I have studied design & fashion for a little over 3 years now. I can confidently give you a brief history of greek or victorian influences on fashion, late 20th century evolution of fashion, and more so about 40s/50s/60s/70s or the current American or European fashion market. But how much have I studied it with relevance to my own land? Why do we dress the way we do? How does my very Palakkad-Tamil Grandmum feel comfortable in the occasional (Punjabi) salwar-kameez, and my Grandad in crisp shirts and a plaid flat cap? How is it that I can be so Indian in my ways, but so western in my sensibilities? No, the last one is misunderstood.
What can be seen on the surface as a completely "mordern-", "urban-" or "western-"ized (words that we city people love to use) aesthetic is, in fact, far from that. It is an amalgam of my roots, my upbringing, my lifestyle, food, books, movies, music, every single day... How can "Indian- ness" then not find its place in my design language, or in my personal style? And then, applying that logic outward, how can "western" fashion and that alone (apart from your occasional Fab/Anokhis) satisfy our youth market? And, conversely, how can we accept the linear concept of "ethnic" fashion? I can (barely) excuse the international fashion industry for often using the term "Indian" in a general and misguided way (as if only kitschy colours, mirrorwork, dhoti pants and pagdis - that is, all things Rajasthani- represents an entire nation). But how ignorant and/or indifferent do we Indian creators to allow that opinion to be formulated and kept alive, even within the country?
Okay, that's a lot of questions. My hope, through this blog, is to dig deep into the past- ancient, recent or even yesterday, to understand the new language of design in this country. My approach will be multi-disciplinary, as no art can live in isolation.. Internally, I have been searching (consciously or sub-consciously) for as long as my creative life; the purpose of this blog is to externalize and find solutions or, at the very least, some satisfying answers. I am going to begin with the process of my final year research project. I am open to all comments ranging from appreciative to challenging to downright disagreeing. Let's do this!
What can be seen on the surface as a completely "mordern-", "urban-" or "western-"ized (words that we city people love to use) aesthetic is, in fact, far from that. It is an amalgam of my roots, my upbringing, my lifestyle, food, books, movies, music, every single day... How can "Indian- ness" then not find its place in my design language, or in my personal style? And then, applying that logic outward, how can "western" fashion and that alone (apart from your occasional Fab/Anokhis) satisfy our youth market? And, conversely, how can we accept the linear concept of "ethnic" fashion? I can (barely) excuse the international fashion industry for often using the term "Indian" in a general and misguided way (as if only kitschy colours, mirrorwork, dhoti pants and pagdis - that is, all things Rajasthani- represents an entire nation). But how ignorant and/or indifferent do we Indian creators to allow that opinion to be formulated and kept alive, even within the country?
Okay, that's a lot of questions. My hope, through this blog, is to dig deep into the past- ancient, recent or even yesterday, to understand the new language of design in this country. My approach will be multi-disciplinary, as no art can live in isolation.. Internally, I have been searching (consciously or sub-consciously) for as long as my creative life; the purpose of this blog is to externalize and find solutions or, at the very least, some satisfying answers. I am going to begin with the process of my final year research project. I am open to all comments ranging from appreciative to challenging to downright disagreeing. Let's do this!
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