‘Between the love and madness lies Obsession’ is the theme of renowned fashion designer Hari Anand’s bridal collection to be showcased this Sunday. It is the same love, madness and obsession with fabrics that has driven Hari for the past 30 years and made him stay on top of his game. His love for Indian fabrics like florals, Banaras, kasavu, georgette, and chanderi has found resonance in his designs that are futuristic as well as minimalistic. At a time when Kerala was just taking baby steps in the world of fashion, Hari stood tall amongst his peers with his daring silhouettes and extensive use of pastel shades. The fashion in Kerala evolved and terms like French Chantelle, lace, Swarovski crystals and Tulle became familiar to the fashion conscious Kerala woman; thanks to her penchant for following International trends which Hari had already been using in his designs years before. For a man who used to showcase his designs regularly, there has been a silence for the past three years.
Hari has decided to break that silence and be heard loud and clear. His love for clothes is all encompassing and he prefers to talk about his work rather than spend time talking of himself. Sitting in his studio surrounded by his dreamy collections in soothing pastel shades of greys, peaches, mauves and creams, Hari speaks on the reasons for showcasing his collection, “I was doing shows all over India with the intention of educating people about the fashion trends. I took a break from Kerala because there were a lot of boutiques and designers coming up. I also wanted to return with a unique concept. I had already decided on ‘not too much bling’ and I wanted my collection to reflect Indian fabrics with an Indian heart but with modern sensibilities.” He also has an intention of supporting the artisans working in this sector. He ruefully says, “The work and embellishments on the 60 garments are handmade and unique, but the artisans are not given the value they deserve even when handmade is held in high regard in
the foreign market.” Hari did his research for a year to amalgamate bridal luxury with handloom textures and he feels his USP is his exclusiveness. Here again, Hari veers away from the mundane; thanks to his experience and maturity when he says, “I do not want my clothes to take the centre stage but want the bride to shine on her special day. Hence, I have avoided too much of bling and have highlighted subtlety.”
Minimalism has always been Hari’s forte and he has faithfully stuck to it for several years. Those years have seen new entrants into the arena and Hari is happy that more value has been added to the field. But he also has these words of caution, “When someone copies a design, there is no soul to the creation. It becomes just a cloth; there is no energy. But in an original, there is a soul and a story to be told behind the creation of that unique piece. The original creator can talk for hours about the intricacies of the fabric, the work behind it and the materials used.” Another point Hari wishes to stress is that good designs never die and will endure the passage of time.
Speaking about the fashion trends in India, especially in Kerala, Hari paints a positive picture and says that it is rising up to global standards. Hari is particularly proud of the diversity of fabrics across the whole of India, unique to each state. “India is blessed that way but I personally feel India is not capitalising on that diversity. Yes, we have a lot of design schools opening up, but how many of the pass-outs are skilled at the grass root level? We depend on North Indian workers for labour and my advice would be to teach the students from a skill set point of view and then put them on to practical lessons. The students know how to sketch on paper but are unable to make it.” He stresses that changes have happened in tailoring and embroidery patterns as well as the use of muted colours.
His future plans include branching out into Image consultancy which is in its infancy stage in Kerala.
