Aamir Khan, Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn, Hrithik Roshan, Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Kareena Kapoor – all the top notch Bollywood stars walked the ramp for different designers. Varun Bahl gave form to filmmaker Karan Johar’s concepts while Shane and Falguni Peacock fitted Salman’s paintings into tees, shirts and gowns.

What transpired during the couture week and at other fashion weeks in the recent past is a natural corollary to the evolution of both the fashion and film industry in India. Hindi film industry worth thousands of crore has given us more glamour icons than any other industry and naturally so. Unlike in the west where the music and modelling industry contribute heavily to the legion of glamour and fashion icons, back home in India, it is only the film stars and cricket players that make the cut for promotion of fashion and luxury brands. The reasons could roughly be divided into two – their mass appeal and ability to be conspicuous consumers. India’s emergence as one of the burgeoning market for luxury goods such as designer shoes, clothes and accessories has accelerated this exchange between Bollywood and the fashion world. Sample this – International brands such as L’oreal, Maybelline, Tag Heuer, Tissot, Omega and Longines have signed up Indian brand ambassadors.

A few like Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Freida Pinto with international projects to their name have joined the roster with international models and actors as the face of the brands in question.

Most others have been signed up only for India keeping in mind their popularity on home turf as also the fact that they are not as well known internationally as the aforementioned (the sizeable NRI demographic slice notwithstanding). Shilpa Shetty, after her Big Brother victory had a foot in the door. Galliano personally invited her for his show in Paris though it did not go much further as la Shetty did not attempt the giant leap into Hollywood or British television for that matter.

Attention from international brands has but obviously made Bollywood stars the obvious choice for fashion magazines such as Vogue, L’Officiel, GQ, Garzia and Elle. Vogue and GQ have almost consistently profiled stars such as Hrithik Roshan, Shah Rukh Khan, Farhan Akhtar, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, Kajol and Kareena Kapoor on their covers. It helps that the influence of models-the waif thin figure— is a rage in Bollywood. Actors who could sing and dance, also make good clothes horse.

That the influx of models has increased within the industry in the last decade is also responsible for Bollywood’s move to the runway. In earlier days model-turned actors like Bipasha Basu, Arjun Rampal, John Abraham and Dino Morea because of their physiques and long standing association with the fashion world were seen on the ramp. However, considering the tremendous press coverage lavished on both the star and designer, it is the superstars who are now walking the walk. Says Karan Johar “The age of supermodels like Mehr Jessia and Deepak Malhotra is over. Film stars bring the same energy and adrenaline rush to the show so it works very well. As for my fashion line, designing has always been a hobby. I had a line planned for My Name Is Khan, which Anu (Dewan) and everyone could show at the couture week. For me, it was great fun.” Ritu Kumar, counted among India’s pioneering designers adds, “I have requested people who are conversant with the Ritu Kumar look and suit the persona to model the final garment at some of our shows. These are generally the couture shows and not the ones we do for the Ritu KUMAR LABEL brand.”

Occasionally the runway also makes for a good platform to promote films particularly those that have a special film-related apparel line as Om Shanti Om did. Madhur Bhandarkar’s Fashion, due to its theme was promoted at fashion week last year. The stars however claim different reasons to be part of the show. According to Shah Rukh Khan, he walks the ramp when his wife or friend Karan Johar ask him to. “I wear and do what they tell me to do. I don’t think my walking on the ramp can make a difference to fashion or makes me a style icon, “ he says.