The blame lies with the small boutique owners a thriving industry catering to the busy career women they all profess to house a dedicated designer, but in actuality they harbour masters in imitation. Walking in to one of these shopping complexes and have shop owners call out that they can copy a designer Shalwar Kameez for half the price, is enough to make any one fall prey to piracy. Between those cries and the suitcase filled load transported to Lahore at regular intervals by enterprising begums for reproduction, couture has been reduced to something very mundane. But haute couture calls for not just creativity but immaculate finishing. That's where the difference steps in.
Imitations lack the creative play of the original.
The color, material and embroidery are more suited to the tastes of the karigar rather then the designer. Yet it does not seem to bother the customers. To bag an original from Sana Safinaz or Nadya Shah would put a heavy dent on the pocket. But to have it copied is much quicker and less costly as Sarah a young banker discovered. It cost me a quarter of the price including the fabric to have it made from a small boutique on Tariq Road.