The Background of Fashionably Awkward Podcast
Sushmita, my friend from college and I, started our podcast, Fashionably Awkward, in the February
of 2021. The world was hit by the pandemic and we had more time than ever to catch up on calls as we
lived in two different cities (Mumbai & Ranchi) in India. Our phone calls lasted for hours on end; we
did all the pandemic trends together like watching movies & fashion shows, reviewing them etc.
While we were struggling to cope with the “new normal”, these discussions however gave us an
outlet to express ourselves and learn from each other. So we decided to focus our energy in creating
something meaningful that gave momentum to our otherwise stagnant lives. That’s when Fashionably
Awkward was conceived with the aim to learn from leaders and innovators, empowering people in the
fashion industry, to be a platform that addresses queries of newbies in the industry and guide them
through the process and to talk about topics that are relevant to today’s dynamic world of fashion.
Topics of podcast
Topics that we cover in our podcast mainly entail fashion, lifestyle and marketing. Since we started
the podcast during the pandemic, the initial few topics we took up were more focused on the
pandemic. We spoke about the correlation of COVID-pandemic and fashion. Once things started to
normalise and when people started seeking retail therapy, we brought up the topic of “revenge
shopping”. Gradually, we switched to interviews and started having guests from the industry. We
invited people with varied experiences, who had insights on future of fashion and each of these
discussions brought something new to the table. For instance, James Gaubert, the founder of
Republiqe, a digital fashion brand, introduced us to the world of phygital fashion. Alysaa Couture, who
has authored the book 'Healthy Fashion' gave us a deep insight into the connection between the body, mind, soul & fashion.
Project – Ekhada - A covid relief fundraiser initiative (Raised ₹15,000/- as donation)
We organised a covid-relief fundraiser, partnering with an NGO, Matr, an artisans empowering NGO,
to create an initiative named Ekhada. Ekhada means bringing together to empower and donate. We
hosted five virtual live sessions, with 5 industry experts in fashion and marketing throughout the
month of June to help more than 50 students and beginners to learn and chat directly with the experts.
We successfully raised ₹15, 000 as contributions from our participants to donate for the cause.
We look forward to having more such amazing conversations with guests, learning from them, and
sharing it with our community to pave the way for a better future in Fashion.
Fashionably Awkward Podcast Links
Text by Shalini / @shaalini263 and Sushmita / @sushmita95