Show directors emerge as new-age architects of a dream called couture.
It was 1995 and Aparna Bahl and her partner Tanya had got a chance of a lifetime; to choreograph a show by the Textile Fair in Faridabad. It was the starting of a journey full of riveting memories and delightful innings. Almost 2,000 shows later choreographers or show directors Appu-Tanya feel as if it is just the beginning. I never started out thinking there is money to be made or this is my ticket to fame. I loved doing it and with time we just got better at it, she admits.
Now there is such uninterrupted synergy between the two that they can read each others minds almost instantly; but what remains a challenge is to manage timelines. Stand alone couture shows are a cakewalk, but during the Couture Week you have less time to create a bigger story. Though by now we know what to do, from the texture of the lighting, sets, movement, dancers to showstoppers; the execution of the designers vision is up to us. Now you have experts in each of the areas, earlier we didnt have this liberty and designers too are a lot more progressive in their thoughts so it is a lot more exciting, she says.
Make-up, hair, right time, music and above all correct energy is what remains Tanyas goal; it all builds up to a crescendo after hectic planning on the day of the show. For the PCJ Couture Week, Tanya and Appu are managing Anju Modi, Manish Arora and Manish Malhotra. The hardest part is taking decisions in split seconds, there is no room for procrastination, she says.
And when you are dealing with models, looks, egos, attitudes and tempers running high, Appu has learnt the art of being stern without losing it. The key is to be firm and be able to control a large number of people and make them listen to you. Over a period of time I have mastered it, she smiles.
And as far as mastery goes, Anu Ahuja, model-turned-show director, is a veteran of prêt shows as she has been doing them for 12 years; but couture is her first time.
Though she knew the rules of the game when she started out as the face of Lakme and went on to bag Raymonds, Vimal and Ponds. When Ensemble started I did my first show with them and my peers included Mehr Jessia, Bipasha Basu, Tapur-Tupur among others way back in the 90s, she says. From under the arch lights to the back, it was quite a change for Anu, but she does admit show direction is much more satisfying than modeling. There is so much more thought that goes into it—–you develop concepts based on the garments, fit them to music and tell a story in 15 minutes.
Fashion, has evolved and grown from the time she began her career, designers are experimenting and a lot of them have found their groove. And thats why handling two designers, from the same city but very different aesthetics is challenging for Anu.
Choreographing Sabyasachi Mukherjee and Anamika Khannas shows for the PCJ Couture Week, Anu hopes to do something innovative as both are serious couturiers. The brief is to keep the focus on just fashion; so there are no grand sets or performances, just simple and effective shows. Isnt that the essence of fashion? she concludes.