Fashion hanging by a thread

Narayani Ganesh

RIPPED jeans and faded T-shirts have been around as ‘in’ clothes for many years now. The boomers may view this strange trend in clothing as nothing short of disgusting. They ask, why wear beat-up clothes when you can wear new ones? The later generations view used clothes that may even be tattered or with holes and paint stains as being full of character and depth, perhaps even history. Popular music idols flaunt them, including Jungkook of the K-pop boy band BTS; so do Hollywood and Bollywood celebrities who may pay hefty prices to purchase these from designer stores. And, in turn, they further the trend as their fandoms emulate them. Thus, brand new clothes lines are purposed to look like battered or ‘thrashed’ clothes, for that grunge look.

This reminds one of inverted snobbery that led intellectuals to smoke beedis rather than branded cigarettes; of fashionistas carrying middle-class cloth bags that had imprinted on them the name of the store (well, so do uber branded handbags that cost a bomb). The jholawalas of JNU unwittingly created a fashion trend among those also brimming with leftist ideologies. This leads one to ask, what is fashion, really? Well, from wearing painfully uncomfortably stiletto heels with narrow fitting to body-hugging claustrophobic clothes and pointed shoes that bite your toes, we’ve now come to uphold loose garments and comfort as key features of the grunge look. That’s good.

This has translated to wearing sneakers with evening clothes — even as part of your wedding dress ensemble by some — so that you don’t have to get tortured by footwear that squeezes your feet and throws you off balance. Usha Uthup went on to popularise wearing sneakers with heavy silk saris, and she adds colour to her sneakers by adorning them with bits of zari or even snips from her sari. MF Husain took this even further and did away with footwear altogether, preferring to go around barefoot.

It does take some elan to carry off wearing ‘rags’ — not everyone looks good in them. But it has certainly created a booming industry that thrives on producing, reselling and marketing what look like used and tattered clothes. The more thrashed or battered they look, the better their saleability.

A New York Times report says that Abe Lange, “a vintage seller who specialises in ultra-distressed clothes”, also makes a living off his used clothes that he rents out at steep prices. And there are takers, including designers and stylists.

So you also have a Rajinikanth who thinks nothing of appearing in public without a wig, makeup or suits, just being what he is, showing off his bald pate and crumpled kurta-dhoti and chappals, with nary an eyebrow raised.

Ripped or patched-up, faded, stained denims are no longer the preserve of the labour class; they are an integral part of the wardrobe of the rich and famous as well as those of young students. These are even celebrated and showcased twice a year in a ‘Distressed Fest’ that Legarbaage hosts with Lange in the US.