It is time for the chic fashionistas to strut their stuff. It is time for the third edition of the highly successful Bangalore Fashion Week which goes on the floors starting July 22. This four day event will showcase the best collections from designers adorned by the topmost models and attended by top celebrities. Fashion designers though form the most vital link of the ensemble. With so many platforms to showcase their designs and fashion cues changing often, designers have to be on their toes to come up with something new and attractive every time. Creativity, smartness, communication and crisis management abilities are needed the most. A dynamic profession where if one finds a footing, fame and money is never in short supply. Moreover there is space for everyone as long as creativity keeps flowing. So how does one become a fashion designer? With so many institutes offering courses in fashion designing it becomes difficult to select the right institute. Adding to the complexity is the huge demand for fashion designing course since this is one of the fastest growing sectors and with ample spotlight. Fashion designing involves less of theory and more of practical's with a lot of insight into communication techniques, etiquettes, management techniques and crisis handling abilities. Sikkim Manipal University Distance Education (SMU-DE) has taken all these aspects in its course offering Bachelor of Science in Apparel and Fashion Designing (BScAFD). The course while focussing on elements of pattern techniques and fundamentals of designing equally focuses on imparting of soft skills and all aspects of marketing and advertising to ensure that its students are best prepared to develop a solid footing in the industry. This six semester course is complete with practical sessions, industry mentoring, specialisations and internships. With a faculty boasting of extensive industry experience, teaching method has been made easy and simple with case studies, real life examples and visual aids for accurate demonstration. The idea is to allow students to develop a holistic understanding of not just the subject in question but the industry in itself, its scope, limitations and challenges. SMU-DE students who have successfully completed this course are now working with some of the leading apparel houses in the country, a strong testimony to their level of preparedness and training. It's a bit cliché to think that all fashion designers work for apparel manufacturers, creating designs for men, women and children for mass market consumption. Fashion designers may work full-time for one company, known as in-house designers. They may work alone or as part of a team. Freelance designers work for themselves, and sell their designs to fashion houses, directly to shops, or to clothing manufacturers. Some fashion designers are self-employed and design for individual clients. According to the Annual Reports (2006-2007), Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, the domestic market will grow to the tune of Rs. 23,000 crores by 2010 and

generate an additional employment for approximately 12-17 million workers of whom 5 million will be skilled in the same time span. That in turn adds up to a sea of opportunities for talented individuals to excel. We at SMU-DE understand the needs of the industry with an eye on the future and prepare our students so that they can excel in the industry and carve out a niche segment of their own.

Bangalore, July 23 – The Bangalore Fashion Week kicked off here on Thursday with a fashion show featuring the spring-summer collections of designers Anju Modi and Arshi Jamal.

The collections were based on typical Indian attire, in which Modi made a traditional rich Banarasi style sarees, while Jamal depicted a Mughal theme from the Bollywood film ‘Jodha Akbar’ called Jashn-e-Bahara.

While talking to the media, Jamal said the fabric he used in his collection is brocade and velvet.

“This year I have used most of brocade and velvet because these are the fabrics which are quite used in winters, and I kept the weather in mind. I have specially seen the design, which I am using this year, and are very fitted ones,” said Jamal.

“I have given more emphasis on fits and styles besides, like, embroidery, which is again my forte, and so, like, I just keep in mind international markets also,” he added.

Brazilian-model-turned-Bollywood-actor Giselli Monteiro walked the ramp at the fashion event, and wore a bridal sari designed by designer Anju Modi.

“It was really nice, you know, shooting for a long time for a movie. So after so long, I am back on runways and somehow it is just what I love to do, you know. I am doing this since when I was 17 years old, ” said Monteiro.

“It is a pleasure for me, and it always makes my heart beat fast. I do it with passion and with love, and I love to be here tonight,” she added.

It's a mixed bag of responses that we got from all the designers that we spoke to on the last day of BFW. While some new designers who bagged a few local consignment orders were content as they did not expect more and gave us a guarded reply with lots of off the record and in between line remarks on the last day. Others were not so subtle. Bhumika and Hiral, Zubin Vakil, Neelam Ashley were all very vocal with the media on the dismal service, response and almost nil buyer presence at BFW. Yash Vardhan from Delhi who was put up at the Ottera had to change hotels in a day as the hospitality management was nil. He was not particularly happy with the models as well or with the fact that there were no rehearsals before the show.

Jai and Parvesh were livid before the start of the show and were almost about to pull out after seeing the way the models were draped and sent out on the ramp. As Jai says, "We were given different sizes for the models and not only that, the choreographer of our show who discussed the look and was given references for the whole show backed out at the last minute. Forget rehearsals, they did not even have a fittings session." Parvesh adds in, "We tried to salvage the situation by trying to do the draping ourselves in the last minute but obviously with the heavy pieces that we have in the collection it was impossible to re-do the draping which was done by ill trained back stage assistants in a few seconds on models who's walks were even worse on the ramp. "Even though a lot of the younger designers were debutants at this fashion week they all knew what it took to put a good show together the first of it being models, Tejas Gandhi from Kolkata was hassled with the set of confused models that he was given for his show, "Along with designing I train models in Kolkata for shows and I was pretty disappointed that I got at this 'Fashion Week'. He also had a lot to say about the basic refreshment arrangements, "No one in the hotel has a clue I thought this was supposed to be a five star hotel. Lunch/Dinner were always an embarrassing argument for us every time."

When we spoke to S. Mahajan on both buyers and models he commented, "It's been good and I think we have out up a great show." But when we pressed him for names of a few buyers who were present there or a figure he said. "I do not know this is the first week and I am sure it will pick up but I do not have any names or figures on me right now." On the mixed bag of clothes that were showcased he said, "We had not given any particular brief to the designers. As this is the first edition we told them to get their best collection." "We are trying to target the IT crowd the upper middle class with this fashion week by offering them affordable fashion." (Wonder if they have heard about the recession, layoffs in the IT sector and the two hour drive from the city for 'local' middle class crowd?). A well known designer who had been invited to show at the BFW and had been given 'the royal treatment' said, "I do not considerIt's a mixed bag of responses that we got from all the designers that we spoke to on the last day of BFW. While some new designers who bagged a few local consignment orders were content as they did not expect more and gave us a guarded reply with lots of off the record and in between line remarks on the last day. Others were not so subtle. Bhumika and Hiral, Zubin Vakil, Neelam Ashley were all very vocal with the media on the dismal service, response and almost nil buyer presence at BFW. Yash Vardhan from Delhi who was put up at the Ottera had to change hotels in a day as the hospitality management was nil. He was not particularly happy with the models as well or with the fact that there were no rehearsals before the show.

Jai and Parvesh were livid before the start of the show and were almost about to pull out after seeing the way the models were draped and sent out on the ramp. As Jai says, "We were given different sizes for the models and not only that, the choreographer of our show who discussed the look and was given references for the whole show backed out at the last minute. Forget rehearsals, they did not even have a fittings session." Parvesh adds in, "We tried to salvage the situation by trying to do the draping ourselves in the last minute but obviously with the heavy pieces that we have in the collection it was impossible to re-do the draping which was done by ill trained back stage assistants in a few seconds on models who's walks were even worse on the ramp. "Even though a lot of the younger designers were debutants at this fashion week they all knew what it took to put a good show together the first of it being models, Tejas Gandhi from Kolkata was hassled with the set of confused models that he was given for his show, "Along with designing I train models in Kolkata for shows and I was pretty disappointed that I got at this 'Fashion Week'. He also had a lot to say about the basic refreshment arrangements, "No one in the hotel has a clue I thought this was supposed to be a five star hotel. Lunch/Dinner were always an embarrassing argument for us every time."

When we spoke to S. Mahajan on both buyers and models he commented, "It's been good and I think we have out up a great show." But when we pressed him for names of a few buyers who were present there or a figure he said. "I do not know this is the first week and I am sure it will pick up but I do not have any names or figures on me right now." On the mixed bag of clothes that were showcased he said, "We had not given any particular brief to the designers. As this is the first edition we told them to get their best collection." "We are trying to target the IT crowd the upper middle class with this fashion week by offering them affordable fashion." (Wonder if they have heard about the recession, layoffs in the IT sector and the two hour drive from the city for 'local' middle class crowd?). A well known designer who had been invited to show at the BFW and had been given 'the royal treatment' said, "I do not consider Bangalore a fashion market and I do not think anyone here has the fashion sense to wear my clothes. I came because I was invited. That's it." market and I do not think anyone here has the fashion sense to wear my clothes. I came because I was invited. That's it."

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Shop till You Drop in Mall Haven Bangalore by Pushpitha Wijesinghe

in Travel (submitted 2010-07-13)

It is said that the measure of a city's appeal rests within the walls of its supermalls, or so goes the popular mantra of shopaholics worldwide. And if that is truly the case, the garden city of Bangalore surpasses all others to come out on top as the most appealing zip code in Karnataka. As the undisputed shopping capital in the region, the city of Bangalore is a hotspot for shoppers in search of the quintessential mall experience in the heart of India's southern state.

Located on Hosur Main Road in Koramangala, Bangalore, Forum Mall is a must shop venue when it comes to experiencing retail therapy Bangalore style. Renowned as the go to place for Swarovski Crystals and global brands such as Tommy Hilfiger, this 650,000 square foot megamall also offers shoppers stylish Indian wear including traditional khadis. PVR film theatres and a classic British pub in Forum Mall guarantee a luxury shopping experience like no other.

Next up is Garuda Mall on the corner of the McGrath and Commissariat Roads which is also the city's second largest shopping complex and one of the newest additions to its mallscape. Sprawled across 300,000 square feet this funky mall sells anything and everything under the sun while Globus Mall, Gopalan and Sigma Malls are equally engaging shopping complexes. Lifestyle on Victoria Rd is also a highlight for its wide selection of cosmetics, electronics, fabric, books, sweetmeats and furniture. Brands of the likes of Lee Jeans, Titan timepieces and creative handicrafts are found at Safina Plaza which also hosts a bargain sale nearly every week. Designer clothes and chic accessories are the hot picks at Lido where international labels are available at unbelievably affordable prices.

Dubbed the Harrods of Bangalore, Shopper's Stop is another highlight in addition to the 5th Avenue Mall where men and women's wear, fine jewellery, salons, gaming arcades, and food courts fill the property's four storeys. The preferred hangout spot for the city's young and fashionable, Mota Royal Arcade on Brigade Road is synonymous with its Fashion Flash outlet, One Stop Shop and Only Place restaurant. Other points of interest include Arihant Plaza where exclusive accessories, cosmetics, electronic gadgetry and sportswear are available while the Devatha Plaza houses Bangalore's Casa Piccola and Raaga outlets as well as experienced independent freelance writer. He specializes in providing a wide variety of content and articles related to the travel hospitality industry.

It is well past sun down but the day has just begun for this 27-year-old designer. "I have waited so long for this moment," admits Vipin Batra as he scurries about getting his tall, leggy models to try out his designs. Batra opened the Generation Next designer category on the first day of the Lakme Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010 in Mumbai last weekend. "I always dreamt of arriving with my own label," says Batra. His phone hasn't stopped ringing ever since March 5, when his alma mater Northern India Institute of Fashion Technology (NIIFT) in Mohali got to know about his debut.

Batra, who hails from Rajasthan, is from the 2004-2006 batch of Knitwear Design Technology. "All that I know of fashion, its techniques and philosophy is what I learnt at NIIFT, Mohali," he says. His teachers haven't forgotten him either. "Batra was very hard working and I am glad it all paid off well for him," says NIIFT Mohali's director Vijay Sharma.

Designer duo Hemant Lalwani and Nandita Rajpurani, incidentally, are two other successful designers who trained at the institute. About a year ago, he came out with his own label V for Vipin Batra. He took his new line to the Bangalore Fashion Week held in February this year. For LFW, Batra rolled out his Swirls of Life. "I like to experiment with different yarns by creating new textures. For Swirls of Life, I was inspired by the planets and the cosmos," he says, whose line-up included snug-fitting gowns made of graphic-jacquard knitwear technique. With just Swarovskis for embellishment, Batra played up the line with lots of colour.

The response, so far, has been good. "I have got invitations for Hong Kong Fashion Week as well London Fashion Week. I am thrilled," he sums up. Vipin Batra has been trying to make inroads into Lakme Fashion Week for over three years and finally made his debut this season.

Vipin says, "I was so excited to get this opportunity to show my work to a larger audience with Lakmé Fashion Week - Summer/Resort 2010. I am not one to get afraid of competition, rather I take it as a challenge; it gives me even more strength to push my creativity to the next level. Swirls of Light is the main source of inspiration and one person who I would Love to dress in my signature style is my idol, John Gilliano."