“I need to lose some weight to fit into that dress”
“I am too Kala to wear light colors”
“OMG! Look at him. Why is this guy wearing a saree?
How many of you have heard or used these lines in your daily life? Most of us right.
Have you ever thought why do you judge or ridicule other people if they don’t live up to your fashion standards?
Kate spade once said that “Playing dress-up begins at age five and never truly ends.” And so is our training of taming our dressing choices in accordance to the fashion rules set by the society. Since childhood, we are constantly reminded that only a slender person with fair complexion who dress up according to the gender norms can look good in what they wear else they are a “MISFIT”.
These seeds of doubt are sown at such a naive age that they blossom into insecurities as we grow old. Fashion Blogger Aisha talks about her childhood days where she fell into the trap of self-doubt and loathing because she was surrounded by friends who had complexion lighter than hers.
“I used to dread wearing lighter colors such as yellow, soft pink”, she recalls as the insecurity of her skin tone grew on her with time. There is a huge disparity in the way we project and follow fashion. At one end, dark Indian models are preffered by designers for their clothing whereas a normal wheatish complexion girl is criticised for her wardrobe palette.
This fear is not only limiting their choices but is also affecting their confidence and psyche in general. This self-criticism turns into judgmental attitude towards others which spreads like an epidemic overtime and a standard is set.
Even a proud voluptuous girl like Makeup artist Avishi Patel, who loves her curves couldn’t escape the judgmental scan whenever she used to wear shorts. She retorts “Look at the fashion runways; they are all skinny models on ramp. So, it kind of gives the impression that fashion is meant for skinny girls.”
There are so many girls out there who wish to lose some weight just to fit into a dress. But as Givenchy said – “The dress must follow the body of a woman, not the body following the shape of the dress.”
Confidence is the key to look good in any outfit you wear and for that to happen you need to love your body for the way it is. You think Kim Kardashian, Tyra banks would be who they are, if they doubted themselves for their curves and complexion. Their style is copied and followed by millions worldwide irrespective of the hatred they receive from the audience.
One such guy named Vineet aka Queen_vinetta who faces a lot of abuses and flak from public on daily basis for experimenting with his looks and dressing up in feminine attire shares his thoughts “For me fashion has no boundaries. I wear jewelry, I wear saree. I see people laughing at me. But, who cares, what they say.” He believes that fashion is gender fluid.
If we look back at ancient times, the royal kings used to dress up in jewellery, skirts and other feminine pieces. But none questioned their masculinity on the basis of the attire they wear. But why is it that our generation is so scared of men embracing feminine attire that they try to relate it to their sexual orientation? Fashion back then was way more progressive and gender neutral in comparison to the current scenario.
Fashion was introduced to help us express our unique identity not to bind us with self-doubt and insecurities.
