F A S H I O N - Surekha Kadapa-Bose ( Courtesy - BTW Magazine)

Gender Equality

The current men’s fashion trend is unisex in appeal. Embroidery, embellishments, nudes, nets and laces are no longer pariahs. In fact, you can confidently share your girlfriend’s wardrobe

It was in the late 1960s and the dawn of the ’70s, with the advent of Beatles and Hippies in India, that the fashion world started sporting what was then known as unisex trends. Printed or checkered bell
bottoms (presently known as bootleg or flared pants), printed shirts and kurtas became a rage. The unisex wardrobe was such that siblings of opposite genders could easily have shared one!

The unisex or the androgynous trend faded in the 1990s with very definite and varied male and female fashion trends. Men wore macho clothes and girls opted for girlie attires. But looking at the current trend in men’s fashion, the 1970s unisex style seems to have made a comeback.

In fact, in an interview following the recently concluded Van Huesen India Men’s Week 2010, Karan Johar, filmmakerturned- designer, had said, “Men have been denied fashion before and people have never realised that vanity is also a man's priority. Men today take care of their hands and keep them manicured. They don't take 'metrosexuality' to heart, instead play with it.’’

This is amply displayed by designers like Rohit Bal, Rajesh Pratap Singh, Narendra Kumar and others, who have been incorporating a lot of embroidery and embellishments, including lace and net, in their creations. When John Abraham – the showstopper for Rohit Bal – walked in sporting an almost nude black net shirt with black flowery embroidery on it, no doubt, the dude’s killer looks were enhanced. Even his girl friend Bipasha Basu would have looked equally scintillating in it!

The dominant trend for the season would be silhouettes in men’s wear, a la women’s wear. Narrowlegged cotton pants in soft colours like beige and browns with jackets worn over motif printed T-shirts are going to be the in thing. For festive season or formal occasions, the jackets could change colours and embellishments could be added as seen in clothes by Karan - Varun, ANKY, Narendra Kumar and others.

Another huge trend is tuxedos. Made famous by yesteryear actors Dilip Kumar, Pran, the late Sanjeev Kumar, Hollywood’s Al Pacino, and almost every other actor who has played James Bond. Patronised by Brad Pitt and several other handsome hunks, these are extremely wellcut jackets usually worn on formal occasions. Earlier they came only in black colours. But of late they too have undergone colour change with the collars becoming more prominent.

Detailing is also going to take men’s fashion by storm. Rohit Bal’s use of Indian traditional crafts on fabrics like muslin, taffeta, silk, satin, chanderi and textures like shredded chiffon, crinkled muslin, quilting and treated leather are proof of this. Accessories and jewellery that match would enhance the looks of the attire.

The colours too are going to reflect feminine sensibilities like red pants and bold checks. But otherwise, the colour palette would be dominated by cream, ivory, off-white, pure white, and charcoal
black and espresso brown.

The trend for collegians, for whom comfort plays a large role, would be wellcut drop crotch pants, cargo jodhpurs and capris. Cargos and capris can be worn even by 20-40 years-olds, especially while on vacation and at leisure.

Never- s a y - d i e fabrics like gabardine, denim, poplin and fresh cottons will continue to be in vogue. Linen, coated linen, voile, cotton, treated cotton, jersey and corduroy also will be seen in the market. The popular texture would be light, matte and smooth. Linen will top the popularity chart.

The Army look has always been popular especially with men who have extremely fit and athletic bodies, not the beefy Salman Khan or Sylvestor Stallone types. The collection that is spicy, earthy and rooted is used in colours of sage, khaki, olive, chocolate and coffee.

Designer Vijay Arora has got a whole collection of these, where shirts with military collars and epaulets (ornamental shoulder piece or decoration), bandh gala necklines, sherwani pockets and pathan suit plackets are teamed with military coloured cargo pants and jodhpur denim jeans.

Whatever may be the trends, at the end of the day one should wear what one is comfortable in and whatever suits him. What may look good on John Abraham, Shawar Ali and Milind Soman may not suit the others. So wear what you want but with confidence!