In collaboration with the WEF (Women Economic Forum), the WICCI (Women’s Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry) India-Austria Bilateral Business Council hosted India’s first Metaverse show on June 11th-12th at IIC (India International Centre) Delhi. The theme of the show was “Cohesive and Sustainable World in the Digital Era”, done with the assistance of the House of Krifin, which provided technical support.

Papa Don’t Preach, is a young brand and what drove Shubhika to this parallel world is the ability to transform into any avatar, almost an escape from reality. “It gives you the freedom to be who you want to be and frankly in the post-covid world everyone has realised the importance of digitalisation, the undisputed future of fashion,” says Shubhika, who studied at the London College of Fashion and launched her label in 2010, inspired by music and the love for her father, whom she considers her biggest motivation.

It took almost seven months of planning to get the show on the road, and pieces of the 6-outfit show were chosen from her latest line “Nazar Na Lage”. Interestingly, she is honest enough to admit, it took her days to wrap her head around the concept. “I spoke to many 17-year-olds, friends, family relatives, who told me that ‘on Instagram, only a certain number of people can admire your outfit. But on Metaverse, the viewership is unlimited, it has infinite possibilities,” she quips.

Fashion, after all, is a highly visual platform and even though Shubhika took the leap of faith, she was wrought with several challenges and had to metaphorically climb many mountains. First of all, was the unavailability of 5G network in India, and the required broadband is still a pressing issue to watch a Metaverse show. She also created NFTs of the bags, shoes and jewellery so that they can be purchased later, considering the market is slow right now. The process of trying to get everything in shape for the virtual catwalk requires a huge back-end support system with each image having to be painfully modified.

“We created our six outfits out of taffeta, silk, aari work, and we use a lot of metal charms to make statement motifs, as we wanted to showcase intricate Indian workmanship with a new-age edge that results in fine detailing,” she adds.

Each outfit was first scanned, in 3 D, added on a digital avatar and then presented to make it look like an actual fashion show, the only difference is the lack of “real” faces which in time you will be able to choose too. Each piece also channelled innate sustainability, as with Metaverse you know exactly what will work, in terms of colour, cut, fabric and embroidery obliterating the need for storing an inventory of embroidery threads, fabrics, sequins and metallic adornments. “Those who watch know what they like, make on order, and we will give them just that, rather than our outfits sitting in stores, this makes the entire process sustainable and easier for both the designer and the end consumer,” she concludes.