Mumbai. Padded shoulders, pastel colors, high waisted skirts, crop
tops, bouffants. 1980’s? Nah, 2013! Retro is back! And I’m loving it.
Attire deemed passé is now rocking the clubs and party scenes. What
ruled the wardrobe of our Dimple Kapadias and Juhi Chawlas is now
back with a bang. The elegant and only-for-the-wealthy bouffant
now has a done-to-death but still stylish sister in 2013. The padded
shoulders? Well they just add that extra bit of oomph to our already
glamorous Zara and Burberry jackets. And what can I say about those
cloth hairbands tied up in a bow on one side. Is Rihanna enough?
Now that reminds of red lipstick. Red lipstick never really went out of
sight but was always reserved for the age matured. Now every Teena,
Meena, Deena flaunts it. Ofcourse EVERY Sindhi or Punjabi wedding
is incomplete without a Sheela Aunty or Reshma Aunty blinding
and temporarily damaging the eyesight of the weddingees with her
jewels and BRIGHT red lips. (Weddingees = wedding attendees)
College girls work their midi tops (a little longer than crop tops)
in such a way that, that atrociously conservative principle and
watchman don’t catch a glimpse of their tum tums but that cute boy
does.
The voluptuous bodies of the 80’s and 90’s that flaunted high waisted
skirts and crop tops are doing it again(though slightly toned now). 3
years ago, girls flaunting this trend would make them cower in regret
and prone to a helluva stares. To party go-ers in Mumbai now, it is
more accepted. Palazzos and elephant/giant pants have infiltrated
the streets of Mumbai, every fashionably conscious girl owns a pair.
And every weight wary aunty owns two (The high waist one hides
the flab, you see.) Girls in Mumbai have become more conscious
with their appearance regularly taking inspiration from the bevy of
fashion magazines now available at their local baniya. Give grace.
That’s that for western . Now for Indian. Sonam Kapoor, Vidya
Balan. Need I say anymore? We Indian girls have our fair share of
inspiration for traditional wear. Be it copying Vidya’s Sabyasachi sari
or Alia Bhatt’s ‘Radha’ lehenga. We all know the tricks of the trade.
Google them a couple of times, pick up similar fabric from thy local
fabric shop. Take a printout of the Bollywood star in her outfit to
the tailor. And voila! Commonnn girls, we’ve all done this at some
point of our lives. Or not, cos you have discovered a (not very Tarun
Tahiliani priced) Indian designer who customizes and designs clothes
only for you.
Our maang tikkas and hand harnesses have taken over fashion
websites and music festivals. Indian inspired attire is all over the
place! Every Mumbai girl is now fashion conscious, striving to look
her best even on the streets. Be it inspiration from the runways or
Bollywood we’ve got the best of it all. (Except – Forever21 USA,
please start shipping to India?)
Hey there Milan, Paris, LA? There’s a city bubbling with sugar, spice
and everything nice on the other side of the world. I think you’ve got
competition.
