💭 Priya Ahluwalia for ODDA Magazine
This article first appeared in the ODDA Magazine 20th Issue “There is a Time”.
PRIYA AHLUWALIA
Award-winning designer Priya Ahluwalia is giving the fashion world a dynamic and vital new narrative. Her signature menswear line is both a reflection of her Nigerian and Indian heritage and presents a hopeful vision of the future, where upcycled designer clothing becomes a new cornerstone to the industry and fashion finally begins to reflect a more multicultural perspective. A future where sartorial stories are pulled from places and events that don’t usually get highlighted in traditional history books and the voices of those who have been muted until now finally find an avenue to proclaim themselves.
JESSICA MICHAULT. For the photoshoot for this interview, you’re actually wearing pieces from your menswear line. I think that’s maybe a great place to kick the conversation off. Can you tell me a little bit about this collection and what you wanted to express with it?
PRIYA AHLUWALIA. Yes, I’m wearing pieces from S/S21 at the moment. My collection is called “Liberation” and for that collection, I did loads of research into Black protests in the U.S. and the U.K., Nigerian graphics, and Nigerian newspapers from times of civil unrest. I really wanted to do something graphic because I knew that I would have to present it digitally. So, that was something I was thinking, I need it to translate well on a computer screen. I worked with a graphic designer called Dennis [McInnes]. He is also Nigerian and we worked together to create the prints and graphics. Also, the collection was being developed at a time of lockdown and it was during Black Lives Matter protests. And I didn’t feel that good, I felt despair basically. So it was difficult thinking about how to design something and I think even though it is a really colorful collection, for me it was actually quite muted. It feels pretty grounded.
J.M. Let's go back a bit, I know that your father’s Nigerian and your mother is Indian. And I know that your heritage plays such an important role in how you express yourself as a designer. Can you unpack that a little bit?
P.A. I think it's really interesting because since I've been doing this job I've actually been wanting to learn more about it because I feel the history system and school system are so Eurocentric here [in the U.K]. It completely deletes a part of history from my culture even though they are integral to the story of the British Empire. I feel like since I've been doing this job, I'm much more aware of these things and I'm interested. I take a camera with me on trips when I go to India and Nigeria and what I see and what inspires me. It could be the color of the sand in Nigeria. It's really obscure things that I think are beautiful. And in my 20’s, I've dedicated my time to read more about the history of where I am from and that really inspires my work as well. It's almost theoretical as well as it is being visual.
“A lot of it is people saying that they are glad that there’s someone representing them but not only, you know, visually but the ideas and the things I’m talking about.”
J.M. Tell me a little bit about this past year for you. You were named a “30 Under 30” by Forbes, you have the LVMH prize, you have the British Fashion Awards and the Gucci Fest film, you did “Joy.” There has been a lot going on for you this year when you were ringing in 2021. What was itlike looking back on all this?
P.A. It's been really crazy and I feel really lucky that in this time of a pandemic and when so many people around the world are suffering and with job insecurity. I feel sort of really proud and blessed. I wouldn't say lucky because it's taken a lot of hard work. I'm just really proud that it's been able to come to fruition.
J.M. When I look at your career so far, with your photography book, the “Joy” film, and your collections, I get a sense that you are more than just a traditional designer. It feels like there's a lot of different types of creativity that you're attracted to.
P.A. Thank you, that's really nice to say. I definitely think I’m not only a clothing designer. I definitely feel like my ideas transcend clothes I guess and I think I love figuring out new ways to express them. I want it to grow and become a world where people can experience things and when viewing it become engaged with it. It's like I've really got excited by the ways we can communicate that as well as the clothing. I definitely feel that storytelling, and I like giving people a platform to share who they are. And we kind of do it through the vehicle of a fashion brand.
J.M. Tell me a little more about “Joy” and what you wanted to express with that film, having GucciFest as such a huge platform for your message.
P.A. I've never been so proud of something my whole life. The whole thing was really special. Essentially I got contacted, I think maybe in September or October by Gucci explaining that they were doing a film festival and then they gave us a budget. They were really kind of relaxed about what we did, me and Sam, the director, Samona Olanipekun. He's amazing. We were given free rein. I really wanted to make the most out of the opportunity. So it had to be about something that's really special to me. I wanted to do a film about essentially the universal British experience. It started because I have a certain book I look at a lot for research. The photos were taken in the 70s and it's about a Black hostel in the U.K. and I was looking at the book and was really thinking and I wondered what they were doing now. And trying to get into contact with people that had been involved in the U.K. Black Civil Rights movements. I kind of just wanted to find people who were involved in that and see how that affected them and their struggle for liberation. But it was also about showing that Black love, that family, that joy, happiness, and strength and vulnerability. The film became a love letter to the cast. It really wouldn't be what it was without the people in the film. I worked really hard with Sam. We created these sets around the cast. We had sets designed especially for that family or that person. I designed clothes around them. I spoke with the cast and interviewed them a lot before. While we were doing the process and while we were designing the clothes. I was thinking about ways to personalize them for each cast member. So we had little graphics that were an inspiration for them.
J.M. Are you starting to get a sense, as a woman of color working in the fashion industry, that you are representing so much more than just your brand, and what you do has a larger impact?
P.A. I can say I know I have a responsibility, even with the mes- sages I receive from people, whether that's Instagram DMs or emails. A lot of it is people saying that they are glad that there's someone representing them but not only, you know, visually but also the ideas and the things I'm talking about. People really resonate with it. The main point, I think is important with anyone who is coming up now is that they can be themselves. We don't have to try to fit into the box of what people did 20 years ago. And I definitely think representation helps with self-esteem. It is a big sort of, not pressure, that's not the right word but it's just a big thing.
J.M. I absolutely agree with you. One of the other things you are doing is highlighting the importance of sustainability in your work. Upcycling has been a part of the DNA of the company from the jump. How did you decide that you wanted to make clothing that was grounded in the sustainability movement?
P.A. Long story short, when I went to Nigeria I was going to see my family and I kept noticing that all the clothes there were really obscure British clothing. I learned about this big second-hand clothing market. I learned that 80 percent of the clothing we donate to charity actually gets shipped off to other countries whether it gets sold as clothing or gets recycled. That's when I learned about Panipat, about 70 kilometers north of Delhi; it is the world's capital of recycling garments. And a couple of months later, I got not only, you know, on a plane to see it with my own eyes. I took my camera and I was completely gobsmacked about the sheer amount of stuff that was there. It sounds cheesy or whatever, but it was a life-changing moment. I really couldn't go back after seeing that.
J.M. This last year has been so radical on so many different fronts and one of the things for younger designers is seeing their relationship with retailers and buyers really shift. There has been this idea of taking that power back and going direct to the consumer, cutting out the middleman, and being in control of your own narrative. How do you feel about that shift?
P.A. I've been really fortunate. I have a great relationship with all my stockers and I feel grateful for the support they have given the brand. I think they have a really huge part to play in terms of positioning us and getting us known in different corners of the world. But I have definitely realized it’s kind of a bit dumb to completely rely on wholesale shops because I’ve got no control over that relationship. Relying solely on wholesale means I don't even own the relationships with my customers. I don't know anything about who's buying that product which makes it hard to target things towards them. I think there is power in owning your client relationships. Then you will be able to develop your business with them in mind. I think there's definitely strength in that and that's something I'm working on for this year.
“I definitely think I’m not only a clothing designer. I definitely feel like my ideas transcend clothes I guess.”
J.M. As far as the company is concerned, do you have certain goals or things you want to accomplish for the company? Kind of benchmarks?
P.A. I feel like in the first two years of the business everything happened so fast, taking every day as it comes. I wasn't able to take a break and strategize what I actually wanted to do. It was just always one thing after another. Especially when it was related to travel I was always on the plane. Now I've had time to really harness what it is that I want and be able to achieve moving forward and what I want to be able to do with the brand. That comes in loads of different forms, improving digital platforms and this year we will be getting a new website. It also comes with making some investments I wasn't able to do before, diversifying the product range, and things like that. We defi- nitely got some strategy coming in. I’ve done so much, I've just been trying to get information and learn from everywhere that I can so that I can lead it in a way that'll be successful and also fruitful.
Photographer TYLER ASH
Fashion Editor ABIGAIL JONES
In conversation with JESSICA MICHAULT
Images courtesy of KEVIN YAGHER
