Does riffling through your wardrobe make your friends cringe? Or do you often draw flak for the way you are dressed? Take heart, you are not alone and there is help. Trinny and Susannah, the international makeover specialists from the U.K. are now in India doling out fashion advice to those they believe are shabbily dressed.
They examine their subjects like forensic experts at a crime scene. It’s hard to escape their watchful eyes and caustic remarks. But Trinny Woodall and Susannah Constantine insist they are here to help. “We will offer the same principle of the show that we have done worldwide. We want to help women feel better through dressing and give them confidence,” says Trinny in a telephone interview.
It’s been 17 years since Trinny and Susannah first started out together. Apart from television shows, they have co-authored books, columns and introduced their own line of clothes. “It’s like a marriage. We know each other better than our husbands. We are the best of friends but as women we are totally opposite…like Yin and Yang. I am the accelerator and Susannah is the brake,” says Trinny.
The duo has travelled to around nine countries including Sweden, Australia and Poland imparting gyaan and giving people makeovers based on their body shapes. “Every country presents different challenges. For example, women in Sweden are obese and broader. Indian women are curvy and their problem areas are their tummies and thighs,” she adds. Since the Indian audience is notoriously coy the fashionistas have decided to tone down and do away with the requirements related to body measurements.
“For the Indian edition we will also be working with Indian garments. Saris and salwar kameezes are the most beautiful things and I wish we had something like that in the U.K. Anyone can wear them. It doesn’t have any boundaries. This country has such lovely traditions, and we are trying to create a fusion between the Western and the traditional,” she says.
Trinny also feels that in spite of India having so much colour, it’s ironic that women here don’t try out colours when it comes to western wear. “They wear skinny jeans and a black or white top. They lack colour in their clothing. I feel sometimes they need help with their shoes. I couldn’t see great ankle boots. As for Indian men they are lazy in terms of dressing. So our show will feature a few men too,” laughs Trinny. So who according to them is the most well-dressed Indian? “It’s got to be Kareena Kapoor!”
And what’s next for the duo? “We are travelling to Israel in October for a show and then will return to the U.K. for a few projects. We have also just launched a YouTube channel.”
Watch the revered and dreaded divas (especially when they shred through outfits which you think are hot and they think not) on Trinny and Susannah’sMakeover Mission India that premieres tonight on TLC at 9 p.m.
