Daily Times

Many people can relate to the practice of structuring a four-story high sand castle on the beach. The most crucial part of this process is to make the formation well balanced. Endowing it with a detailed and realistic feel; small ellipse windows are carved in along with intricate patterns on the edges to put together a convincing brick wall. Crafting this with precision renders one bushed and sweaty under the raging sun. Following a few minutes of admiration for your hard work, there disembarks a low tide and sweeps the castle away. A person’s achievement and backbreaking labor collapse right in front of their sight. A small sigh escapes one’s mouth –there is to forward their plea to. They would undeniably be mocked for working on something unrewarding. This castle is the unheard voice of numerous fashion designers who have endured sleepless nights, blood-wrenching days, grueling juries and traversed over countless hurdles to earn a degree in a span of four years. Dedicating their peak years of life to this demanding field with heavy amount spent on material costs, they ponder on the outcome of their efforts. In return they find people with no prior knowledge in design field jumping in like low tides and trying to topple their worth.

Individuals just for sake of making money lunge in this line of work, confusing it with tailors’ profession

Due to strong financial backing and PR, high-flying brands are established while true innovative ideas and talents are showcased. At times, individuals just for the sake of making money lunge in this area, confusing this line of work with tailors’ profession. These people generate the stereotype that anyone can be a designer. The incontestable fact remains that a worker may be hired and ordered to imitate designs but this cannot be compared to a 4 years experience in a fashion institution where everything has to have a concept behind it. Fashion requires originality rather than replicating foreign brands which can be brought in only by designers who are certified. Every single piece produced is shaped on a philosophy. This injustice could be terminated through recognition and promotion of genuine work. It should be conceded that every being is capable and should advance in his specific field of knowledge which is a prudent alternative to clasping one’s glory. In the lastdecade, fashion has become a booming industry in Pakistan and the total of retail net sales rose from 115.85 billion US dollars in 2013 to 210.28 billion US dollars in 2018. It is need of the time that the government provides patronage to this rapidly growing industry. Prospects for training and further studies should be granted to qualified designers as this field can contribute substantially to thesocio-economic development of the country.

Published in Daily Times, September 10^th 2018.