Vital Statistics

• WHAT IS IT? A co-educational fashion and design institute • WHO’S THE BOSS? Deepak Seth is the chairman • HOW CHEAP IS IT? Rs 1.5 lakh per annum • HOW TO GET IN? Admission is through the General Proficiency in English test and the Design Aptitude Test, followed by a situational test and interview • HOW MANY STUDENTS? 1,200 • WHERE IS IT? A-21/13, Naraina Industrial Area, Phase-II, New Delhi-110028, Phone: 25703451/5478/8506 Fax: 25705451 Website: www.pearlacademy.com

Fashion is nothing but an induced epidemic,” said George Bernard Shaw. And it was to spread this “epidemic” that Delhi-based Pearl Global Limited, one of India’s largest apparel groups with international operations, launched the Pearl Academy of Fashion (PAF) in 1993. Today, fashion has become a gigantic industry.

The academy started with just one course and 47 students but has expanded over the years. It now has three campuses in Delhi, Jaipur and Chennai and boasts of a student strength of 1,200.

With 13 courses offered at the undergraduate, postgraduate and certificate level, PAF students have a wide variety of programmes to choose from. At the undergraduate level, PAF offers six courses –– fashion design, fashion merchandising and production, fashion retail, textile design, communications design and jewellery design. There are five postgraduate courses — fashion mechandising, garment manufacturing, fashion retail, fashion design (Indianwear) and textile design (home fashion). The academy also offers two certificate courses –– an undergraduate course in fashion and media make-up and a postgraduate course in fashion marketing. “Our courses are designed to give students an overall perspective of the fashion industry. From market trends to the global fashion scenario, the courses cover all aspects of the fashion business,” says A.K.G. Nair, group director, PAF.

Foreign links

Supported by the latest machinery and facilities, PAF is closely linked to some of the best educational institutions in the world. All the six undergraduate degree programmes of four-year duration are affiliated to the 165-year-old Nottingham Trent University (NTU), UK. Among the five postgraduate diploma programmes at PAF, the course in fashion retail is validated by the LDT Institute in Nagold, Germany.

“When we entered the industry in 1993, fashion studies were at a nascent stage in India. Therefore, we opted for international benchmarking. We roped in the expertise of Prof. Martin Shoben from the London College of Fashion to develop PAF’s curriculum and consulted several other global fashion institutions,” adds Nair. The institute’s technical co-operation with Hong Kong Polytechnic University (HKPU), Hong Kong, yearly student exchanges with Amsterdam Fashion Institute (AMFI), the Netherlands, NTU, LDT and other foreign tie-ups offer Pearl students an insight into the international fashion industry.

Practical learning

Learning at Pearl is experiential and project-based. Students undertake numerous practical projects and are encouraged to study on their own. “We often spend hours in the library doing research on fabrics and design styles,” says Neha Yadav, a second year student of the undergraduate course in fashion design and technology. The Delhi campus library houses more than 4,500 volumes of books and 600 bound volumes of international periodicals. A resource centre stores comprehensively listed and neatly displayed samples of fabrics, garments and accessories.

PAF also encourages industry exposure. Students visit factories and garment fairs, and become interns with industry veterans. “Besides class lectures, we do a lot of practical work. For instance, we attend knitting sessions, work for the student body Plan Clan, do live projects or write editorials for online apparel portals,” says Sakshi Magan, a student of fashion merchandising and production management.

The placement and industry relations cell of PAF has enabled students to get jobs with DCM Benetton, Ritu Beri, JJ Valaya, Rohit Bal and GAP International.

Tessy Koshy

OLD MEMORIES

Fashion designer Divyam Mehta remembers his time at PAF

I found the course at the Pearl Academy of Fashion, New Delhi, very industry-oriented. From working on the latest machinery to attending garment fairs to check out recent trends, we were always in touch with happenings in the fashion industry.

The faculty is excellent and well-versed with international fashion trends. I had the privilege of studying with a good mixture of intelligent students who made the classroom environment very competitive.

The lessons on time management taught at the institute are coming in very handy at my work place nowadays. It is helping me to meet tight deadlines.

For me, the best moment at PAF was when I designed my own collection, Silent Flute, in the final year and received the Avant Garde award for it.

As told to Tessy Koshy