KUALA LUMPUR: The dresses which singer Nabila Razali and actress Maria Farida recently wore and invited ‘copycat’ allegations were indeed inspired by an international fashion company.
Fashion designer Ezuwan Ismail who designed both dresses said many of his customers wanted outfits that were inspired by international brands such as Balmain, and he thus entertained their requests.
“However, I’ve always told my customers that I’m not a copycat, and the dresses I design have to be adapted to local circumstances,” he said in a news report yesterday.
Ezuwan explained that his customers showed him photographs of models who wore the dresses they fancied. “As a designer, I do my best to create outfits that resemble them, but also contain my personal touch.”
He admitted that many local fashion designers received requests for outfits inspired by international fashion houses.
“It happens to most of us, and we do our best to meet such requests, while also reminding customers that we must refrain from making dresses that are 100 per cent similar.”
Three days ago, a fashion critic known as @i_knowfashion claimed on Instagram that Nabila’s black-and-white dress which she wore at Anugerah MeleTOP Era on April 8 bore an uncanny resemblance to a well-known Balmain outfit.
Likewise Maria’s pink, Middle Eastern-inspired dress which she wore at a cosmetics launch in MF Mansion here three days ago.
The critic slammed local fashion designers for “plagiarism” and urged them to credit Balmain as the inspiration behind Nabila’s and Maria’s dresses.