Yang Hormat Dato' Sri

Bernard Chandran

SSAP DIMP
பர்னார்ட் சந்திரன்
Born (1968-02-27) 27 February 1968
Petaling Jaya, Malaysia
NationalityMalaysian
EducationParis American Academy
SpouseDatin Sri Mary Lourdes Chandran
Websitebernardchandran.com

Dato' Sri Bernard Chandran (Tamil: பர்னார்ட் சந்திரன்) (born 27 February 1968) is a Malaysian fashion designer. Chandran used to be known as Malaysia's "Prince of Fashion", but is now being hailed as Malaysia's "King of Fashion".[1][2]

Chandran is also a Malaysian television personality. He has been known as the chief designer of the reality television show Project Runway Malaysia, since its debut on 8TV on 3 August 2007.[3]

Chandran was a guest judge on Britain's Next Top Model, Cycle 6, Episode 12. The top three models were given a chance to model for Chandran's fashion show during the London Fashion Week. [4]

Early years

Bernard Chandran was born to P. Ramachandran and Chow Yook Lin.[5] He is of Indian and Chinese parentage (commonly referred to as Chindian in Malaysia). He studied fashion in a local fashion college known as International Fashion Training Centre (IFTC) in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia. He then attended the Paris Fashion School in Paris, France.

In 1991, he won the 'Open European Contest for Look of the Year 2000'. He was the first non-European to win the title.[6]

Fashion business

In the industry

After working in Paris, he returned to Malaysia to set up his maiden shop in KL Plaza in 1993. The first 'Bernard Chandran' couture house was a small, rented shop with a handful of staff in the heart of Kuala Lumpur. From there, he built up his client base amongst the who's of Kuala Lumpur, ranging from the rich to royalty. He has now expanded his shop in KL Plaza to take up 4 shop lots and is nearly 300 square meters in area. He was voted Designer of the Year by the Malaysian International Fashion Awards in 2003.

Chandran has also started introducing Europe to his couture with a boutique in Knightsbridge, London.

His creations are drawn from Chinese, Malay, Indian and other Eastern cultures.

"My inspiration comes from my customers...how they move, how they talk, their attitudes, their lifestyles. When I first meet a new customer, I make her understand that I am here to make you look good."[7] Chandran's favourite designers are Valentino "...for his femininity and finishing...", and Galliano who "...has a great spirit." He admires Hussein Chalayan for his works and how he dealt with his bankruptcy.

Celebrities in Bernard Chandran

Estelle notably wore an azure blue dress by the designer with exaggerated pointing hips to perform at the 2008 MTV European Music Awards. She also chose to wear two of his distinctive pieces (one on stage in a duet with Kanye West and one for the red carpet) to the 51st Grammy awards, where she went on to win her first Grammy.[8]

Lady Gaga has also been spotted in designs from Chandran's Collections. She even wore a Chandran piece for her interview with Jay Leno.[9]

Tori Amos chose to wear a red gown from Chandran for the cover of her 2009 holiday album, "Midwinter Graces".[10] Chandran had also designed all the 15 gowns for her concert tour that year.[11]

#BlackLivesMatter Controversy

In 2020, Chandran released a line of designer face masks and promoted it with an Instagram post featuring a black face donning a yellow mask, with Bernard Chandran branding and the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter on the mask. Netizens accused Chandran of blackface and of profiteering off the Black Lives Matter movement.[12]

Family

He is married to Datin Mary Lourdes Chandran (a Malaysian of ethnic Indian origin). She is a former model and was one of the most successful Malaysian models in the 1980s. They have five children.

Chandran wants his children to be grounded in Hinduism.[13]

Awards

  • He became the first Malaysian to win the 'Open European Contest for Look of the Year 2000' in 1991.
  • He was voted Designer of the Year by the Malaysian International Fashion Awards in 2003.
  • He received his honorific, Dato', in 2006 when he was awarded the Dato' Indera Mahkota Pahang (DIMP) by the Sultan Ahmad Shah Sultan Abu Bakar, the Sultan of Pahang, Malaysia.[13]
  • Chandran was awarded Malaysian International Fashion Alliance's [MIFA] Special Achievement Award 2009.[14]
  • He carried honorific title Dato' Sri, in 2016 when he was conferred the Darjah Sri Sultan Ahmad Shah Pahang (SSAP) by the Sultan Ahmad Shah Sultan Abu Bakar, the Sultan of Pahang, Malaysia.[15]

References

  1. ↑ Huxley, Phill (19 April 2004). "BBC - Lancashire - Life & Style: top fashion designer comes to Preston". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  2. ↑ Zaidan, Fairuz (5 November 2009). "Father vs Son". Berita Harian Online. Archived from the original on 5 November 2009.
  3. ↑ Khoo, Rubin (3 August 2007). "Fashion TV show to unearth talents". The Star Online. Archived from the original on 21 May 2011. Retrieved 21 May 2011.
  4. ↑ "Grazia Daily reviews Britain's Next Top Model: Episode Thirteen!". Grazia Daily. 28 September 2010. Archived from the original on 2 October 2010. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  5. ↑ Yin Fong, Pang (18 June 1998). "Daddy dearest". New Sunday Times. p. 1. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  6. ↑ Hua Chee, Kee (29 December 1991). "Malaysian designs on Paris". New Straits Times. pp. 12–13. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  7. ↑ Paal, Jaahnavi P (30 March 2005). "The "Prince of Fashion" - Bernard Chandran". Fropper.com. Archived from the original on 27 January 2007.
  8. ↑ Kihogo, Marian (15 December 2009). "Focus on // Bernard Chandran". mariankihogo.com. Archived from the original on 31 January 2010. Retrieved 2009-12-21.
  9. ↑ Anonymous, Patricia (17 September 2009). "Lady Gaga in Bernard Chandran". Gaga Daily. Archived from the original on 2 October 2009. Retrieved 2009-10-13.
  10. ↑ Vanegas, Trent (14 October 2009). "Preview Tori Amos's New Holiday Album 'Midwinter Graces'". Archived from the original on 18 October 2009.
  11. ↑ Rathir, Ramani (11 April 2010). "Here is an international fashion designer who seems to be chary of labels as this interview will reveal". Korean Press. Archived from the original on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 2009-12-23.
  12. ↑ Chalil, Melanie (28 August 2020). "Malaysian fashion designer Bernard Chandran accused of blackface, cashing in on Black Lives Matter movement to promote face mask | Malay Mail". www.malaymail.com. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  13. 1 2 Low, Sandra (1 November 2009). "Bernard Chandran, unmasked". The Star Online. Archived from the original on 2 November 2009.
  14. ↑ "MALAYSIA INTERNATIONAL FASHION WEEK 2009" (PDF). Malaysian International Fashion Alliance. 8 November 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 February 2010. Retrieved 2009-12-07.
  15. ↑ "Fashion designers honoured by Sultan". The Star. 25 October 2016.
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