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Keeping abreast of time
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Rina Dhaka says designers should retain their individuality to survive in the fashion industry
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Photo: Anu Pushkarna
Dressing up the bride Rina Dhaka
Rina Dhaka is nostalgic about the days gone by, when fashion designers worked as artists. “Frankly, it was fabulous then. The whole mantra of life was different,” Rina goes back 15 years in time, when she began her designing career.
“Now it’s about bills and economics. If you do not succeed, you are no good,” says the designer who revolutionised Indian fashion with her bold outfits. But the veteran has managed to “re-invent” herself over the years.
“I always design independently. I never rely on assistants. I am strong on cuts, so I keep creating new designs,” says Rina revealing her mantra for staying afloat.
Looking trim in casual trousers and white shirt, Rina is all geared up for Bridal Asia beginning next week in the Capital. “This is a part of me that only my customers know. For us 90 per cent of the revenue comes from events like these,” she explains.
With events like Bridal Asia and fashion weeks, opportunities have grown manifold for designers, says Rina, but the industry itself is in a fledgling state now.
“Frankly, the industry is still young. On the one hand, there are the designers, on the other, is the modelling industry and the fashion media. Over the years, a number of support industries for fashion have come up. The retail boom too has helped the industry, says the designer.
“Years ago, there was merely a shop in Hauz Khas village. Now there are bustling malls everywhere. There are buyers who are ready to put money on the table. Further, the market for branded goods has grown,” Rina takes us through the changing scenario.
As the fashion scene changes, Rina feels the onus is on designers to find their strength. “There are two kinds of designers — those who can do both Indian and Western clothes and those who cannot. It is for each designer to find their edge,” she says. “Fashion is about your individuality. It is your uniqueness that matters,” says Rina.
Rina says planning has never really worked for her. “Five-year plans are not for me. Life has been hectic. It has been from season to season, order to delivery.”
P. ANIMA
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Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
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Kochi
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Thiruvananthapuram
Vijayawada
Visakhapatnam
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