In a candid chat, designer Rocky S talks to Riya Sharma about his collection at london Fashion Week, differences he finds in the fashion industry back at home and worldwide and how designers should focus on putting up a professional show than an entertaining one
He has worked in more than 300 movies. Rocky S understands not only what his celebrities want, but also what his common man desires. He can play with the vision of a director and can style a movie star keeping their personality in mind. Needless, to say, when he launched his RS by Rocky Star, he reached out to a larger audience and bridged the gap between fashion designers and the local man. During his recent visit to the Capital, the ace designer took some time off from his busy schedule and chatted with us about his Autumn/Winter’16 collection at london Fashion Week, his fascination with black, and on styling Thalaivaa, Rajinikanth.
Excerpts from the interaction:
What was the inspiration for your collection that you showcased at london Fashion WeekIJ
It was difficult for me to do this collection because it was all handcrafted and I had to start everything from the scratch and wrap up in 15 days. The collection was called Nomadic love and it was inspired from my travels all across the world. I love travelling. I enjoy life, meeting new people and looking at new places, and also picking up things from all these places like colours, moods and handicrafts. Mostly, the inspiration is from India. It is a very special collection for me because it is something about which I felt complete. I focussed more on the prints in the collection. We had taken very vintage prints and re-created a new fabric. The collection is for a woman who loves to travel. One who enjoys life, feels relaxed but at the same time, is very glamorous. There is a lot of embroidery that we have done in the collection.
What were the hues that you played withIJ
lot of dual colours and lot of deep maroons, olives. We have taken a lot of gold, beige and there is black, of course. It is one of my signature colours, so there is an incorporation of darkness in the collection.
Did you showcase the same collection at Blenders Fashion Week in the CapitalIJ
At Blenders, I showcased a completely different collection. Here, I have showcased a red carpet collection again — mostly reds, blacks and greys. But, it is all red carpet gowns that I am showcasing. A lot of pieces are handcrafted. We have also worked with sequins.
What is the fascination with blackIJ
I think people associate me with black and it has become my signature colour. I think it is a very special colour for me. I love it because it is one colour which is always very classic, you can wear it throughout the year and it never goes out of fashion. It is very flattening to anybody who wears it and it also gives you the whole dark mysterious feel which I always like to keep in my collection.
You are one of the first designers who have worked with Bollywood celebrities as well as the common man.What do you keep in mind while styling each of themIJ
I think my experience with Bollywood has taught me a lot. I have done 300 movies and understanding Bollywood celebrities is a completely different ballgame. I have been designing keeping the director’s vision in mind, actors’ personality, and how to combine everything together. But, when it comes to fashion shows and creating clothes for your stores, it is always an inspiration of what you want to showcase to the crowd, what you want to showcase to the world. But again, like when we launched RS by Rocky Star, we opened 60 stores and it has been doing fabulously well because I could understand what real people wanted. The USP of this line was that everything was below Rs2,000. It was real affordable fashion going from a designer to the country. That is very rare besides, and it is high time that designers reach out to maximum people.
You have worked with both the markets, you understand the fashion worldwide as well on the local ground. How do you compare and contrast the twoIJ
I think fashion in India is still very glamorous. It is more about who is going to walk for your show. It is more about grabbing attention from everybody. I don’t blame the designers because our country is completely different in every manner. I think we get excited with celebrities. We get excited with actors more than anywhere in the world. They know if they get a celebrity walking the ramp for them, then they would be immediately picked up by the media. And I think, that change is required because designers need to focus more on their creativity rather than who is going to be walking for the show. I think that is also a difference that I find, worldwide, it is very professional. They are business shows rather than just being entertainment shows. It is a pressure for a designer because if you are not ending your show with a celebrity then your show doesn’t get picked up by the media. This is one thing that is very important to change. People who are in the industry, they should be strict about it and make it a professional business rather than an entertainment show.
Do we lack in generating creative ideasIJ
Creatively, I think we are super talented. As I said, I showcased my collection in london only after 15 days and it was well accepted by the UK press and celebrities. I don’t think we lack in talent, we have a lot of history, textile and culture that we need to showcase worldwide and people are very excited about India and we are at par with them so I don’t think lack of creativity is a problem. The problem is we don’t get great support from the investors to make it a brand out of us and that is what is required to be changed.
You are styling Rajinikanth for his next...
Yes, I have styled him for his next, Robot 2. It was like sitting next to a legend, he is so down to earth. I loved the whole experience, though I cannot elaborate on the look right now but it is a movie made on robots, so you can imagine.
photos Sanjeev Kumar