in sync with each other. What is happening in Delhi fashion circuits is right with the kind of audience here.

Anuradha SenGupta: Is what Fashion Weeks did before different from what Fashion Week is doing now?

Manish Arora: Yes, designer wise. It had a very strong Bollywood presence and obviously in Mumbai nothing works much without the inclusion of Bollywood.

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Anuradha SenGupta: You shouldn’t sound unhappy about that. You love films, don’t you?

Manish Arora: No, I am not saying that I am unhappy. I am saying that it is good thing.

Anuradha SenGupta: Given the fact that you want to make a film one day, of all the films that you have seen which one comes closest to your sensibility and inspiration?

Manish Arora: I hope none, and I say this because I will make something truly original and “me”.

Anuradha SenGupta: Your creations are very eye-catching and attention grabbing, why is that so?

Manish Arora: Why not eye-catching, colourful and happy. There are many sad things happening in life.

Anuradha SenGupta: Would kitsch be a description for your kind of work?

Manish Arora: Yes, I started with kitsch. Besides, people understand fashion internationally. Suzie Aminchus, a very famous journalist, who writes for International Interview, came for my show and she wrote only four lines about it. She clearly mentioned, “something original from India and not kitsch”. In India I have been stuck with this name of kitsch for years and I don’t feel I need to explain to anybody. Besides it is not kitsch, it about pop art. It is also about what is happening in our country right now.

For example, a few years back I made a T-shirt with an illustration of two boys hugging each other. That is a scene, which you do not see in the streets. It doesn’t mean they are gay either, they are just hugging each other. It is a contemporary in-lived idea. You cannot call it kitsch.

Anuradha SenGupta: Do you see yourself as a social observer/commentator via your art?

Manish Arora: I have lots of reasons for what I do. What I do in fashion has a meaning.

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Anuradha SenGupta: Do you design bridal ensembles?

Manish Arora: No.

Anuradha SenGupta: So how do you survive? As a fashion designer it is tough when you are doing this kind of work unless you become a prêt-retailer isn’t it?

Manish Arora: Yes but that is the way to do it. Bridal wear is not an Indian fashion and I for myself have not designed bridal clothes. But my clothes do sell. They sell in about 25 stores in India. If you do bridal clothes you shall be dealing with personal clientele, you end up compromising and doing what they want, After all, you end up being a tailor.

Anuradha SenGupta: You have a tattooed your wrist reading ‘Ladies' tailor’, why so?

Manish Arora: It is because tailors were the designers in our country. We had them having all those small shops. Fashion is not very old in India. As a matter of fact, it has just been about 20 years or so that fashion designing became a profession. Before that tailors were designers.

Anuradha SenGupta: Tell me about craftsmanship? We witnessed a wardrobe malfunction in Mumbai and the Maharashtra government ordered an inquiry. The enquiry said these things are accidents and hence should be forgotten. Now they are talking about censoring fashion shows. Craftsmanship is an issue, isn't it?

Manish Arora: People have nothing else to do in our country. If you watch FTV, you see naked women all the time, does anybody say anything. And one girl's blouse dropping becomes national news. The media, everybody goes crazy about the whole thing.

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Anuradha SenGupta: I agree with you. It was an accident. For me what is symptomatic of it is that all our fantastic designers are not very good craftsmen, is it?

Manish Arora: Who said that the designers were fantastic. I do not say that everybody is fantastic. There are some fantastic designers and some are not.

Anuradha SenGupta: Does that call for fantastic quality designer products?

Manish Arora: Yes and no. There are certain people who make clothes, which are up to international standards, and they sell internationally but there are many who don’t.

Anuradha SenGupta: Manish Arora, what’s your favourite colour?

Manish Arora: Many and right now yellow.

Anuradha SenGupta: If you look at mass media , TV for example, they portray fashion designers as gay. Why is that?

Manish Arora: I do not know why and it is silly because gay people are just people and they could be anywhere in the world. They could be in fashion and in art too. So I do not think that is it just about designers given the fact that the most famous designers in the world are gay and straight.

Anuradha SenGupta: We saw very little skin in your show, is it because it is a fall winter collection?

Manish Arora: I never make clothes that display skin because I like to make clothes .

Anuradha SenGupta: Manish Arora, it was lovely meeting you, thank you so much.

Manish Arora: Thank you so much.