Who is Tabassum Mughal and what is she doing on that billboard?

We all know the name Tabassum Mughal — several incidents last year made certain of that.

With successive showcases at Bridal Couture Week (BCW) as her claim to fame, Tabassum has frequently been caught out for getting far too inspired by international fashion. In a similar vein, her luxury lawn collection last year launched in collaboration with Al-Zohaib Textiles could be accused of plagiarism.

If that wasn’t enough, last summer she created an uproar when an enraged client accused her of having swindled her and beat her up.

The fiasco was shady, with the client later revealed to have had ulterior motives of her own. Umpteen social media tirades ensued, augmented by saucy ‘Breaking News’ commentaries on TV and lo and behold, Tabassum Mughal was famous – notoriously so.

Nevertheless, this month her name’s back on country-wide billboards, proudly announcing a luxury line of formals created in association with Al-Zohaib Textiles. Apparently, all publicity boils down to good publicity and Tabassum’s market is still going strong.

So who is Tabassum Mughal really — what hides behind the name and the scandal?

Zohaib Nagda, CEO of Al-Zohaib Textiles, asserts that Tabassum has that special something that makes her a hot seller.

“We’re not really bothered with social media controversy,” he explains. “Over time, we’ve collaborated with many designers and we know that everyone does not have the knack to cater to the unstitched fabric market. Tabassum certainly has it. She created some of our best-sellers last year and we have high hopes for this time.”

Does that mean more knock-offs in the near future, spotted on the Internet, adeptly transferred onto fabric and presented as ‘designer’-made? “Never again,” professes Tabassum. “I never expected such a hue and cry to be raised when I tweaked the design and incorporated it into my lawn collection. I just wanted to make a very expensive ethos available to the mass market through lawn, like H&M.”

“I'll be putting together four to five unstitched collections for Al-Zohaib Textiles this time and I plan to make them completely original," says the oft-criticised designer.

However, H&M doesn’t profess to be designer-wear while Tabassum’s creations do. “I know,” she admits. “I will be putting together four to five unstitched collections for Al-Zohaib Textiles this time and I plan to make them completely original.”

It’s a tall claim to make given her history but to her credit, Tabassum seems resolute. She should be, too - plagiarism is unethical and it doesn’t bode well for the brand that she has built brick by brick. You may or may not like Tabassum’s signature style – the embellishments are heavy, there’s oodles of bling, an effusion of florals and her fashion week showcases often swerve towards the OTT – but she’s a business student who knows how to work the market.

Six years into her career, Tabassum has a fairly consistent clientele. TV morning show hosts dressed in her clothes and BCW have served her well as marketing tools and her customers come mostly from her home-base in Karachi as well as TV-viewing Pakistanis living abroad, flying in for the occasional desi wedding.

Was her market affected by last year’s controversy with the angry client?

“Not at all,” she claims. “People who know me are aware that I would never cheat someone of their money. The woman’s wedding had actually gotten cancelled and she tried to get back her advance from me by stirring a scandal. If only she had been upfront with me, I would have been willing to help her out. Ultimately, I did pay her back – not because I was wrong but because I was tired of the consistent false allegations. I never wanted to be known for something like this. It was a horrifying experience especially since I have always believed in accommodating clients. I tweak designs for them, make last-minute changes and I have a range of happy customers who keep returning to me.”

A quick scan of Tabassum’s bridal studio reveals her clientele’s preferences: a smattering of structured designs and short tunics are overshadowed by long, flowing gowns, coats and lehngas. The colors are varied, the embroideries are less traditional but the silhouettes and design elements are hardly new.

“This is what my customers like,” explains Tabassum. “Even at BCW I showed long shirts and while I may have been critiqued for them, I immediately got orders for them. That’s what matters.”

But what of being fashion-forward? Of veering towards originality instead of pretty copycat fashion? Of creating for the love of fashion rather than just for sales? “I love designing bridals and girls, generally, want to look traditionally beautiful on their wedding day. This is what I create for them,” she asserts.

Fashion in Pakistan is an increasingly clustered market and there’s a customer-base for the gamechanger as well as the retail-centric, the unique as well as the generic.

In the long haul, though, it is bona fide designer wear that is remembered and stays in the business while many others fade into the shadows.

We all know of Tabassum Mughal but for all the wrong reasons. Perhaps she should now endeavor to make herself known for the right ones.