40 bags, 50 shoes, and a woman.

She stands. She poses…she smiles. She is independent. She is charming. She is beautiful. She is coquettish, coy, a botherer of boys. She will make your mind wander. She also has more than 50 pairs of shoes, about 40 bags and secretly wants more. These are two women wearing what they liked…from FCUK.

I managed a quick interview with Bhumica but couldn’t get a hold of Poppy. She says her internet is not working. Nevertheless, I’ve shot Poppy’s out-of-focus photos & sort of introduced her here before.
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Bhumica,27, is a stylist & a fashion designer. Her involvement with designing clothes began when she was about 5.

“There was this Barbie craze going on in India. Barbie dolls had just been launched and everyone wanted to possess at least one. So did I. It was a big deal to own a Barbie. It was expensive and alluring. I cried and fought with my parents to get one..and I did. I remember, the barbies we saw, wore fascinating dresses..while my Barbie only had one! And a Barbie can’t have just one dress! Right! So my sister and I would go to the tailors, collect left over/discarded fabrics, and stitch clothes for those Barbies ourselves.”

Did you always want to become a designer?
I was involved with art since 2nd grade. I used to sketch and illustrate. At Welham, art was a serious subject for me. I did illustrations all throughout my school years for school magazines & newsletters. I always knew I wanted to do something with art and design but didn’t know what. I didn’t get through NID so the second best option was NIFT.

NIFT was a huge learning experience. The most important thing I learned was to to provide quality & good finishing to a product. At the end of it all, I became practical with my design approach and sort of…evolved.

Failure of your first label and the disastrous Bangalore Fashion Week.

I started a label in partnership with a friend in 2009 but it didn’t work out due to creative differences, so we ended it this year. Participating in the 2009 Bangalore Fashion Week was a huge mistake. I wanted to participate in it because I had studied in Bangalore and had a good base there. We paid 100,000 rupees just to get an evening slot, hoping there would be more people, but there were NO BUYERS at all. In fact, the first two days hardly saw any crowd. The only crowd present was the media apart from a handful of audience who were the friends and relatives of the designers. The empty rows in the show area were discouraging and disappointing. More report here..like this was not enough? To add to it, there were no rehearsals, no fitting sessions, and bad food. We ended up spending about 300,000 rupees overall which included the cost of developing/producing our entire collection, travel & stay. The entire fashion week was horrendously organized and not professional at all. I’d still say it was an amazing learning experience. I learned – not to be in a huge rush while making a collection for a show, not making it just for the sake of it, and most importantly cross-checking the credibility of the organizers and who’s coming/who’s not.

present and future..

At present, I am doing trousseaux, occasionally styling for ad shoots, and also working solo on my women’s wear label – Bhumica. The first collection would be out in a month or so.

…the need to shop clothes.

It’s more of a want than a need. Through many tiring experiences, it’s been a rule for me…never to go out specifically looking for clothes. If I am walking on the road and I particularly like something..I pick it up.

My cheapest buy was a blue kurti for about 250 rupees from Lokhandwala market and my most expensive buy has been a Prada clutch for about 50,000 rupees.

Why do you have 50 pairs of shoes and 40 bags?

I like bags. I like matching bags with my clothes. I like them in different colors. It’s like men have..umm..many pairs of socks…women have bags.

And shoes?

Greed. I am greedy.

Ever shopped from the men’s wear section or worn men’s clothes?

I don’t remember specifically going and looking in the men’s section to shop, but yes, I have worn men’s shirts and tees. When I was a kid, I had a boy cut and I would dress up in boy stuff. Also, I’ve bought men’s boxers as I find them comfortable to wear while sleeping, just that they have a fly in the front which is not much of a functional use for me!

Ever shopped from FCUK before?

I absolutely love some of their dresses & tops. Though in their present collection, I wish the dresses had slightly less low necks than they do. Also, somehow, their denims don’t fit me too well, or maybe I don’t fit them.

I think the green belt is kind of awkward and doesn’t go well with the dress. Maybe if it was really thin or not there at all. Bad styling!
Bhum is wearing all FCUK. Footwear is her own. Printed clutch is from Item Number.
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…wall on the left had been used as a background before so we moved on to another.

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All clothes are from FCUK. Printed clutches are from Item Number.
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Thanks to the store staff at FCUK for tagging and untagging, Bhumica & Poppy for coming & standing (hope your internet is working now)… Gouri & Mansi for being patient.