How a KL-born designer courted trouble over her cheongsam comment

Pictured here is the Ong Shunmugam Autumn/Winter 2013 designs. Photo: Ong Shunmugam

Cultural heritage has somewhat been a thorny subject in fashion. Often times, brands and labels get into trouble when speaking on it.

Recently, the founder of Singaporean label Ong Shunmugam became embroiled in a controversy when a video of her commenting on why her collections often include the cheongsam was recirculated online.

The recording showed Priscilla Shunmugam speaking in a webinar last September, where she explained that "historically, and even today, Chinese women have progressed significantly faster and further than their Malay and Indian counterparts."

She added that this allows her more room to play with the cheongsam, and she feels she can have more “fun" as "the simple reality" is that "Chinese women can be more receptive".

It was recorded as part of a panel discussion organised by the Asian Civilisations Museum titled "Designing Singapore's contemporary fashion identity". The video has been taken down.

The issue came to light again when Instagram account Kebaya.Societe shared snippets of it last week, inviting intense scrutiny.

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Priscilla, born in Kuala Lumpur to a Chinese mother and an Indian father, has apologised over the weekend for what she said.

In response to queries from The Straits Times, Shunmugam said: "During the Q&A session, I was asked why the cheongsam is a recurring silhouette in my work. I ought to have been crystal clear with my answer and I acknowledge that it was clumsy, hurtful and insensitive. It was also uncharacteristic of the narratives championed in my work."

She has not responded when contacted by StarLifestyle to get an explanation on what her "narrative" is, or what she thinks the fashion industry can do better in celebrating cultural heritage.

Last year, Malaysia-based fashion label Nala Designs also got into trouble when the founder said in an interview that she wished to see the baju kurung return and for Malaysians to dress well again.

Baju kurung is the traditional fashion staple for Malay women. It has never fallen out of style.