Tan France: Queer Eye

Fashion StudiesFashion Designers

Tanveer Wasim, more popular as Tan France, is one of the first Muslim, openly gay men from South Asia who is a Pakistani-British-American fashion designer, television personality, and author. Tan France is proud of himself and his work. His signature designs and his writings are very much appreciated all over the world. Tan France is famous as a host and as a fashion expert. He has also hosted series like Queer Eye and Dressing Funny. Tan France's book, Naturally Tan, was released in June 2019.

Biography

Tan France was born into a Pakistani strict Muslim family, and in Islam, homosexuality is haram. Allah has been destroying and will destroy all those communities that support homosexuality. According to Holliy Quran, it is a sin, and Tan France has been facing abuse since childhood for his unnatural sexual interest and fighting for himself.

Tan France studied at Hall Cross School, went to learn fashion design at Doncaster College, and then went to London for a career. Tan France's interest in fashion began at a young age, inspired by his grandparents' denim factory in England, where he spent time working with Disney clothing. Tan France had learned how to construct and embellish a denim jacket by the age of thirteen. He had heard that his grandfather had to close the factory due to the products being shut down. Tan France loves to listen to and watch Bollywood music and movies. He is a big fan of Bollywood.

Name	Tanveer "Tan" Wasim Safdar
Birth Date	20 April 1983
Birth Place	England
Education	Doncaster College
Occupation	Fashion designer, writer, television host

Tan France's Career

Tan France began working in the United States in 2008, first in New York City, and immigrated to the United States in 2015. Tan France was the company director at Shade Clothing before launching his own fashion label, Kingdom & State, in 2011. The brand included clothing designed to meet Mormon clothing guidelines, a group that made up a sizable population in Utah, where Tan France lived. He later founded two smaller clothing companies. Tan France's designs have been purchased by ModCloth and Forever 21. For many years, Tan France was displayed on the website and in stores under the brand name. In 2016, he co-founded, as fashion designer and CEO, Rachel Parcell Inc., a clothing line sold at Nordstrom.

Tan France collaborated with EyeBuy Direct to create an eyewear line in 2019. He has been an official columnist for GQ Middle East since 2019.

He will be Express's monthly stylist beginning in 2020. Tan France and his Queer Eye co-stars were nominated for an Emmy in July 2020 for best hosting as a reality or competition program. Tan France was announced as a guest instructor on MasterClass, an educational streaming video platform, in September 2020. The Tan France x Etsy limited edition collection will be released in September 2020. Tan France collaborated with thirteen independent sellers to create a collection of home décor and foods.

Tan France retained his British citizenship, making him a dual citizen of the two countries. He has been vocal about the colorism, racism, and Islamophobia he has faced throughout his life. He launched an Instagram account called "Shaded" in September 2019 to promote black people, people of color, and cultural diversity.

He revealed on an episode of The Carlos Watson Show in September 2020 that racism was one of the primary reasons he left the UK for the United States.

Tan France's writing

Tan France's memoir, Naturally Tan, was published in June 2019 by St. Martin's Press. It was a New York Times best-seller. It's about growing up "gay in a traditional Muslim family, as one of the few people of color in Doncaster, England." The memoir begins with his childhood in England, where racist incidents were common, such as having to run back to school to avoid being beaten up by racist thugs. The book then moves on to more serious subjects, such as colorism in the South Asian community and the Islamophobia he experienced before and after the 9/11 attacks.

Conclusion

Tanveer Wasim, aka Tan France, was one of the first openly gay men from South Asia who created their own name and had their own unique characteristics and designs. Although he had faced some personal experiences of physical and verbal racism in his childhood, as Tan France said, "Our home wasn't super religious but we had a profound connection to our Muslim heritage," but he made them his strength and weaknesses, and squeezed every drop of fun from life. Thus, in this write-up, Tan France's life and works are described briefly.