While Pakistan passed through a very inert, static and quiescent period (all through the 1950s and an early part of the ’70s) where fashion is concerned, it was in the ’70s that Pakistan finally got its first retail-fashion boutique established by Tanveer Jamshed, called Teejays.
Here, Images takes a peek at the fashion eras, people and the fashion trends during these past six decades.
1940s: During this era fashion in the newly created Pakistan saw a ray of hope in the form of the gora culture — hats, ties, belts, etc. “Pakistani/Muslim men and women were inspired by the goras rather than the Quaid-i-Azam Mohammed Ali Jinnah or his sister Mohtarma Fatima Jinnah. Mr Jinnah’s lifestyle resembled that of an upper-class English gentleman. His clothes made him one of the best-dressed men in the world, rivaled in united India perhaps only by Motilal Nehru, the father of Jawaharlal. Among the women, net was a big favorite and borders were used and usually appliquéd on dresses,” elucidates Lahore-based designer Beegee.
Due to the western influence, the use of traditional garments such as angarkhas, choghas and jamas diminished considerably. However, on the other hand, the ceremonial safa, pagri, topi and sherwani became as widespread as ever among the menfolk. Still, women at the time took the wardrobe change in their stride and continued with peshwaz, kurtas, ghararas and chunris, at times using imported fabrics but mostly using traditional hand-woven ones. After the espousal of khadi by Mahatma Gandhi, it soon became a rage and gave a much-needed boost to the local handloom industry.
1950s: The fabric of the decade was polyester, acrylic, spandex and lycra, and women’s dresses were ruffled and loose like kaftans and stylised bob cuts were in much demand. The men wore bell-bottom pants, a jacket under a solid colour shirt. Platform shoes were big on the dance floor and shirt patterns were swirly and dizzying. The colours were loud and clashing, making a statement that the ’50s was the era of Saturday night fever. Thus the fashion trends within high society (read the royalty) were strongly influenced by the British — so much so that western attire became a status symbol.
The earlier ’50s also saw the publication of Pakistans first women’s (fashion/lifestyle) magazine, SHE. “I wanted to project the women in Pakistan,” says Zuhra Karim, the founder-editor of the monthly women’s magazine. When asked about her motivation and inspiration, she explained, “I had lived abroad for most of my life. But when I came back to Pakistan, I saw things were not the same as they were abroad. Women were not getting what I was getting back there.”
SHE still remains a powerful name among the fashion glossies that come out every month from Karachi.
1960s: The ’60s, probably the most daring, was a shock-filled decade for men and women alike that revolutionised the world of fashion as we know it. It saw sweeping fashion and lifestyle changes that reflected the mercurial passion of the times. This decade was full of defiance and celebration, marked by liberation from constraints. New types of materials such as coated polyester fabric also got popular then. I call it the “jazz age” as women’s dresses got more layered and scandalous, hair was let down loose after being permed or curled, while for parties the glamorous beehive was adorned. Hemlines rose and necklines became more frilly, giving women a girlish appeal — a look that rocked the very foundation of womanhood.
“Short shirts and chooridar pajamas were extensively worn to all kinds of events. Brocade was the fabric of choice during this era, big jooras and curly hairs were groovy. Mohtarma Fatima Jinnah adorned jali kay duppatay during this era,” adds designer Beegees.
The single female designer worth mentioning who started off in this era is the much-celebrated Mrs Kazmi (Bunto Kazmi’s mother-in-law). She initially started by making creative rag dolls and eventually moved to making skirts, blouses, kurtas and kaftans, which were then exported to Austrailia, America and London. She then started creating traditional bridal outfits in 1963 and it has been her primary forte to date.
Tight kurtas and chooridars competed with the miniskirt abroad, and at the same time darzis and retailers understood the need of the moment to prepare cheaper and ready-to-wear lines.
However, men’s fashion didn’t change much in this decade. If anything, trousers tapered down tightly around the ankles. The fedora was a major fashion statement for the dashing man, and with the arrival of gangsters such as Al Capone and the James Bond 007 films coming to the cinema, pin-striped suits came into fashion.
1970s: “The ’70s was the gypsy era. Everyone loved and followed what Zeenat Aman and Parveen Babi were wearing in Indian films,” remembers Beegee.
One of the most revisited and retro periods in local fashion saw the beginnings of the ‘anything goes’ culture with the result that fashion became another form of self-expression. Bold colours with flower prints were adapted in kameez and kurtas along with bell-bottoms; synthetic fabrics became popular and disco culture had a profound influence on fashion. The clothes themselves became as flashy as the shiny disco ball that swirls over the dancers at discotheques.
With time, a network of ladies’ tailors began to evolve and retail history was made with the boom, followed by boutiques. Towards the end of the decade, the country’s political scene underwent a major shuffle and saw the arrival of a ‘depression’ of sorts in which fashion for women became as conservative as can be.
Dresses and suits for men and women, respectively, were usually broad shouldered with wide lapels, along with jackets sporting the double-breasted look for men. The era also saw the flapper look at its epitome and wherever one went women dressed in flappy shalwars, floral embroidery and embellishments with lots of shiny gold jewellery were a common sight. Mix-and-match, too, came in vogue since this era.
Also, with the seventies came teenage rebellion. Girls’ dresses fluffed out into maxis and long skirts. The hair was ratted and flipped and white tennis shoes or saddle shoes were worn and considered hip. The more rebellious among women wore tight-fitting, calf-length pants or capris with body-hugging blouses.
1980s: Fashion started flourishing at a slow pace and experienced some of the most practical cuts and big floral and abstract prints came in vogue.
Present-day designers Sehyr Saigol and Maheen Khan started a combined venture early in the 1980s which then saw the latter branch out and start her self-titled label. When asked about the fashion scene and the trends prevailing at that time Maheen said, “I started at a time when there was no formal sense of fashion. Pakistani women were still emerging out of the standard saris in Karachi and shalwar kameez in Lahore, though I must reiterate that Pakistani women were truly stylish and sophisticated during the past decades of the ’60s and ’70s.
“It was only in the early eighties, when I first opened the Maheen store, that my focus was the trendy woman who was now travelling a lot and maintained two wardrobes. So I created a fusion of both and launched my first collection with capri trousers and the shorter length kameez, based on structured western lines. I would never know until years later that I had launched a trend and the fledgling fashion industry in Pakistan. And yes, those very same capris are still around even today and so much more…”
In 1985, Florence Rizvi (of Café Flo’ fame; Madam Noor Jehan’s daughter-in-law and Sonia Jehan’s mother) stepped into the fashion business with the shalwar kameez in western styles. She entered the restaurant business much later in 1988, after closing down the fashion business.
During the 1980s, both Bunto Kazmi and Faiza Samee were well into their way with bridals in Karachi. Remembers Bunto, “I started from formals and semi-formals but my forte has always been bridals. I have still not achieved what I want to, but I will some day.”
The period between 1987-1988 also saw Iman Ahmed (formerly Imrana Ahmed of Body Focus) emerging as a designer. “When I started off there were very few people and boutiques. But Shamael was there before me. Initially, I started with very casual clothes, loose easy-fit trousers, long shirts and trousers.”
In 1987, Beegees emerged on the Lahore fashion scene with her semi-formals, formals and casuals. For more than a decade she designed outfits for Lollywood actresses and even Bollywood. Then fashion duo Sana Safinaz arrived on the scene in 1989. They catered to a market with a variety of dresses which were more traditional, lighter and the exact diffusion of both. They progressed and within a span of two years started with bridal wear. The same year Rizwan Beyg also started off. “When I started in 1989, Faiza (Samee) and Bunto (Kazmi) were doing bridals, whereas Shamael (Ansari) and Maheen (Khan) were doing high fashion. I started couture at that time,” he says.
Another prominent designer who took to fashion during this time was Nilofer Shahid in Lahore.
1990s: The last decade of the millennium was one of extremes — basically a mixture of a lot of different styles. The fashion of the decades gone by became fashionable again but the biggest news of the decade was the ascendance of the next generation of designers into mainstream fashion.
But the decade also saw the revival of ethnicity. While on the one hand working class women popularised the corporate look, an ethno-cultural revival made people go back to traditional cuts and prints. “The fashion trends at that time were all about clean lines and designers were finally working on the shalwar kameez silhouette. Mid and late-90s fashion was going through exactly what was happening abroad. If the ’80s was about pop and Disco Deewane culture, the ’90s saw clean lines, flowy fabrics and lesser embellishment,” says Andleeb Rana.
The women wore ethnic couture; traditional prints and cloth were used in majority. The platform shoe made a comeback and showed up in many forms — from sandals to tennis shoes. The colour scheme of the ’90s was dramatic or pastel, though the classic colour of the past era, black, was used for dramatic effects in fashion.
In the late nineties, a fresh and unsullied new designer from Islamabad arose. Says Sobia Nazir, “I started in 1997, inspired by my mother who was deeply into fashion and everything related to it. I initiated with prêt and then moved to couture.”
Around this time Maria Butt also arrived on the scene with her brand called Maria B. “I realised people have less awareness to trends and before the media explosion of the year 2000, everyone was doing and wearing long kameezes mostly with regular shalwars. My basic inspiration was international trends and colours and yes, fabric has always been a big inspiration for me,” she says.
This “androgynous era” consisted of tight Levis, khakis, white or black crisp shirts; loafers or converse shoes with leather jackets. The hair was slicked back with wing tips at the sides or curling in at the middle.
A very sophisticated change to men’s fashion came with the arrival of Amir Adnan stores in 1990 all over the country. Adnan worked on the eastern image of local men, “Internationally people were doing bright and bold colours for men, which was not available here, so I worked on making a man feel more fashionable,” says the designer.
Other designers who launched themselves in this era and made a difference are HSY, Deepak Perwani, Tazeen Hasan, Ammar Belal and Nickie & Nina.
2000s: At the turn of the century, fashion evolved as an aspiring and sportive industry, more crisp, up-market and competitive. This era can be called the ‘decorated’ period of fashion. Men’s and women’s wear reflected the influence of the West, media and everything in vogue around the world. The outfits were more ornate and showed a much clearer silhouette.
People wore everything from wind-pants (made from parachute material) to baby doll dresses, from attitude dude shirts to back-pack purses, capris to dhoti shalwars, short shirts ending half way above the knee to embellished mix-and-match gypsy skirts. The accessories were all glossy and shiny with delicate and chic footwear available in all colours.
The new millennium witnessed the birth of several fashion graduates from the Pakistan School of Fashion Design (PSFD) in Lahore such as Kamiar Rokni and Maheen Kardar Ali of Karma. “When we started off in women’s fashion, trousers had just arrived and the shirts were long. As students we looked to Sana Safinaz and Shamael,” says Kamiar. This year also saw the Nadya Mistry outlet at a local mall, a fresh graduate who had been working since the last three years from home.
In 2001, Nomi Ansari, also a graduate of PSFD, launched himself with a colourful collection, “I was not limited and I am not limited. I wanted to enhance the Pakistani silhouette, experimented with shalwars, pants and worked on various kameez lengths”, says he.
The fall of 2003 saw another inspiring and an individualistic designer called Munib Nawaz enter local fashion, “I made my own trends, my basic inspiration is music, which goes from alternative to rock.”
In 2006, fashion fledgling Maheen Karim came out with ready-to-wear dresses for women, going on to carve a niche in the market for her designer label in a very short time.
How has fashion progressed through the ages in Pakistan?
Rizwan-ul-Haq (photographer): We had no fashion, we have no culture. We are just sailing in two ships.
Tapu: (photographer): Though we are 60 years old, Pakistan needs to go a long way. Prêt and retail are needed to be made part of high-end fashion.
Tariq Amin (stylist): It has not changed all that much. Initially a lot of people jumped on to the bandwagon but it’s all stale now.
Khawar Riaz (stylist): I have no clue about fashion. You can judge it from the way I dress up.
Arif Mehmood (photographer): I started photography in 1989 and while photography has evolved big time, it’s all very cyber, very sci-fi now. In designers, I have seen Rizwan Beyg and Sonya Battla growing extensively as designers.
Vaneeza Ahmed (fashion model): Fashion was more advanced and western in the ’60s than it is now. Making shalwar kameez the national dress for men was a big disaster. Then the opening of fashion schools in the ’90s is the point when we started establishing again, but then again we will need a lot of time to reach to prime level.
Andleeb Rana (Editor, Xpoze): Sadly, I don’t think fashion in Pakistan has evolved at all. Yes, we have a bigger industry with a lot more designers, photographers, channels, models and magazines. But earlier, it was about less people working a lot harder….now it’s more people working and churning out a lot of mediocre work.
