For a man who holds two Honours – Dato, bestowed on him by the Sultan of Malysia and an Order Of The British Empire (OBE) by Queen Elizabeth II – Jimmy Choo, the iconic shoe-maker and designer is a surprisingly humble man. Always ready with a quick smile and a beckoning twinkle in his eyes, the practicing Buddhist wowed the crowds in Mumbai at the inaugural Mercedez Benz STYLO Fashion Grand Prix party, a run-up to the Airtel Indian Grand Prix.
I had the opportunity to meet him last evening when my friend Sowmya Jagganath invited me to the event and promised a one-on-one interview with him as well (to be uploaded here, shortly). While I have personally experienced that a number of Indian designers can be very stand-offish with major attitude problems, this petite man was simplicity personified. He did not hassle any one to hurry-up with their interviews and posed patiently with numerous fans who wanted to capture the moment with their favourite footwear designer. In fact, I didn’t see him relax and have a drink throughout the time he was there.
The event was held at Hype at the Atria Mall in Worli, Mumbai and the entire floor was taken over for the party which was themed around the Seven Deadly Sins. And so, you had various booths called Lust, Envy, Pride, Gluttony etc and each one of them had models in them, dressed up according to the theme.
The event attracted a fair share of party people like actors Zayed Khan (who hung out with brother-in-law DJ Aqueel), Alexx O’neil, Muzzamil Ibrahim and Dalip Tahil. But what really was show-stopping were the avant-garde outfits created by Malaysian fashion designers out of 150 kilograms of recycled waste. So elaborate were the hairdos and outfits that Lady Gaga would have bought them all up if she were in the house.
Take a look at these fabulous fashions:
I was reminded of Alexander McQueen’s quirkiness and Manish Arora’s genius as the Malaysian models walked down the red-carpet. Each outfit seemed wilder and more fantastical than the previous one. And the show-stopper – a model wearing a multi-layered table laden with food – was by far the most creative and ingenious design.
And finally, I asked Jimmy Choo what he would be taking back with him from India to London (where he is based) and he said, “The love and kindness which the people of India have shown towards me!”
Awww, now isn’t that sweet..???