Chechnya’s first daughter steps into fashion
THE 18-year-old daughter of Ramzan Kadyrov, leader of Russia’s mainly Muslim region of Chechnya, has launched a fashion range in line with the country’s traditional dress rules.
The designer, Aishat Kadyrova, showcased a collection of outfits in sumptuous fabrics that conform to Chechnya’s modest society norms, with only the face and hands left uncovered.
Her first Moscow fashion show, held in a former czar’s palace on Friday night, was attended by figures from the Moscow fashion world and Chechen elite, as well as representatives from Middle Eastern states –which the teenager’s fashion house sees as a growing market for her outfits.
A self-professed “foot soldier of Vladimir Putin”, Mr Kadyrov has been accused of presiding over widespread human rights abuses in his native Chechnya, a region he rules as his own personal fiefdom. Aside from claims of torture, the Chechen strongman has repeatedly grabbed headlines due to his use of Instagram, to which he once turned to call on all Chechens to find his missing toyger – a cat bred to look like a toy tiger – that had gone missing.
Ulzana Zadulayeva, a spokesman for the fashion house, said that outfits were already being shipped to customers as far afield as Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates.
She said she had received proposals from people attending the show to stage catwalks in other locations. “Abu Dhabi, Bahrain; we will be thinking about these,” said Zadulayeva.
She also said the fashion house was hoping to set up stores in Moscow and St Petersburg under a franchise arrangement. According to New York-based group Human Rights Watch, Chechnya’s authorities force women to cover their hair in public spaces and buildings, and ignore harassment of women deemed to be dressed immodestly. In fashion terms, Mr Kadyrov is best known for going out in public wearing camouflage fatigues or track suits, and for occasionally posing for photographs with a lion he once kept as a pet. His wife, Medni, set up a fashion house some years ago, called Firdaws. Their daughter Aishat has since taken over the enterprise.