There’s no time like the festive season to don your ethnic best for us desis. When it comes to men’s fashion, Kurtas have been, are and will always be one of the most preferred, versatile and dapper outfits our men can slip into, to celebrate the essence of the season. Here’s the quintessential review of various Eid offerings by various brands of Pakistan from the classic, to the craziest of them all.

I’m so excited to see that men’s wear is becoming a competitive market place for all types of designers. So much to look forward to !

Over the past decade, we saw the arrival of the high fashion kurtas in mainstream fashion. I’m not going to take all the credit but hey, give the devil his due.

Kurtas are no longer just kurtas made from latha or “Wash n wear”, kurtas are an attitude. I call it “KURTATTITUDE” .

I’m going to quickly review collections and words I heard from customers, friends, peers and seniors. So if you haven’t gone out shopping yet, here’s a quick review of what to expect from the men’s wear movers and shakers of Pakistan.

From Guru Gee, Amir Adnan, Deepak Perwani, Humayun Alamgir, Omer Farooq, Jaazib Qamar, Arsalan Iqbal, SHAHNAMEH, BAREEZE MAN, Khaadi and others, the choices are many – here’s the lowdown.

AMIR ADNAN

The guru always knows how to add his touch of class in everything he designs. He’s got his own unique style so if you are an Amir Adnan kinda person, you’ll love his latest offerings; while he’s retained his signature style, he’s also added some really cool details in terms of tailoring. I personally loved some of the collars in the collection. I’m not big on embroideries for men but now there are so many who wear them and wear them proudly. Amir Adnan is a  staple for them .

JAAZIB QAMAR

The crazy artist of men’s wear! This boy has seen life from where very few of us have and has always shone. He’s eccentric and knows no rules. His men’s wear is based on clean lines and fancy words, he just makes things happen! From kurtas on which he splatters inks by hand to prints that are obnoxious, I enjoy watching his work. It’s not for the faint-hearted but then again neither am I 🙂
His collection is funky and original.

SHAHNAMEH

Now onto the power house of men’s wear. The neo junaid jamshed revivalists with a modern raw edgy twist! They are again not for those looking for a kurta made of latha but they have great clean lines, great simple embellishments, a very viable color palette and the works. These boys did exactly what was needed, added a flair in the boring men’s wear market yet keeping the commercial viability alive! Their fabrics felt great, prices slightly steeper, but that’s because of better quality and design! Umair jaswal rocked the collection imaging captured beautifully by Abdullah Haris.

BAREEZE MAN

The collection is plain and simple, and effective and efficient! Right colors, right embroideries, right availability and a little steep on the pricing but hey, I didn’t see many complaining. The soft tailored waistcoats were great! Kudos!

DEEPAK PERWANI

Deepak is an extremely busy designer who does over 12 collections of womens’s wear every year, I don’t know how he does that, he told me when he was over on my radio show a couple of months ago. His men’s wear is also just as strong. He knows what his clients want and ensures he delivers. He’s a veteran with over almost 2 decades of experience. His Eid collection this time was classic  more than flamboyant. So if you’re indulging yourself and still wanting to keep this Eid more subtle .. then DP it !

HUMAYUN ALAMGIR

He’s the man of the hour in the Karachi market and word on the street is that this man has got his competitors in the famous lane number 4 of zamzama begging for mercy! Seems like he’s giving away his exquisite collection for free but no sirs, there’s some serious business happening there… his collection was sported by our very own boys in green. His colors and the right selection of fabric were the elements that got him the right attention, then came his service and personal flamboyance in selling. The clothing shows less of embroideries with more emphasis on styling and detailing. Just the way I like it!

P.S. A special mention goes to the really edgy metal detailed chappals in the collection.

ARSALAN IQBAL

Arsalan kept it “arsalan” with colors, cuts and experimental placement of pockets.. but most of the imaging was based on a lot of embroidery, heavy embellishments done by print, machine embroidery and hand embroideries.
I like the multi technique embellishments he used but for me  it was a little too much. However some of the lesser experimental ones were great.Word out on the street is that arsalan has found and made a niche for himself and is busy catering to those who dare to go beyond the conventional kurtas.

ALMAS

The boys from down under! Almas came this Eid with a abang of advertising budget, out of no where, became a brand to reckon with. Great effective marketing with a great mix of products from plain colorful kurtas to classics for the gent! Almas’s collection also featured waistcoats in a number of colors, the campaign was great and captured the spirit of eid perfectly! Jehan seemed like the novel choice for the campaign. Also the pricing made them a great hit in the people! I overheard quite a few saying “almas per sasta hay, wahan say letay hain”

Republic By Omer Farooq

Republic has become synonymous with classic men’s wear for the uber gent! His collection of linen waist coats and a whole lot of classy gent kurta pajamas were slick as always. Neutral colors of blues, beiges, whites seemed the most prominent, his styling was impeccable. Pocket squares looked great (word on the street was that these were made by a designer in Islamabad called xaeina’s accessories but was never given credit so who really knows what happens behind the gentleman’s den) omer’s clothes have always been about fanciness! They are clean cut and stitched really well, a sartorial perfection so to say.

MUNIB NAWAZ

And finally onto yours truly. So while I’m not going to blow my own trumpet, my collection was based on happiness. There was just too much sadness when I was designing the collection so I thought lets go “happy”! As Pharell Williams played as the background score I got to work. I used primary colors and prints on waist coats and classic colors on the kurtas, embellishments were again colorful but minimal. I think people got the idea that a little color can still end up looking masculine if done right!

I hope you find the perfect Kurta this season and don it with Kurtattitude! 🙂