Was the offense taken to Shivan & Narresh’s Gulmarg show about skimpy clothes shown in a holy month or to fashion’s creative audacity itself?

Empathy begins with knowing that one doesn’t know anything and thus the willingness to hear as well as listen. With that as caution, the stormy reactions to designer duo Shivan & Narresh’s recent fashion show in Gulmarg have two core terms to ponder upon.

One is the “holy month of Ramzan”. The other, “models in skimpy attire.”

The first, a religious tradition reverently observed by a community. One which is also deeply respected by the secular-minded across India, regardless of their faith. Curiously, backlashes that bristle with moral policing of fashion find it hard to accept that even fashion designers are secular. They too respect faiths and traditions. They don’t live in culturally insensitive vacuums because, well, for the sake of argument, they make “skimpy” attire.

The other term—“models in skimpy attire”— most used in media reports on the show in Gulmarg, is a limiting, if not ignorant way to sum up a ‘Ski and Après-Ski’ collection. It was shown at a destination where it deserves to be seen. India’s own paradise—a ski destination with a “snowclad dreamscape that has a winterized lens.” The quotes are from the collection note, a copy of which is with this writer along with photographs.

First, the Clothes

The 40 ensembles sent out for ‘Skiing Into 15th Year of Shivan & Narresh’, were made from hundred per cent wool fabrics, included hand-knit woollens created in experimental structures. Graphic jacquard jumpers, clingy lowers, some puffers with appliqué—layered with other pieces for winter holiday collection. Some of these are being commonly termed as “skimpy”. Let’s at least give them their right descriptions? Cut-out swimwear-like intimate body suits with floral-fronted bralettes for women. Underwear as outwear with a woollen printed drape thrown on the shoulders, for men. There were buttoned up ski-suits, fitted dresses worn with stockings, strappy ski footwear with socks and boots that should be applauded for their dandyism and material innovation as well as pants, long jackets and seductive sunglasses. A bag patterned with a grimacing teeth was fun.

Fashion’s first commitment is to itself—to the body, to form, to clothes. The Shivan & Narresh collection didn’t do a mediocre job in imagination. If a review is in order, as it always is, it should be for design flaws or styling. Incidentally, a sari in this collection was a misfit in this writer’s opinion, tokenistic almost, given the overall vibe of the show.

Political responses to groups of people who were offended led the chief minister to promise an enquiry.

What will be the enquiry about?

Whether the very act of staging a fashion show in Gulmarg amounts to a legal violation? As it would be a baseless charge. No designer and show organiser can function in any state, resort or destination, Kashmir or not, without proper licenses and permissions, on paper. These records are available.

Skimpy Questions

That leaves us with skimpy questions. Would a collection of saris, salwar suits and buttoned-up ski garments be okay for the designers to have shown? Or, is the problem with the conceptual audacity of bringing a fashion show to our beloved Kashmir. In which case, creators and artists of all kinds must continue to walk on eggshells. Or, is it just bad timing because a fashion show coincided with the revered month of Ramzan? Having fact-checked, we respectfully understand that no fasting member of any community was contracted to assist or serve at this show—nobody’s grace around food was disregarded.

The designers apologised—presumably—because they saw it as the easiest way out of a political controversy. Shivan and Narresh refused to comment for this article.

Would this collection inclusive of bralettes for women and underpants-wearing male models be okay to show in Delhi or other parts of India where the Muslim community observes the same fast during Ramzan?

What are our thoughts about revealing fashion garments worn in fashion shows during Lent? Or on any of the many fasting days and months that people of different faiths observe in our country across the year.

Fashion’s Beloved Kashmir

Perhaps then, this row is about “my Kashmir” versus “your Kashmir”. Or the fuss is about a certain resort which went ahead with the show after valid permissions were given. Is the issue political? Is it religious? Or is it shrugging, cultural bias against fashion which remains among the easiest to badger creative industries of the world.

Kashmir is the homeland of the world’s finest wool yarn; some of the finest handspun, handwoven pashmina creations and its artisans. The wool-fibre, knitting and cloth making traditions of Himalayan regions are among exemplary metaphors of mountainous resilience found in the world. What Kashmir creates and stands for cannot be replicated anywhere. Shouldn’t a fashion show at Gulmarg then, with innovative garments made with hundred per cent wool be seen as regenerating interest in untried ways. Thus, giving a chance to assimilating newer narratives.

Glimpses from the Fendi show at the Great Wall of China by Karl Lagerfeld in 2007.

The Pierre Cardin show held at the Gobi Desert in 2007.

In 2007, Italian brand Fendi helmed then by late fashion maestro Karl Lagerfeld staged a show on the Great Wall of China. The spectacularity was never in question, yet the clothes when reviewed by critics didn’t find every piece exceptional. The same year Pierre Cardin showed in Dunhuang in the Gobi Desert. In 2020, Jacquemus showed in the Lavender Gardens of France and in 2023, Dior at the Gateway of India. Exceptional destinations are not certificates of fabulous creations. But they help make a bigger point. On the other hand, where fashion errs, a backlash is justified. As with luxury brand Balenciaga showing bondage bears and children photographed for a campaign amid pornographic material. Unacceptable.

This piece would be incomplete without remembering the late couturier Rohit Bal, who held up Kashmiriyat above everything else. When asked why he never staged a show in Kashmir instead of re-creating the valley of flowers through scenography on the ramp, he would smile. His eyes crinkling with realism and loss, he would never say a word.