India's Got (Incredible) Talent!

Design students from across India showed off their fashion collections during two amazing runway shows last night at the LaLit Hotel in Mumbai, India before an enthusiastic crowd of industry leaders, writers and fashion moguls.  Some collections featured fabrics made from recovered plastics and cassette tapes while others were handmade of natural fibers with deep textures, amazing hues and incredibly detailed handwork.

All this and more was sponsored by the School of Fashion Technology (Pune, India, www.softpune.com) and DyStar following a day-long, engaging and informative "Green Fashion Conference".  See www.cgreenfashion.com for a peek at some of the collections and the agenda.  More photos will be posted shortly.

Fashion, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.  Three collections, in particular, caught my attention.  An all-white collection of evening wear from dressy casual to stunning formal was one of the finest I've ever seen and would rival anything from the world's top designers.  This collection had the complete attention of the audience from the first model to the very last.  "Oh, wow!" was heard over and over again as each piece was presented.  We knew the collection must be good when the models themselves were smiling from ear-to-ear and applauding wildly as the designers came on stage to greet the audience.

Next was a Charlie Chaplin-inspired casual collection of skirts, shorts, pants, tops, vests and hats that engaged the entire audience.  The models were fitted with Chaplin mustaches and bowler hats, and strutted their stuff up and down the runway mimicking the famous Chaplin walk which was a captivating and amusing change-up from the usually stoic and stiff walk of the models.  Again, the applause was enthusiastic and genuine for this unique and fun collection.  Any young lady of 14-30 would love to add this line to her wardrobe.

The last collection that really caught my eye was a casual collection of earth toned, cotton woven fabrics in prints and embroidered dresses, pants, skirts and tops which featured a stunning emerald dress with a pleated front - unlike any other I've seen before.

All the collections were unique, very well done and exceeded our expectations but these three truly stood out.  The teams of designers were met with raucous applause from all in the audience.  In speaking with the judges (which included a former Miss India), they all agreed that these three collections had instant commercial appeal and should be immediately available in the stores.

I know all this because I was there.  I was honored to be invited as a keynote speaker for the conference  focusing my remarks on some of the future sustainability issues the apparel and textiles industry are likely to face in the near future, and in the next 30-40 years.

What truly impressed me was the commitment expressed by faculty and student presenters to the whole space of eco-friendly and sustainably produced apparel/fashion.  It could be argued that "fashion" is not "sustainable" but that rugged clothing might be.  Be that as it may, the issue is that these young ladies are trying to find a balance between the current commercial demand for fashionable clothing and the recognized need for a sustainable future.

Another presenter, Gerard de Nazelle, CEO of Polygenta (Mumbai) talked about how his company is using recycled water bottles (PET) and converting them into polyester yarn which is made into fabrics for the apparel and fashion sector.  While I'm not a big fan of plastic water bottles, he and his staff are clearly providing a needed and valuable service helping keep all those bottles out of our landfills and reusing them for a valuable purpose.  Congratulations to him for setting up a plant in India - from scratch - to make this product!

Among those of us in the dais, and during the ensuing discussions with fellow professionals, we agreed that industry leaders - the spinners, dyers, colorists, chemists and weavers - and at the management and product design level - need to work a little harder and think a little smarter about how we're going to clothe our current and future populations and do so in a sustainable manner.

I'm glad I was invited to participate.  I'll now have to plant a number of trees when I return home - in part to celebrate Arbor Day - but also to offset all the CO2 I generated traveling from the USA to India and back.