ALIA BASTAMAM & KEL WEN OF BEHATI

Alia Bastamam, the queen of elegant womenswear, and Kel Wen of Behati, the disruptor of cultures.

- ABDUL AZIZ DRAIM

The seasoned dressmaker and the contemporary provocateur. Two poles apart yet they share a kindred spirit in following their hearts. Displaying genuine admiration for each other’s art, they sit down to explore their respective creative process as they share insights into the history and future of modern Malaysian fashion. Be entertained.

Alia Bastamam (AB): I want to know how you started in the fashion industry. How did you fall into being a fashion designer?

Kel Wen (KW): Actually, I never really planned to become a fashion designer when I was in secondary school. I wasn’t reading fashion magazines. I was just reading red carpet news. How the celebrities were dressing. That was my first touch with fashion. It started when I wanted to choose which college to go to. I picked Animation because I was drawing comics, and I’d always focused on the clothes too…

AB: When you were doing the comics, you mean?

KW: Yeah, when I created the characters, I also designed their clothes.

AB: So you were that boy at school who was always drawing comics.

KW: Yes, I drew every time. Then, my cousin brought me to a Khoon Hooi fashion show—my first KL Fashion Week—and that was my first experience at watching and knowing what is fashion. So my cousin told me that maybe I could do it too, be a designer. Then she brought me to Raffles College just to look around…

AB: So you went to Raffles? I was from Raffles too! KW: I didn’t know you went to Raffles!

AB: Well, obviously I’m your super senior lah [laughs]. I graduated 2006. I’ll show you my graduation book later.