My identity – My freedom

Romani Design Fashion Show on the International Roma Day

Guest Blog by Szilvia Suri, President of the Hungarian Roma Press Center.

Our vision in the Roma Press Center is that one day Hungarian Roma will be regarded equal, valuable members of our society, even though everyday struggles remind us that we still have a long way to go.

This is why for this year’s International Roma Day we gathered to demonstrate that we are an integrated part of the Hungarian society, and in cooperation with more than a dozen Roma and pro-Roma NGOs we organized the Roma Day.

We wanted to be present in the most frequented areas of the capital, to be visible even for those who would not want to see us. Our aim was to represent ourselves in an innovative way, breaking free from the stereotypic interpretation of Roma.

Romani menus were available in popular downtown restaurants, a DJ set was played in Blaha Lujza tér – a remix based on the music of worldwide-known Roma musicians who did great in various genres, but not in traditional Roma music. We built a modern sandlot on Rákóczi tér, projected Roma artists’ paintings on downtown buildings’ walls, and introduced Roma everyday heroes in stops of the tram line 4/6. We awarded the Golden Band Prize for a Roma everyday hero and in cooperation with Romani Design, we held a fashion show.

Approximately 700,000 Roma live in Hungary. We give 7 % of the population, we are present, yet we are so alienated by the majority as if we were invisible. This mindset is what we aimed to challenge with our programs, including the Romani Design fashion show.

How about approaching the non-Roma by showing our fashion introduced by people they know and admire – we thought. So we requested Örkény István Theater to encourage their colleagues to join us and support our cause by participating. The enthusiasm got bigger then we dared to expect, and finally 11 great and gorgeous actresses graced the Romani Design runway wearing Erika Varga’s modern-traditional creatures.

Tímea Sághy, Anikó Für, Dorka Gryllus, Vera Szabó, Gabriella Hámori, Éva Kerekes, Kata Pető, Eszter Ónodi, Kriszta Bíró, Annamária Láng and Magdolna Diána Kiss graced the Romani Design runway.

Even though some of them were a little bit nervous right before the show started – it turns out, being on stage is not always the same – the actresses were stunning in Romani Design. They seemingly felt comfortable in the tradition-inspired dresses, ceaselessly smiling and enjoying being on stage – this time in a not so familiar setting.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the British government.