Now-a-day whatever you see our celebrities, they are always in western dresses or sometimes in sarees. Earlier even in Movies, film star used to dress in something so glamorous and royal, that public used to fawn over them and copy and today public derides them. What a difference!I can find much better sarees in the showrooms without any designer tag and price, and here our designers produce something so drab and nonstrikingand non descript types.
Then there is these words.......Behenji and Diva..but i really dont know what that means...Is anybody wearing our own Indian attire becomes behenji, then for the foreigners salwar kameej clad women must be the modern woman?
Or it is that wearing a saree without a blouse makes you Diva? then all those adivasiis women are really Divas from the time immemorial?
Literally we call sister.behen..when and how that became a negative word I dont know, or we have started taking that relationship this way?
Why a western wear Gown makes anyone elite or designer or a fashion diva?
or this is all about skin show? Even then shouldnt a person respecting indian culture must be ATLEAST CONSIDERED equal to those westernised, isnt it?
We have so many myths like.......
A person speaking good English is intelligent...helloooooo.....English is just a language, and proficiency in any language doesnt make one intellectual.
Wearing western dresses helps you climb the steps in the hierarchy of society...... and its a fact that still in India anything western is given more attention, all of you must have seen that even in our neighbourhood, our relatives living abroad are given VIP status.
And now what is the purpose of all this debate? i just want people to give due importance to the person..not the language or dress. and my personal take is this... ATTITUDE not the dress makes you Diva or whatever.
I find Rathna pathak Shah much more stylish than all those Bipashas and kareenas.and Gauri's
Shabana Ajmi..much more elegant in an ethnic saree than all those skanky ones.
Rekha in Silsila..in sarees..my ultimate idea of elegance and fashion combined..she started the trend of plain saress with those necks in the blouses.
Kiron kher..most of the time.
But now I must be sounding like an old person being nostalgic and blah blah.....:), present days I like katrina, Genelia, Asin, Kajol, Rani.....
Yesterday there was this award show....Gr8 INDIAN WOMEN ON ZEE TV, a beautiful show and women of really substance in all the fields were awarded, and it had a large no. of REAL women dressed most elegantly and looking beautiful.a sight to behold.
Then I saw Fashion.....after a very long time i saw a movie, I dint want to end:). We always say he has shown how the fashion world works..I cant say that, because I dont know anything about them , but whatever is there..its totally entertaining, and I specially liked here.... That friend of Meghna..Rohit ( I dont know this actor, if somebody knows please tell me), Kitu Gidwani, Priyanka, Mugdha..in the same order. I felt sad to see Sameer soni., I first saw him long back in a serial..MOUTHFUL OF SKY for the first time and in that serial he was just superb..in looks and acting both, how he has gone down. Arbaaj ..his expressions never change, quite a saintly person:).sukh ho ya dukh kuch effect nahi hota..hehe.
And then i saw I LOVE TROUBLE...another Julia Roberts' movie and a thorough entertainer:).
Then there is these words.......Behenji and Diva..but i really dont know what that means...Is anybody wearing our own Indian attire becomes behenji, then for the foreigners salwar kameej clad women must be the modern woman?
Or it is that wearing a saree without a blouse makes you Diva? then all those adivasiis women are really Divas from the time immemorial?
Literally we call sister.behen..when and how that became a negative word I dont know, or we have started taking that relationship this way?
Why a western wear Gown makes anyone elite or designer or a fashion diva?
or this is all about skin show? Even then shouldnt a person respecting indian culture must be ATLEAST CONSIDERED equal to those westernised, isnt it?
We have so many myths like.......
A person speaking good English is intelligent...helloooooo.....English is just a language, and proficiency in any language doesnt make one intellectual.
Wearing western dresses helps you climb the steps in the hierarchy of society...... and its a fact that still in India anything western is given more attention, all of you must have seen that even in our neighbourhood, our relatives living abroad are given VIP status.
And now what is the purpose of all this debate? i just want people to give due importance to the person..not the language or dress. and my personal take is this... ATTITUDE not the dress makes you Diva or whatever.
I find Rathna pathak Shah much more stylish than all those Bipashas and kareenas.and Gauri's
Shabana Ajmi..much more elegant in an ethnic saree than all those skanky ones.
Rekha in Silsila..in sarees..my ultimate idea of elegance and fashion combined..she started the trend of plain saress with those necks in the blouses.
Kiron kher..most of the time.
But now I must be sounding like an old person being nostalgic and blah blah.....:), present days I like katrina, Genelia, Asin, Kajol, Rani.....
Yesterday there was this award show....Gr8 INDIAN WOMEN ON ZEE TV, a beautiful show and women of really substance in all the fields were awarded, and it had a large no. of REAL women dressed most elegantly and looking beautiful.a sight to behold.
Then I saw Fashion.....after a very long time i saw a movie, I dint want to end:). We always say he has shown how the fashion world works..I cant say that, because I dont know anything about them , but whatever is there..its totally entertaining, and I specially liked here.... That friend of Meghna..Rohit ( I dont know this actor, if somebody knows please tell me), Kitu Gidwani, Priyanka, Mugdha..in the same order. I felt sad to see Sameer soni., I first saw him long back in a serial..MOUTHFUL OF SKY for the first time and in that serial he was just superb..in looks and acting both, how he has gone down. Arbaaj ..his expressions never change, quite a saintly person:).sukh ho ya dukh kuch effect nahi hota..hehe.
And then i saw I LOVE TROUBLE...another Julia Roberts' movie and a thorough entertainer:).
31 comments:
Fashion - What I wear.
Nice post...and I love Ratna Pathak shah too...she is one elegant lady... :)
I saw Fashion yesterday...nice movie but a lil cliched I must say!
How are u blog-mum?? I havent been around online for a while, so havent read any of ur prev posts....hope u had a great holi and all is well :)
Take care :)
Hobo; true:)
SMRITI: How are you now?
Yeah they are cliche, too much of reality wont be so interesting:)
Not a great Holi:( as neither I have friends here who play Holi, nor my family, thats why I played in my post:).
I am planning to be in nHyderabad around 6,7 April, will u be there in Hyderabad then?
I have seen 'Fashion' movie and it was OK. Watched 'Chupke Chupke' (Dharam and Amit, Sharmila and Jay)- must be for the 100th time. I love this movie.
I loved Rekha in 'Kalyug' also. She was elegant personified.
I too like Rathna Pathak!
So waiting to go to Hyderabad? Enjoy!
There will always be people who try to live according to media hype, try to fit into "popular" images, and on the other hand there will also be the really inspirational people who're confident enough to do their own thing. Another lady I'd like to add to your list is Nandita Das....I haven't seen any of her films, but from her interviews, she's really smart & talented. I still remember one year, she & Aishwarya Rai were both at Cannes....Ash was in some horrible gown while Nandita was in a classic sari (with a proper blouse!) I thought she looked far, far better!
You're spot on!
Very well written, Renu
This mentality indeed exists in India..
Diva, behenji, jeans, sari, salwar kameez- its ultimately ur attitude tht matters!
I totally agree with you Renu. Attitude makes you and not the dress and believe me it shows. I think if one carries oneself well and with dignity and confidence anything will make you look good.
I love Fashion. I think it was a fantastic movie and I like Kangana more than Priyanka in that movie. Have not seen I love trouble. Have to watch it immediately.
Shalom: Thanks for reminding me about nandita..I like her very much and from the days she did a serial on DD and was very young a teenager I think. if you havent seen her movie then watch my favourite...BUS YUNHI-- set in the backdrop of banglore only:).
I dont understand the mindset of people who say..while abroad be dressed like them .why? Do they wear Indian when they come here?
SWATS: Thanks:)
I forgot to add one more thing...meaning of modern or being progreessive..what does it mean now?
I find it all in the mind:)
Just Call Me A: hey where were you? havent seen you in ages?
These days TV is airing lot many movies of madam Roberts:).and i am lapping up all of them:)
Sandhya: oh Chupke Chupke..thats a classic, I bought the pack of 3 DVD with Chupke Chupke, Golmal(old one) and Saath saath all my fav:)
Rekha was my favourite.\, so I have watched all her movies, she was good in kalyug, infact she was the one who always looked good in simple sarees.
For Hyderabad, yeah, I am thinking, yet to get my reservation.But i really enjoy my trips to Hyderabad:)
I love what you said about advasis being divas, it was a pleasure to read this article Ma. I completely agree that one should not judge somebody based on what he/she is wearing but I feel somewhere in our sub-conscious mind we always form a first impression based on a person's appearance, which is largely governed by what one is wearing and how. Somebody who dresses up like us will have a better impression on us as compared to somebody who's dressed differently.
Oh my gosh I feel the same abt Sameer Soni...I actually had a crush on him during tht Mouthful of Sky phase:-D......feel very sad to what he is reduced to doing now.
I once saw him with Mandira Bedi at a mall in Dubai. He is not very tall or anything but his face is the same.
U knw I have this dish tv here....so these new movies come on a channel. People who havent subscribed to tht channel can see it ony for 5 mins after which it cuts off. What I'm trying to say is tht I get to watch Fashion & Race everyday for 5 mins:-D
Altogether I must have watched 30mins of the movies by now;-D.
Heeeeee!!!!!
Smriti: Thank u Guria:),I wanted to know why we call certaindresses elite, and degrade others specially our own Indian ones?
Reflections: OMG:) nancy did u also used to see Mouthful of sky?
Then U must be in that age of crushes, it was aired in I think 97.
sometimes I wonder what makes us idolise a person or like him and laways found its the character he is playing and persona both..he was dashing, rich and powerful person in that.
Now-a-days i am likeing Sachin sharma in NAMAK HARAM, he is playing a very lovable character..a very affectionate and caring husbamd and a powerfiul man.
When I go abroad, i miss Indian TV:) the most.
When you spoke of wearing Indian outfits and how it does or doesnt portray elegance for some,the one person that came to my mind was Indira Nooyi,the chief of Pepsi co.
She is elegance,intellect,authority and everything personified.And she wears Indian outfits,especially saree,in many of the occasions as has been shown in magazines and TV.And yet she is considered elite.
So you're so right,Renu.Its the attitude and your deeds that make you the person that you are and not your attires.
Oh,and I loved Fashion too.Kangana Ranaut was a class apart in the film,I felt.She just took the cake frm Priyanka.And she deserved every bit of the Filmfare Award.
ahhh i agree with u renu.. but i feel the reason being ...
ppl speakin english or wearin soemthing western are considered more forward and openminded sinc they are ready to explore and come outa their shell.. and are seen more confident due to the same..but i totlly agree tht htere is ntohin more elegant and diva than a sari for an indian women!
and then behenji part i guess is cos of few men who wanna see more skin and they call the rest behenji per se and i don think we need to give a damn bout it rite?
but hey i got an urge to see some movie now after readin ur conclusion lines.. been long !!!
When it comes to fashion I believe in this quote "Style is an expression of individualism mixed with charisma. Fashion is something that comes after style."
Deeps: yeah , I neither like slotting people with dress, nor giving those scantily dressed girls a high status, I find them looking cheap and slutty.
Sansmerci; May be..what you say is right, but there are many people who speak English but have closed minds and these are the one who slot others.
I never gave any importance to superficiality in any sector of life:)
BTW where are you now.a.days?
Solio:very rightly said. My grouse is against those people who slot INDIAN as backward, and western as forward or progressive, while for me modernity or progressiveness..they are all in the minds not in the dress or language.
Or it is that wearing a saree without a blouse makes you Diva? then all those adivasiis women are really Divas from the time immemorial?
Lol.. Roftlol...
style is personal choice... for me a jeans and t-shirt will do for the entire life without changing !!! :)
This is a very well timed post for me.. tomorrow we have some execs from US coming to visit out facility and I am planning to wear a chickan work salwar kameez tom,a silk cotton saree day after and maybe a handloom skirt the day after... cmon unhe bhi to pata chale indian dresses kitni kamal ki hoti hain..
and really..its only attitude tht matters... i have a gal in my team, who has a figure to kill for but shes always dressed in salwars and max a kurta on fridays..and she looks very smart efficient and good... there is no rule saying tht only in western formals one looks better.. for me western formals are easy since you dont have to handle a dupatta :D
and mouthful of sky my dad and i used to watch!! i still rembr the title song.. earth wind and rain n fire wealth power love desire, one goal to live for bfore we die, one taste of glory one mouth ful of sky!
not sure why or how i rembr it :D :D
Absolutely agree with every word,Renu! INfact I`m going to do a post on this myself. Some indian girl called me a 'behenji' at a coffee shop the other day and I wasnt even wearing a sari. I was wearing sindoor though! I love the way you write this. Why does the word 'behen' have such a negative connotation. Excellent post yet again!
I honestly feel there is a major problem with the younger generation. They somehow feel that everything western is 'cool' and leads to happiness, while everything Indian is uncool and desi and ganwaar. People really need to grow up and start thinking with their own brains.
Hitch writer: LOL:)
Yeah, even I like jeans, skirts both, and any attire is a personal choice, but socially giving any staus to a particular ne is not acceptable to me.
Amrita; You are so right as always:)...One should wear what one is comfortable with, tghere shouldbnt be any labels attached to it.
I always took pride for my memory, but you are better than me:) OMG you still remember the song.... feeling so nostalgic:)
Piper: I am pretty sure that the girl who called you behenji would have nothing illustrious about her.
I feel its only people with inferiority complex who give these names anf for themselves they have nothing to talk about.
Rebel; yahi....yahi to ham kehna cha rahe the aur aapne keh diya:)
I believe in the power of brain and nothing else.
nice post ..bang on when u said that its teh attitude that matetrs not how a person dresses up.. i used to like sameer soni too ..i remember seeing a few episodes of Mouthful of sky ,just to see Milind soman !! .. and chupke chupke is one of my favs too..Khoobsoorat is another all time favs !
Bedazzled: thanx:) and i am very pleasantly surprised to know thta there are more people like me who saw thats serial and liked the same person also, in that serial . Khoobsurat is my all time fav, even i have written in my profile also:)
when i delegate a task to someone .. the only thing that strikes me is whether or not the person can handle it and that i judge based on the credential and past record of the person ..
I have been throuh n number of such discussion .. be they behenji diva or male-female, or english-non english, white-black etc .. I wonder how i never seem to be able to think of such things while meeting someone .. i may like or dislike someone's countenance but that is purely non-generic .. however that seems to be the odd thing ...
life is simple .. complicated is to keep it that way .. that applied elegance i believe comes best in simplicity ... something i have found in actresses like juhi and madhuri .. anyway thats the way ppl are i guess ..
nice post couldnt agree more
Towards Reclamation; I wonder how i never seem to be able to think of such things while meeting someone ......That shows you head is not muddled up, sorted out oyour ideas. and thats the way it should be:)
Yep...in the city those days :) Hope to catch up with you when you are here :) :)
Renu ...I agree to you cent percent ...
fashion is about indiviuality , comfort and elegance ...I have girls looking elegant in minis and cheap in salwar /sarees ..it should be you wear the cloths and not cloths wear you ..
ah !this attitude of anything foreign is best ..be it people /language /cloths ..I have always said ...english is just another language ...
Fashion is a nice movie ..I am downloading 'The Duchess'
I know many western girls who dream about learning how to wear a saree.
Then they wear kurtas over their jeans... outside office hours... and when it's warm enough.
Because although the "robe doesn't make the monk" as we say in France, well, there still exists a social and professional pressure on the individuals. So over here in a office, we'd better wear blacks and greys and browns, and not show flesh.
Actually I have met people in my country, who still think it's shocking to see a woman with trousers... :o)
Smriti: Sure:)
Preeti: Yeah preeti, I see this bias everywhere, even yesterday i went to Tirupathi and there this young boy of 15 yrs was talking so rudely and shouting about etiquettes and al,to a man of 30, just because a man is simply dressed, don think any less of him, and these boys are so ignorant, he must have passed 10th only and the other one must be much more qualified than him and then agewise also senior.
helene H; So over here in a office, we'd better wear blacks and greys and browns, and not show flesh.
--its true here also and showing skin in office is not considered in good taste.
I ahev certain rules or feel about dress like....
Wear the dress according to the occasion and place.
Rest one should wear what one is comfortable in, BUT never ever brand anyone elite or class or maas according to a particular dress and specially your own country dress.
mausi its only us who have misused certain words ,and taken out a different meaning of it.people in general always think that copying the dress code of the filmstars will make them look much more stylish and beautiful.i certainly dont agree !
i hate the dressing sense of some of the filmstars .malliaka arora khan,she has the worst one..sometimes i feel that she is very poor and is living in a hand 2 mouth condition thats y she wraps herself in a bedsheet rahther than a saree!!uff!
the tradition of wearing a saree is good .and it must be carried on!!
acc. 2 me these fashion designers always try to invent something totally different,and they end up doing something totally pathetic,cheap,obscure..and bla bla...!!!
Rahul: Youb are so right my dear :)
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