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“The fashion industry needs to take the media seriously. Often
the fashion fraternity at important events is more interested in
partying and then getting up late the next morning. Interview timings
are not kept to and the media has to adhere to deadlines. We cannot
meet them at events. Sometimes there is no look book for buyers.
Bollywood of course drives newspapers more than fashion because
it is older.”
At the same time journalists also have a responsibility. This point
was made by Saran. She stressed the fact that fashion journalists
must understand cultural theory. They should do their research and
be able to comment and critique. “Journalists must have strong
visualisation and communication skills. A historical perspective
is important as is an open mind. One cannot go into a show with
preconceived notions. If a designers collection is good in one year
you cannot assume that it will be better the next year. The Lakme
Fashion Week has 500 media personnel covering the event. In such
a competitive environment you have to prove that you are better
than everybody else if you want a designer to share his/her views
with you. Journalists must also keep up with the latest trends and
be aware of what goes on behind the creative process. They must
be aware of what the designer is doing and the strategy he/she is
following to reach different audience strata.”
She noted that it is the make believe aspect of fashion that makes
it work. You cannot have an normal woman wearing clothes and hope
that a magazine will be4 commercially successful. Models offer aspiration
value she explained. A journalist should have the skil to explain
to women why a particular style is good for her and what does not
suit her and why. Adams pointed out that the fashion industry is
growing along with the media outlets that cover it. There are over
a million fashion sites. The audience has become an intrinsic onlooker.
“Bollywood has had a huge influence on fashion right from the
days of Nargis’ is and Rajesh Khanna’s hairstyles. Today
fashion designers work on Bollywood films. Aki Narula worked on
Bunty and Bablii. The television medium effectively propagates styles
and trends. It shows that India is the only country whose people
wear traditional clothe in a fashionable manner. A good example
is the saris being worn in soaps like Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhie Bahu
Thi. Designers also get good recall from work done on television.
An example would be Neeta Lula designing Jassi’s wedding outfit.
Abroad Friends showcased cool and hip styled clothing. Sex And The
City meanwhile showed off corporate wear and evening clothes.”
She noted that the aim of Zee Trendz and FTV is to make content
audience friendly. The aim is to show how fashion clothes are relevant
to people’s lives. In this way fashion is made non-elitist.
“Zee Trendz offers viewers a better understanding of fashion
terminology through shows like Simply Style and After Hours. We
want content to be educative, relative and fun. Ditial television
platforms like DTH, IPTV will create further demand for fashion
and lifestyle based content. Zee Trendz is well positioned to offer
he best of both.”
As far as the fashion industry is concerned she says that the Indian
industry if it wants to export more of its product abroad needs
to focus on ethnic sensibilities with a global perspective. “Indian
fashion on TV must speak a global language. Designers need to adapt
to an international style of dressing. This is what Ashish Soni
did successfully at the New York Fashion Week.”
Borrelli pointed out that there are three kinds of fashion sites
on the web. The first kind is vanity sites. These belong to either
designers or corporations. They present brands in a personal way.
The second are commercial sites. These deliver to the globe fashion
forward garments. The third are editorial sites like style.com.
“Editorial sites give artistes a chance to have an online gallery.
When we started out we did not want to simply replicate Vogue online.
Our small staff of 10-12 people creates the site’s content.
Our aim is to always have a strong editorial point of view and not
just be a look look site.
"The language we use is precise and engaging. Visual elements
are important like video, which we are expanding upon. Site stickiness
is important in terms of the amount of time a visitor spends on
your site. We try to keep in mind fashion history in terms of images
and support growing talent. So we cover international events like
the Mumbai Fashion Week.”
Young dwelt on the importance of journalists going beyond the hype.
“Journalists need to look beyond who is sitting in the front
row at fashion events. Tahey also need to look at fashion on the
street and not only what is on the catwalk. One must know the social,
economic and political side to a garment. Otherwise it is merely
fluff.
"Also a journalist to write a complete business story must
speak to the CEO, distributor and customer in addition to the designer.
The speed at which the media is moving is growing. The citizens
media like blogs have an advantage over traditional media in this
respect.”
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