Made in India Fashion; any takers?

Is this politics? Fashion is political. Is this a die-hard positioning Indian fashion must take? No. Instead, it should learn strategies of production, display and retail from global fashion brands.To coexist, it must compete. This is not a brand war. It's marketing sensibility at a time when the same luxury malls can be used to showcase an Assamese Geecha or the royal splendour of a jamaavar.

Made in India is a powerful term. It's now a label from the hungriest, largest and most important emerging market in the world. Not something you cringe at when you spot it on a linen shirt at Macy's, New York. Good enough to give the masterweavers—the underbelly of Indian fashion—photo-ops in style magazines. It's not about giving livelihood to the downtrodden at the cost of fashion. It's about long overdue success for designers and weavers because fashion is now fashionable in India.

Sure, Ms. Shefalee, Its an admirable thought, but I am not so sure about its feasibility, 'cos there's something fundamental to every sale-purchase. Its not about what you wanna sell. Its about what I wanna buy. Its not about the realities that you're trying to make me aware of, its about the perceptions that I form.

Simply put, its not about you or your products, its about me and my wants. And a lot of those wants of mine, are fashioned by my thought process, which turns infamously irrational when I think premium purchases. Fashion included.

Ever heard of the country of origin effects? That's something you can't wipe off overnight. Oh yes, I agree, we are getting there. And I hope we do that soon, for your sake and more importantly the Indian artisan's sake.

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