It’s election month in Russia and the centre of Moscow is buzzing, but with all things fashion. You’d have to scour for any political messaging and even if you do, you won’t find any — neither in the city centre nor on the runways.
“We all know what’s going to happen” comes the answer any time I ask someone from the city about the lack of election activity. Going from Pakistan, where we wrapped up our own predictable yet unpredictable elections last month, the answer hardly gives me any pause. Locals themselves may not be very chatty about the Russian elections, set to take place from March 15 to 17, but the act of voting itself, given that 2024 is the year of elections, is something that at one point or the other makes its way into the discussions amid the delegates from all over the world who gathered for Moscow Fashion Week in the first week of March.
With politics pointedly out of sight, my agenda for some 80 hours in Moscow included a gala, fashion shows, presentations, fine dining and just soaking in the incredible architecture around the Red Square.