Arjun Rampal as the showstopper at one of the fashion shows by Rohit Bal

Bollywood and Indian fashion share a beautiful and symbiotic association. In fact the former has the potential to push the latter. However, in the recent times, the relationship has turned out to be a rather complex one where the star power is not only outshining fashion but also impacting Indian textiles and crafts negatively.

Now we have more stars than models on magazine covers. Advertisers majorly employ Bollywood stars to sell products and designers rely on them to get their collections seen. Not even a single fashion model can claim to be the face of a big fashion house.
Recently Wendell Rodricks’ Facebook post initiated an interesting discussion on how Bollywood “showstoppers” are actually the “showkillers” for the fashion industry. He said, “Why don’t fashion magazines have models on their covers anymore? I look at magazine covers with stars and am sick how desperate the publications have become. Where does fashion feature in all this? And stars are so happy to pose in a Dior dress with a Prada purse and Chanel pumps. So where does that leave our glorious Indian clothing legacy?”
Stars appearing on the covers flaunting Western brands does impact fashion, as women try to imitate the styles with off the rack rip offs imported from the East, which negates the idea of style, says Sathya Saran, who has edited a women’s magazine.
Explaining further on this, Wendell says, “The young generation of designers needs attention. Their clothes should go on covers. Or this industry will sink in itself and die. If Anna Wintour did not use American designers, she would be out of her job. And how does a new model, who is a stunning discovery ever get on a cover. Does she have to wait to become a star?”

Lack of connect
Fashion critic Meher Castelino tries to explore the reasons behind this shift and says,“It’s this craze for Bollywood and maybe the content of the magazines is not strong enough to sell with a model on the cover. At times the models are not photogenic nor do they have strong personalities to command attention. Models as covers can look fabulous, but shooting a model needs much more by way of styling to make a cover have an instant appeal. Using a star is easier, even a close-up sells and is much lesser work.”
Saran says, “In a market that has many magazines that look and seem alike, the cover becomes of primary importance for someone who has no loyalty to any of the magazines to pick it up. In a news world that knows little about fashion, a star is an instant appeal, and a sure fire reservation of space for the designer.”

Lack of focus
“More muses come from Bollywood these days, and models too aspire to become stars. Thus the modelling industry is without a focus. Modelling in India needs to gain respect and professionalism, that will add the value of glamour and credibility. This should help at least some models resist the lure of Bollywood and yet become household names in their own right.” Saran adds,
On the other hand, columnist and fashion designer Nisha Jamwal says that since film stars are more contextual and have better connect with people, why the resentment? She adds, “A model tends to have a cold feel about her. Whereas an actor establishes a connection with you. Models have to do something memorable, be personalities and stop being plastic mannequins to have longevity.”

Lack of harmony
Designer duo Shivan and Narresh say it’s time we stop cursing either of the industries and accept that fashion brands need iconic models and actors to endorse, while at the same time, it is fashion brands who set the image for an actor or the models. “Once we understand this basic symbiotic relationship within the industries, fashion and Bollywood will start using each other as excellent tools for communication and image building.”