Aspiring to be Melbourne’s top Fashionista

Recent digital times has seen an increase in ‘fashion bloggers’ and ‘influencers’ making their way to the front line of the schema of fashion. 

Customers no longer rely on expensive advertisements for information or follow perfect-fit model shoots. Rather, they carefully follow artistically curated stories and designs which makes fashion look simple. Social media personalities have become the inspiration for many fashion followers. 

One such personality is Debasree Das. Born in Midnapore a small town in West Bengal, Das’s journey has been quite colourful. A former beauty queen, marketing strategist and mother of a 6-year-old, she is a unique fashion influencer and a fashion runway model, finding immense gratification in blogging on fashion. She is aspiring to be Melbourne’s top ‘fashionista’. 

With a background in marketing, Debasree worked in the corporate sector for many years. With usual 9 to 5 rhythm of life, she lived and worked in Moscow, Cape Town, Angola, Mumbai, Delhi, Singapore and now in Melbourne.

Her life took a full turn, when in 2014, she won the title of Mrs. Singapore and went ahead competing against 14 countries to win the title of Mrs. Asia International. As a package of goodies that came along with the titles, she was working as a brand endorser and started her own talk show about fashion and fads. 

Debasree says, “with my girl next door look, I never imagined myself winning a beauty pageant. To partake in that was even my friend’s idea. In fact, I had just become a mother; this pathway was never part of my plan. But when it happened, it made me feel good, and that feel-good-factor is most important to me. It helped me come out and accept myself freely and break my routine. For me, it simply meant living life”.

In 2016, moving from Singapore to Australia, she explored herself while exploring the new country. Settling down in a new city with a pause in her marketing career was not easy for her. But this gave her time to learn and unlearn the city’s fashion culture which led to finding her true passion.

After two years of break, one cosy day, she opened her laptop, made herself a cup of tea and decided to pen down her thoughts about fashion in her new blog. Blogging soon became a new way of expression for her and slowly interacting with people and fellow bloggers also gave her back confidence. Her ideas were being heard again.

To understand Melbourne’s fashion even more, Debasree started socializing and meeting the face of the fashion industry by attending all major fashion events happening across Australia. In March 2017, Debasree attended the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia, Sydney, which was a turning point in her career as a blogger. Brands contacted her and her network expanded. 

Putting some light of her role as an influencer, Debasree shares that, “in number, if we speak, viewership for a fashion show is going down because the runway format sometimes can portray complexity in fashion. But that is the reason that bloggers play an important role in curating trends in a more edible way, so that viewers can digest the new trends and apply it in a more day-to-day life rather than viewing it as a runway setup”. 

Considered as one of the two fashion bloggers of Australia attending all events, Guardian UK recognised her talent and interviewed her. Inspired at each step, by learning and exploring her own self and challenging her potential, she does not wish to stop. Debasree soon wants to start her own talk show too. 

Debasree’s love for fashion goes beyond a simple trend analyst. She likes to help females who think fashion is too complex, by assisting them in portraying simplicity. She believes that fashion should reflect your inner self, showing uniqueness is always appreciated than following a trend. 

“No matter how difficult it gets to balance my full-time job as a marketing strategist, and all other roles that I play in my day to day life as a female, I always make time for my blog. It is important to me that I share my experience with people. They need to understand that fashion comes in all colours, shapes, and sizes. I am petite, yet I have walked as an independent runway model for many Melbourne fashion events. I wish to inspire such ‘girls next door’ like me to curate their own fashion stories”. 

As a trending blogger and fashion influencer, Debasree has already worked as a brand endorser for JORD Watch USA, Tommy Hilfiger, and many Asian and Indian clothing brands. She has walked on the ramp for Pune Fashion Week, independent runways of Virgin Australia Fashion Festival and Melbourne Fashion Week and also as a showstopper for India Beach Fashion Week. 

These national and international experiences have given her a deeper understanding and acceptance of global fashion trends. Through her blogs, she hopes to share her own style, and in doing so, shape a more vibrant future.

 By Sanchita Abrol

www.travelinstylewithdebs.com