As one of the most sought-after Pakistan fashion designers, Hassan Riaz has once again outdone himself with his recent collection ‘Blind’. The collection is bold and classy and showcases his impeccable craftsmanship and attention to detail which has become synonymous with his brand ‘GOGI’. The motto of ‘Blind’ is built from the strength of the glorious unbeaten women, standing still and opening the curtains of undefeated barriers which once caged them, today these women are examples of substance to be followed.
In an exclusive conversation with Fashion Times Magazine, the ace designer spoke about the collection in detail.
The Thought Process
The interesting thing about the collection was the thought process. We as a brand and as a designer always believe in everyday examples of what is happening in the society. The most important part of the society these days is women empowerment which is the motto of our brand GOGI. If you look at our previous collection, women empowerment has always been emphasized and we believe in that. It is important because any race or cast that comes and drives through women is our first priority. A woman is the one who gives birth to a child, raises a man, or grooms him. Women have always been a symbol of example to be followed in the society.
On How The Idea Came About
One day I was playing chess with my friends. I was in the black warrior’s team and all my checkmates were gone. And I was left with just the queen. The queen blindly checkmated the warriors of the white team and made them loose. I saw the power and strength of a single Queen and her ability to destroy the white batch of warriors eventually became the idea of ‘Blind’ the story of ultimate warriors.
I was left with the King and Queen, while the other team had all of their warriors intact. This was a game of strategy, resilience, patience, substance, dedication and strength of mind. The way the queen independently defended the King and destroyed those all, clicked the idea step by step in my mind. It felt how beautiful and strong a woman is, standing against all odds of society and beating them was the core concept.
We eventually named as ‘Blind’ because, in the end, the King himself was left and defeated by a Queen from the black warriors as a blind checkmate. It gave a message of ‘Meeting Ends’, how she moved forward, defended the King and destroyed all the warriors. She being the most powerful lady set an example for others to be followed.
The Core Message
‘Blind’ is built from the strength of that gorgeous unbeaten woman standing still and opening the curtains of undefeated barriers that once caged them. As of now, they are open to the world, setting an example to be followed and indeed a backbone to every man.
Women are the one who builds up the society. She is the one who defeats the society. She is the one who becomes the strength of anyone. It’s the woman who as a mother is the strength to a child. She as a wife stands behind her husband. As a sister, acts as a strength to every brother. She heads every household and if men are examples of earning, but if a woman is not there, that earning won’t make a house. A woman by far is the most beautiful soul in the society that exists. The chess game has given me the lead to process the thought that we are lacking in the society that a woman holds.
What The Collection Offers
The most amazing part of making this collection was that we showcased the collection in central Toronto and it became the headline of Toronto Fashion Week. At the same time, the most beautiful aspect was that it was made through the hands of women whom we have trained and worked on this collection. They helped us with all those embellishments which is again an example of the beautiful work a woman can do. The process was difficult to bring to the collection, so we started up with very important points and phrases.
Some organic pieces were created by the beautiful village girls who made the wirework and embellishment so that pieces of clothes show how organic women are. They are not double-faced, they are real. We had some pieces for men as well, that depicted the paths of discipline in chess. The male characters were shown with those garments, hoodies with motifs and embellishments and sequencing showcasing how orthodox it is as compared to a woman being organic and rhythmic.
The Amazing Team
The crushers, concept and the embellishment of the crushers of stones were used. How you crush and then re-build; silhouettes are very boxy, and some of them are designed like a cage. The pieces are organic showcasing how a woman can be flowy and beautiful. The most important vision of achieving this was through a beautiful team, which got together and did this beautiful shoot. The magical photographer MHM (Muhammad Husnain Mahmood) captured the true essence.
The amazing styling, makeover and hairdo by Qasim Liaqat, without whom the concept would not have been built. The great participation and contribution of our models like Kainat, Giti Ara, Howra Batool, Ghulam Nabi, were excellent on set. Abdullah Sidiki was there to stylize to bring my vision online. All these people without whom the concept of this collection wouldn’t have been portrayed, if they had not done their hard work.
