Dirty Lawn-Dry

By Sanna Hussain – 

The paradox is a sight to behold: despite a record number of labels this year, power shortage fuels frustration and flops 

Paisleys, geometry and ethnic prints may have ruled the racks in 2012 in terms of design as far as lawn exhibitions go but the fact remains that lawn was the biggest flop of the year. Millions of lawn exhibitions and gazillions in sales notwithstanding, this is truly the year of ready-to-wear!

Yes, we had everyone who’s anyone launching their own lawn collection this year, and some brands already having launched their midsummer wares as well but despite most lawn exhibitions around the country being sold out within hours, the fact remains that very little lawn is being worn.

Speak to any designer who launched lawn this year and they will tell you they did good business. Ask any ardent lawn fan and they will tell you 2012 was the best year for lawn so far in terms of quality, quantity and style, but hey, what do you see people wearing?

It almost certainly isn’t lawn… or not this year’s lawn anyway! Gone are the days when wearing pichlay saal ka print was considered the sin of all sins… now it’s become the way to go! In addition, prêt collections have so far been the way to go this year as well with a multitude of lawn manufacturers launching their wares in stitched versions as well.

“Gone are the days when wearing pichlay saal ka print was considered the sin of all sins… now it’s become the way to go”

We saw aunties walking off from lawn exhibitions carrying enough lawns to trade-off for a small island, we saw the cat fights, we saw Indian celebs and local coolies endorsing lawn brands, we saw myriad tasteless billboards blocking our skylines…but we didn’t see the lawns…we didn’t run into much-despised neighbours and former colleagues and cousins wearing the same prints as us…

But why? Because the lawn that was shrunk and dried and folded and ready for stitching mere hours after purchase, is gathering dust at the tailor’s!

Yes, that same ghastly tailor who charges a small fortune for turning the already expensive lawn into works of wearable art, the same tailor who calls to tell you he has reserved a quota of a dozen suits for you and will not be taking any more for the next two months, the same tailor who makes your shirts shorter so his three-year-old princess can have her first taste of designer wear, refuses to deliver the goddamn joras!

Baji bijli nahi hai, kya karein?, aap generator lagwa dein, abhi toh menay (insert celeb name here) ke suits bhi nahi siay hain are just some of the excuses tailors are throwing at us! And there is no denying that electricity issues are seriously driving businesses out of business and robbing the lawn brigade out of style.

“I bought 65 lawn suits in all this year, but my tailor has only stitched six of them so far! I had to buy two dozen ready-to-wear joras because I had nothing to wear! But seriously, lawn ke beghair maza nahi aa raha!’ says Rabia, 31, whose penchant for lawn knows no bounds.

“My tailor took only twenty five of my joras to stitch…the rest I gave to my maasi…obviously I can’t wear these next year, and it doesn’t look like I can get them all stitched before that! The tailor threatened to return my other joras unstitched, too, if I forced any more on him!” an ardent lawn aunty Fareeda, says, though refusing to tell us her age, because “you are only as young as the lawn you wear”!

“I toh didn’t get lawn because I can’t go through the jhanjat of getting it tailored! Last year my darzi made four of my outfits in amma’s size! Bas that’s when I decided no more darzi chakkars for me! Amma’s two dozen odd joras are still at the tailor wesay! I’m hoping he will make some in my size by mistake! Wesay there are great stitched clothes available aaj kal,” says Nadia, 26.

“With no electricity at their shops most of the day, going to clients’ homes to do their stitching means they save on electricity bills for their shops, often earning extra, too, for home visits”

Yes, prêt wear is king this year despite lawn business doing good business. Electricity issues across the country have burdened the overburdened-with-lawn tailors to such an extent that some are allotting weeks to their clients to come and stitch their clothes in the air-conditioned confines of their generator-equipped homes.

“This is so good I tell you…my darzi will be coming next week for ten day. I hope he can stitch my bahu’s and both daughters’ stuff, but pehlay toh apnay karaoungi!” says Sameera, 53.

“I don’t think I was so happy when my son got into KGS as I am with my new lawns all stitched,” says Maryam, 29, who smartly gave out six lawn joras each to five different tailors! My paindu friends are all wearing their last year suits abhi tak,” she chides.

Talk to various tailors and it becomes obvious that most of them are quite happy with the way things are. Apparently, loadshedding has proved a bane-turned-boon for them.

With no electricity at their shops most of the day, going to clients’ homes to do their stitching means they save on electricity bills for their shops, often earning extra, too, for home visits. Additionally, some even demand to be fed two meals and tea for their home visits!

“I almost fainted when my master ji said he would stitch my joras at my place but for extra charges of one thousand per jora! But then I figured I would be wasting lawn worth Rs90,000 if I didn’t take the offer,” said Erum, 40, a school teacher by profession.

There are too many lawn and too many fashion weeks happening in our country. Lawns selling but not stitching means more and more lawn ladies will change loyalties and switch to ready-to-wear in the coming seasons. And of course, design pundits have been proved wrong in terms of predicting slimmer, shorter silhouettes for this year.

Sadly, most of us are still wearing last year’s clothes till the darzis deliver fresh stock, and thus we still see kalis and ankle length kurtas doing the rounds, contradictory to what was shown on the ramps of late.

Sigh…what one can say…fashion just isn’t what it used to be any more!

The writer is a broadcast journalist