“I don't speak for myself
my clothes speak for themselves.”
Q: When did your label BeGe's start?
A: I launched my label in 1987 in Liberty Market where Cynosure is
situated these days.
Q: What is the significance of BeGe's?
A: BeGe is a village name; a name of love and respect. It was my
pet name. I was always addressed as BeGe that is why I sticked
with it. I was BeGe first and Najeeba Zulfiqar afterwards.
Q: What was your source of your inspiration?
A: I was not that educated to work in an office or get a technical
job. I just did my matric that is why I started a thing which I
thought I am good at.
Q: What is most important for becoming a designer?
A: The most important prerequisite for a designer is his
“eye”. A designer must have an eye for the colour, cut and style.
Besides that the aesthetics sense of the designer should be well
developed and mature.
Q: What motivated you to start designing and why you started
designing?
A: The thing which motivated me was money for my daughter.
Inspiration came from God and the things which he created because
I love nature and I draw my inspiration from nature, plants,
birds, and animals.
Q: What was your target market
when you started designing or which particular age group are
you most comfortable while designing?
A: When I started designing fashion was not very common.
My clothes were too fashionable for that time that is why
sometimes they seemed weird to the people. The acceptance
level was quite low in 1987 and fashion was only for 5% of the
total population.
Q: When did you get yourself establish country-wide?
A: I was designing for Zeba Bakhtiyar and Adnan Sami way
back in 1991. At that time two film were launched, One was
“Hina” which was an Indian film and other was “Sargam” which
was a Pakistani movie. These movies made BeGe a house hold
name in Pakistan. I also got the national award in 1994. |
|
Q: When did you get international recognition?
A: Bride and Groom show was organized in 2000 and 25 designers
participated from all over the world. I used Diana Hayden and Neha
Dhopia as my models. Daily Times India declared my Lehnga as the
“Lehnga of the Century” and I also won the best designer award for
that.
Q: Are your clients satisfied with your work?
A: Whenever I design, I initially satisfy myself and when I am
not satisfied I keep on redesigning until I am satisfied. These
days, customers are really very conscious. He takes a complete
tour of the market and then he makes up his mind. My clientele has
increased with the increase in the number of designers because
after seeing their work they can appreciate my work more as they
can always compare the quality. I always design clothes keeping
the body of my client in my mind and what is going to suit him or
her and that is how I keep my clients satisfied.
Q: Do you have any plans to go
nation wide or even international?
A: No I don't plan to go International or even open up a
boutique in India because there is a difference between an
investor and a designer. The presence of a designer is a must
at his work place because only then he can deliver custom made
clothes. I am not into ready to wear clothes line because for
me designing clothes is not a way to earn money.
Designing is an art and I design clothes to satisfy my sense
of creativity. I have a big collection of clothes which I keep
in my library. In my collection I have clothes belonging to
every major era and clothes designed according to major
popular themes.
I can sell all these clothes and end up making millions but
for me art has more value than money.
|
|
Q: Isn't it
difficult for you to convince your customer because they
always come with a made up mind concerning what sort of
clothes they want?
A: No it is not very difficult for me to convince my
clients. Masha Allah, God is very kind when ever my clients
come, I show them the best clothes according to their mindset
with a few changes and they always end up agreeing with me. “I
don't speak for myself my clothes speak for themselves.”
Q: What is the future of all these upcoming designers and
what is going to happen to them once Indian designers are
going to come to Pakistan?
A: The future of all these upcoming designers is very
bright and they soon are going to transform into well
established designers. Our goal is to completely dominate the
Indo-Pak industry and Insha Allah that day is not very far.
Q: What is the basic difference between Indian and
Pakistani designers?
A: Indian designers are just mass producing. They do not
have any variation; their work is monotonous. Pakistani
designers are very talented and they use a lot of variation in
colour, embroidery, designs and cuts.
Q: Why are the Indian designers more popular than their
Pakistani counterparts?
A: Initially, the contribution of their media has lot to
do with their popularity. Secondly, the role of Indian Export
Promotion Bureau is amazing. They have done a wonderful job in
making their designs successful.
Q: What is the future of fashion in Pakistan and what is
the role of fashion publications in making fashion common?
A: The future of fashion in Pakistan is very bright because
nowadays designers have started making money and new talent is
pouring into this industry. As far as the role of fashion
publications is concerned they are doing a wonderful job
because they are creating awareness among the people and they
are getting quality and style conscious.
Go Top
|
|
