Are we ready to experiment?

My work place is a great case study for understanding the latest fashion taste of the urban Indian Nari. Almost every day I witness an attempt to break away from the usual and boring formal wear into something stylishly ‘different’.


Somehow, there is still a far less percentage of women wearing western formals to work even today. I really wanted to know the reason behind this and got an interesting insight.


Western formals are not designed for the body structure of Indian women. There are almost no size zeros around. Our body is more voluptuous and we are not comfortable with the tucked in “body shirt” look. Skirts are still considered too bold a fashion choice and is somehow linked to the ‘Air hostess’ look, which, women fear, may not cause them to not being taken seriously at the workplace.


If one observes the trend , our office wear is dominated by the ‘Salwar-Kamiz’, which is now getting replaced by the hipper short kurti and chudidar(legging) . Dupattas are being thrown out of the window and are only considered a hindrance.


Not so surprisingly, there are a few fashion statements which do not fall in any of the aforementioned closed-set definitions and cannot be found in any of the branded stores in the market. Many of us are trying to find a balance between the west and the Indian wear. I can slowly notice the short kurti looking more like a longer formal shirt with bright colors and bold prints, accessorized with a thin waist belt and a soft scarf. Sometimes, I even see a short frock being worn over a chudidar. Well, the path breaker does get a few raised eyebrows, but I think it is a step forward - a positive shot at being creative with the limited fashion choices we have.