Lakshmi Rana and 10 minutes of joy

Long-time Indian model, Lakshmi Rana, was seen closing or ending shows at all the on-ground events at FDCI x LFW. It makes her the right person to talk about this reset from a virtual to a physical showing. The recently turned entrepreneur with Wilderbee Talent Camp (who admits she detests the term ‘veteran’), says she enjoyed every bit of the chaos this season. The digital shows of previous seasons, while micromanaged to perfection “were strenuous as the shoots began in the morning, with no audience” to keep the energy going. “With these offline events, it is those 10 minutes when we perform that really make the show. For a model like me, that is the highlight of my day, the joy of walking the ramp, with the lights, the audience and the media photographers,” she explains.

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With the management following Covid protocol to the last letter, and with RT PCR tests every single morning, the models easily managed the three days of quarantine and eight days of the show. As for the new expansive venue, Jio Convention Centre, Rana says it reminded her of international ramps. “I enjoyed the backstage madness [that was missed over the last 18 months]. The first show was Tarun Tahiliani’s and so many things went wrong. I tripped a little bit, the zip in my corset split and was stitched backstage, we were working with less time, and people were screaming… and I was loving it. There was so much of laughter!”