The 20th century is dotted with defining moments — when a trailblazing ‘look’ has disrupted the industry and pop culture at large. Amishi Parekh highlights a few that have endured even today
It is often said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and that artists are those who steal in broad daylight from the masters. Although cliched, looking at the runways of today, one can still spot traces that pay homage to very specific, game-changing instances in fashion’s long and volatile history. While many were in-today, out-tomorrow (think of the pouf skirt craze a la Christian lacroix), others have endured and become part of the modern fashion vocabulary. These moments bear witness to the fact that many so-called trends aren’t seasonal, but cyclical, governed by the multitudes of (and, increasingly, by the converging and overlapping of) influences running through designers’ minds at a given point in time.
Manifest in a collection or a singular silhouette, they were not so much about the clothes but a new attitude. Just like the music, art and literature of a given period, the four examples that we have described here are a sign of their times — in each case almost like an armour for the woman of the day to stand out and stand up against subjugation.
CURVES AHEAD
Reeling from a second world war, and after years of shortages, fabric rationing and monotonous uniforms, paris in 1947 was primed for a change. Forty-two-year-old designer Christian Dior had yet to make it big, and he presented his first collection with the simple intent to help women reclaim their femininity. ‘i wanted my dresses to be ‘constructed’, moulded on the curves of the female body whose contours they would stylise,’ he explained at the time. The audience watched 90 ensembles walk past, with dropped jaws; at last there was something to talk about, especially after such a dreary decade in French fashion.
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Denne historien er fra April 2017-utgaven av Verve.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Making Amends
This generation’s penchant for thoughtless consumption gets Madhu Jain roiled up, and she wonders if nature is getting its own back for our missteps…
Diamonds With Provenance
In keeping with the company’s commitment to environmental and social responsibility, Anisa Kamadoli Costa, chief sustainability officer at Tiffany & Co. and chairman and president at The Tiffany & Co. Foundation, enlightens Shirin Mehta on the efforts that make the jewellery giant an industry leader in transparency
SARTORIAL ECONOMICS
Sisters Tashi and Tara Mitra demonstrate to Akanksha Pandey how deviating from the mainstream can bend the way we think, live and dress
NOTES TO SELF
An anthropomorphized tiger’s perspective, a viscerally worded futuristic interpretation of loss, a critique of performative activism, a meta reflection on the earth’s crises. Told through different lenses, Janaki Lenin, Indrapramit Das, Keshava Guha and Roshan Ali’s stories — written exclusively for Verve — attempt to make sense of the fraught reality that we exist in today
The Eternal Optimist
As Generation X and xennials grapple with fully transitioning to conscious living, young millennials and Generation Z are leading the charge to reverse human-caused environmental damage. Sahar Mansoor, founder and CEO of the Bengaluru-based zero-waste social enterprise Bare Necessities, has a simple overarching philosophy: consume less and stay positive. Verve gets deeper into the mindset of the action-oriented earth advocate
Redemption SONGS
Indian music festivals have been demonstrating a refreshing sense of responsibility in terms of their ecological impact. Interacting with stakeholders who strive to make these large-scale events greener, Akhil Sood investigates the reasons behind the improved attitudes of audiences and the increase in corporate support.
earth hour
Crafted using nature’s elements, these dials draw inspiration from the many heterogeneous materials and hues around us.Verve turns its lens onto a mesmerising few
THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
Children are holding adults accountable for both the grim future they are facing and the toll this is taking on their mental health. Madhumita Bhattacharyya initiates conversations with families of young climate activists and observes the extent to which parenting has changed in the face of catastrophe
NATURAL JUSTICE
Most of us are only just waking up to the urgency of climatic action. When the stakes are so high, what can individual action solve? Mridula Mary Paul, an environmental policy expert, is proof of the tenacity needed to effect systemic change. It’s not glamorous, and the rewards are few and far between, but that doesn’t stop her from aiming big, finds Anandita Bhalerao
Along For The Ride
Navigating Indian streets as a woman is hard enough. But what is it like while riding a bicycle? Bengaluru-based Shreya Dasgupta, a regular cyclist, speaks to five urban women about the pros and cons of this increasingly popular means of transport.
