I first discovered my affinity for words when I immigrated from Iran to London with my parents in 2011. I was already fluent in one language, I had read books, watched movies and expressed myself only in Farsi. Having to do all those same things in another language was jarring, to say the least. In having to translate the intricacies of my day to day life; oscillating between two languages and two cultures, I learnt to communicate across borders. I read the same Farsi books in English, watched the movies that I watched with Farsi dubs in their original English format and developed an arsenal of common phrases that I felt allowed me to exist in both languages comfortably.
It was around this time that I decided to become a journalist. I wanted to create bridges between lands, cultures, ideologies, political affiliations and languages in the same way that I done for myself. In opening the doors to information about something as urgent as war to something as refreshing as a new art exhibition, journalism has always been about giving a voice to people separated from one another by geography, language, and lived experience.
The root of love for fashion is harder to pin down. I was exposed to the underground fashion scene in Iran through my uncle and older cousins who kept up with the designers and the guerrilla fashion shows. Too young to understand anything about the secret but vivacious industry brewing in Tehran homes and backrooms, I just knew that I found it thrilling and wanted to see more.
When I was 13, I googled “what is a job in fashion where you talk about fashion?” Google responded with “fashion journalist.” I felt like I had discovered the wheel.
Slowly, I became fluent in the language. I decided to create a space where I could write about what I think the industry needs to talk about more. My Substack, Seams to be Said, is dedicated to just that. I write about politics and identity and how they define the fashion world and vice versa, delving into specific artists or their collections and how they changed the course of the industry. Fashion is so broad, you can tie it back to anything. Seams to be Said is where I draw connections between fashion and anything ranging from economics and politics to organic chemistry. Nothing is too far fetched.