Fashion reflects not just an individual’s style sensibilities but also the culturescape of a society. In the present changing times, fashionistas have been breaking gender stereotypes and pushing the boundaries of fashion. One of the latest trends to have gone viral is the male romper — the one-piece clothing item thus far preferred by women and babies. Now, though, it has officially hit the mainstream male fashion market after a social media campaign ‘RompHim’ popularised the trend.
Yet another style statement that has caused ripples in the fashion world are male lace shorts. Created for rapper Cazwell’s music video, Loose Wrists, the shorts caused a storm on social media, with people either dubbing them too feminine or standing for the right to self-expression. The mantyhose — pantyhose for men — trend is another one of several making the rounds yet again.
Back home, even Aamir Khan has taken to wearing a nose ring recently and is the first mainstream Bollywood actor to openly sport a permanent piercing on his nose.
While sartorial trends of the androgynous and unisex nature have a long history in India, these fashion trends, whether new or acquired from historical inspirations, are taking bold steps to break down stereotypes.
Bold new efforts
Fashion designer Kunal Rawal feels it is a great time to be a designer in India, since men are ready to ditch their apprehensions for more experimental wears. “In the past four or five years especially, you have more men willing to experiment with clothes.”
The male romper has hit the mainstream male fashion market after a social media campaign ‘RompHim’ popularised the trend.
“And this gives me a larger creative canvas. Men are no longer afraid to experiment with patterns and colours and one can also see a lot of use of jewellery. Bling was something associated only with women, but now more and more men are exploring their options,” he elaborates.
One only has to look at Bollywood maverick Ranveer Singh and his skirt and jewellery phases for instances of the blurring lines between male and female fashion.
Fashion designer Narendra Kumar, who is known for his menswear designs, believes that the recent upsurge of feminism has a lot to do with people in general trying to breach gender gaps in fashion. “Fashion trends are largely dependent on the general environment and times. Since the feminist movement has got such an impetus, you can now see people coming up with fashion ideas to fit this social scenario,” he explains.
Breaching the gender gaps
Both Narendra Kumar and fashion designer Pria Kataria Puri, who experiment with androgynous touches in resort wear for men and women, agree that the trends are definitely encouraging, even if they are restricted to a certain section. “I think it’s great that the fashion-forward community is trying out bold new styles. Even if it does stay restricted to certain takers, they start conversations around the trend about gender roles and other socially relevant topics. For instance, you now have a lot of guys openly owning up to experimenting with make-up. Then you have the male skirts, which made the rounds last year, and man purses, which are quite popular. Will everyone follow the trend and start using make-up or wearing skirts? Probably not. But it’s good that someone is doing it to start with,” says Pria.
Godrej Culture Lab head Parmesh Sahani is also encouraged by the change. “Gender and sex are two different things. Gender is the performance of social behaviour or gender codes. It is great that we are expanding gender boundaries, as times change. The youth of India are very individualistic in their fashion sense, and while experimenting they often push gender codes. It is great that this trend is not just bound to gay men. Straight men are now being playful with their fashion sense and I think the results are beautiful,” he says. Women, too, have had their share of experimental clothes. “I often wear three-piece suits and formal jackets to work. Sometimes, I simply put on my husband’s shirts and wear them like dresses,” says Pria.
Kunal, too, admits that he mixes up male and female designs. “For one of my fashion shows at Lakme Fashion Week, I dressed Shahid Kapoor and Arjun Kapoor who were walking for me and they had heavy makeup and their clothes were blingy. On the other hand, I also design a lot of women’s clothes the same way as menswear. After all, unisex is not something that is just women’s fashion trickling into menswear; it is a mutual exchange of fashion ideas and I think the current environment is very conducive to this exchange,” he says.
The mantyhose — pantyhose for men — trend is making the rounds again.
Androgynous past
Though dubbed as bold and new, the history of androgynous fashion in India and many other countries dates back several centuries. Mughal paintings and opulent outfits displayed in Jaipur museums show men of royalty wearing heavy jewellery, anarkali churidar suits and other clothes which now are associated with feminine sartorial sensibilities.
According to textile historian and curator Mayank Mansingh Kaul, “Historically, clothing in the Indian subcontinent may be seen as unisex. If, on the one hand, there were, and continue to be, stitched garments such as chogas (a variety of long kurtas), angarakhas (a traditional Indian kurta tied on the left shoulder worn by men) and tunics worn with stitched lower garments such as churidars, which were common to men and women, there were also unstitched drapes equally worn by both.”
“Of course, each had gender-specific variations. I think the clear separation starts emerging only with the coming of Europeans and heightens with the colonial British rule. During this period, the male dress transformed quite drastically as compared to women.”
Narendra believes the trend may also have been due to the unstitched nature of clothing in historic times. “Common people mostly draped a single piece of cloth, whether that’s a saree or a lungi depended on the gender, but that’s about it. With colonialism, suits, shirts and trousers became the norm across the board for formal meetings and I don’t really see that changing much, despite efforts by fashion designers,” he says.
Designer Kunal Rawal dressed Shahid Kapoor and Arjun Kapoor in blingy clothes and heavy makeup for one of his shows at Lakme Fashion Week.
Fashion or fad?
While most designers are encouraged by the gender gaps narrowing down in the fashion world, there are also those who are skeptical about how long these trends will last. “Clothes like male rompers have been around, and though they are really trending at the moment, the mass appeal of such clothes is not very high, and they’re also not very practical,” says Narendra.
Lace shorts, created for rapper Cazwell’s music video, Loose Wrists, caused a storm on social media. If trends are to be believed, pastel coloured lace shorts will be catching up in male fashion this year.
According to Pria, the bold and daring trends are usually restricted to the urbane fashionista clientele.
“I design resort wear, which aims towards a high-end clientele. As such, I do have a number of unisex or androgynous designs. However, outside of the big city fashionable crowds, these outfits don’t really find a lot of takers. It is not just city people who make up the masses, the masses include people from small towns and villages and I don’t see them getting ready to push gender boundaries with their fashion ideas,” she says, adding that a lot of what is considered feminine has to do with existing trends.
“If you go to Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia, the traditional garments that the men wear are almost like long maxi gowns. But no one really questions the masculinity there,” she says, adding, “However, if you try to take the same clothes and create a trend in India, there won’t be a lot of takers because that’s not the norm for men’s clothes here.”
“The youth of India are very individualistic in their fashion sense, and while experimenting they often push gender codes,” feels Parmesh Sahani, head of Godrej Culture Lab.
Traditionally feminine clothes now worn by men
Male rompers | While playsuits and rompers for women have been pretty popular, both in India and the West, male rompers or ‘romphims’ have infiltrated the retail market too. The one-piece suit often comes with shorts, and an enterprising startup has also come up with a version with a zipper, so using the restroom is a breeze for men.
Lace shorts | Indeed, lace, with all the luxe it exudes, has been the woman’s favourite material. However, if trends are to be believed, pastel coloured lace shorts will be catching up in male fashion this year.
Mantyhose | Also called ‘brosiery’, these patterned and sheer tights for men are the male equivalent of pantyhoses, to be worn under shorts and dresses. The warmth that the skin-tight garments offer is finding favour with men around the world.
Lingerie for men | Quite like lace shorts, lace undergarments invoke sexiness for men too. While underclothes like thongs are often used as accessories to spice up things in the bedroom, the silky touch of the lingerie is considered a blessing for men who are increasingly finding specialised lingerie to fit their bodies.
Male high heels | Why must adding those few extra inches of height only be restricted to women’s footwear? Men’s high heel shoes are now commonly available in the market, with high boots flaunting anywhere between three and five inches of heel.
Man purses | Gone are the days when men were expected to either cram every piece of belonging in their wallets of pant pockets, or carry large satchels to house them. Man purses are easy to carry and look stylish too. Sling one across your body, and don’t be afraid to let the ‘murse’ stick to your sides.
Sarees | Several Indian men, including the country’s ‘saree man’ Himanshu Verma, choose to rock the saree on several occasions, carrying the outfit off with panache.
Nose rings | While in countries like India, the nose ring has been used by both men and women in the historic context, like many other androgynous trends, it disappeared. The fashion is now making a comeback, with men wearing elaborate nose rings and studs.
— With inputs from Nishtha Kanal
