Fashion glitter dims a bit with slowdown: Industry experts

The glitz and glamour of fashion extravaganzas in the city have dimmed a bit due to slimmer budgets in the wake of the economic downturn, according to industry experts.
  
Ramp shows are "still happening" but are being held "on tighter budgets" now, with all clients going in for cost-cutting measures.

Noted choreographer Prasad Bidapa, who does a minimum of two to three shows a week in the city, says the impact of the slowdown has been "minimal".

"Frankly speaking, the impact hasn't been much. I am still doing the same number of shows in city as well as outside Bangalore. However, the clients are definitely budget conscious and careful about the adspend", he said.

Prasad, in midst of rehearsals for his show in San Franciso next month denies any cuts in the modelling fees or the amount charged by choreographers as a result of the slump.

"I am still charging the same for my shows and also paying my models the same", he says.
   
Prasad says the fashion scene in the city is "buoyant and vibrant".

"Bangalore designers are doing quite well. They have a presence in not only more than six cities, their collections are picked up in large numbers not just by creme-de-la-creme but also the upper middle class," Prasad said.
    
Rahul Dev Shetty, a protege of Prasad who moved on from being one of the city's top models to choreography 12 years ago, says "the number of ramp shows has come down. We were doing four to five shows a month, it has scaled down to one, as far as high-end shows are concerned".

"Small shows are still happening but they prefer a cheaper choreographer. I believe in quality and quality comes with a price," he said.

Rahul with shows in Dubai, Bahrain, Colombo and Barcelona besides those in Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Chandigarh and other metros in his kitty, says product shows have come down because of lack of sponsorships".
   
However, the industry is "once again bouncing back with a stable government at the Centre and state. We have a lot of enquiries for this month."

Shridhar, another choreographer of repute joined Rahul in saying the "the low is only temporary. Industry is still vibrant with a lot of potential."

Anila and Mobina, well-known model coordinators who have been in the business for over 20 years now say "thanks to the slow down, the number of print ad shoots have increased as clients are desperate to advertise their products because of dip in sales".

However, "the budgets are definitely tighter", they say, adding "while the business has not suffered and our turnover is larger, the models even the leading ones have suffered a 30 per cent cut in the amount paid to them.
  
Jackie Shetty, one of the oldest models of Bangalore says she has not scaled down her modelling fee but "picks and chooses."

Archana, Rakesh Chengappa and Roshan Isaac who are Prasad's models say "working with Prasad is advanatage enough and if the show is good though on slimmer budget, we are ready to reduce our fee."
   
"The fashion market in Bangalore has a lot of potential and we are quite gung ho about it", they say.