Friyana-An Instinctive Cosplayer

Cosplayer Name: Friyana Quraishi

Profession: student

City: Dhaka

Who is Friyana Quraishi?

Cosplayers are an underappreciated breed. People only see them wearing costumes to get fascinated and marvel at their performances. However, do the audience know how much hard work, dedication, and passion is in each cosplay performance?! I think not! And, in a country like Bangladesh, where only a few know this section of popular culture, it is more challenging to get appreciated and recognized.

Even with all the odds and difficulties, some cosplayers are ever the passionate ones to continue their work wholeheartedly. Friyana Quraishi is one such name. Her cosplay performances are mesmerizing, and they are elegantly instinctive. She is one of those few cosplayers who can pull off the authentic character look with precise makeup and near-perfect costumes. A very talented Cosplay Artist, to be blatant!

Starting Point

The story of Friyana starting cosplaying is a fascinating one. Let’s hear from her directly, “Before I knew what Cosplay is, I used to make/craft weapons from my favourite animes just for fun since I love watching anime a lot. Then one day, I came across people dressing up like anime characters; that’s when I found out what Cosplay is, and so decided I wanted to do it too. Soon after that, my sister told me that people host Comic Cons here, which I had no idea about. I went to a convention with her and was shocked to see a huge cosplay community in Bangladesh. That hyped me a lot to try cosplaying one day.”.

She also shared with us her very first cosplay experience. Quraishi told us how she only could craft weapons at the beginning and had to buy her first cosplay costume. Also, how she decided to tailor the costumes herself after that. “Back then, I didn’t know how to make costumes; I only knew how to make weapons such as swords. So, I ordered a costume online and decided to wear it to a convention. I enjoyed cosplaying in conventions so much that I decided I want to learn how to make costumes on my own.”, she reminisced with nostalgia.

“I cosplay mainly because I love the fandom I am in. I do it to show my appreciation for the shows or games I love. Since crafting things is a big part of my life, I love building my costumes and seeing how far I can go.” That was Friyana’s honest reply to why she does this artistic performance called Cosplay.

History of  her Cosplays

Quraishi has been cosplaying for almost four years now. “I did my first ever cosplay in 2017. So, it has been about five years since I’ve started cosplaying.”, she stated. She also remembered her debut cosplay as a character from Naruto. “Zabuza Momochi from Naruto!” was her reply while having a glittering eye.

As an anime fan and a cosplayer, Friyana has been to all the major and popular conventions of the country. And, she equally enjoyed them. So, it was difficult for her to choose one as her favourite. “I enjoyed all the conventions I went to. So, it’s tough to decide.”, she replied to our question.

The talented cosplayer has won a couple of accolades. She competed in some cosplay competitions and duly won the prizes. “I won an award for my princess Zelda cosplay. I don’t recall the convention’s name since it was back in 2018, but I won 2^nd place for my Zelda cosplay.”, she noted. With her Charizard cosplay, Quraishi became a finalist in the Dhaka Geek Convention 2019. “I also became a finalist for my Charizard cosplay in 2019 at the Dhaka geek convention.”, she remembered.

What Cosplaying means to her

Friyana enjoys cosplaying a lot. She lives every step of the process. That is what is needed in a passionate cosplayer. “The best part of cosplaying for me is making the costumes since I enjoy the process of building and crafting my cosplays the most.”, she delightfully replied.

She is a regular cosplayer, be it for conventions or other purposes. On average, she does two cosplays a year. However, as a perfectionist, Quraishi focuses on the best possible outcome. Some cosplays take a long time to pull off in some cases, as some costumes and accessories are more difficult to build and time-consuming. “Since I opened my cosplay page this year, I started to cosplay more frequently. Approximately two cosplays a year in conventions, but it entirely depends on the character I decide to cosplay since some require months to build.”, she said.

Even though she is a rising cosplayer in the community, her experience of professional photoshoots is nil. This is rare among famous cosplayers. However, Friyana is most comfortable in casual shoots. “I haven’t gone to any professional photoshoots so far other than doing photoshoots in conventions. I do my cosplay photoshoots at home by myself with the help of my siblings.”, she clarified.

Quraishi is not one of those cosplayers who take character acting much more seriously. In her case, trying to bring out the best of the character through visual and costume accuracy is the most important. She answered the question of the importance of being in character as such, “No, since many people aren’t comfortable in showing many sides of the character they are cosplaying, but it varies from person to person and most of the time while cosplaying in conventions it may be hard to be in character when you are wearing layers of costumes. So, I would say it’s optional.”.

She works on new cosplay projects regularly. During our interview with her, she mentioned a couple of projects. “Currently working on few small costumes from Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure and Kakegurui.”, she stated.

Appreciation for Deshi Geek

Finally, Friyana Quraishi talked about Deshi Geek and her expectations from this platform. She found the platform exciting and appealing. In her words, “I haven’t gotten any magazines from DESHI GEEK yet, but I have seen them quite a lot. They seemed quite interesting. I’m looking forward to what this platform has to offer.”.

To find and appreciate her cosplays visit the following links,

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/friyoshii

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/friyoshii/  (@friyoshii)