April 4th,2010, New Delhi: The great Indian identity has now found a new DQ (Drama Queen) existence……It offers great fodder for desi advertising lingo, a perfect cameo for music videos or an unbelievable backdrop for some sexy Bollywood thumkas and jhumkas.
For the youth today being an Indian is at best a notion, a faraway reality , a romantic reference that they visit occasionally and endorse when they have to open the Pandora box of home, parents, tradition etc.Then India shines in their lives like that momentary lapse of reason, that little flight from reality that they indulge in……because they are ,after all, Of Indian Origin!
Only to quickly return to their jeans and solid colored tee reality….Hooked onto the apple Ipod.Walking the fast lane of existence,remote controlling their existence from their blackberry, and, when left alone, even for a moment, logging onto Facebook ….And they manage all these histrionics with a totally stark expression on their face. That staccato look that left me stumped in a New York metro where many young,dressed in power clothes, listened to music and played with their phone with an unbelievably cold expression…. maintained to perfection even when their head was bursting with stereophonic sounds or their eye reading a steamy message. That look is the most recent import into India.
The great Indian Identity is bleeding and needs instant hospitalization…..I know that as a PR consultant instrumental in bringing alive global brands in India this outburst may seem hypocritical.But as a media professional and a design freak who witnessed the revival of the great Indian design movement in a contemporary lingo just a decade back, I shudder to see it now being put to slumber with a well practiced lullaby. Sung in a choir by global conglomerates who changed the design palettes of many other traditional nations before they have come knocking on our doors. Developed marketeers whose chitra-katha is so luring that it almost feels like sex on the beach to the young, easily malleable minds.
Indeed the labelled life is great and brands from across the shores know their fit and form better than we do.Sure enough their knowledge of texture, color and style is enriched with years of experience in dealing with the developed markets and they know how to convert a market aka Pied Piper to their tune. But, does that mean that the Indian fable dies? That like the Kimono the sari is now found on weddings and museums? Like the Manchester floral the Indian paisley too becomes ‘too heavy’ for the solid toned young dresser to handle! Does it mean that even a hint of embroidery makes an outfit over the top and the inclusion of bold colors make it seem loud????
At Fashion Weeks it bleeds my heart to see seasoned dexterous ‘masterjis’ who learnt the art of getting the form and flow of an ‘Aabha kurta’ right,now trying their hands at the structured tailored look.It bothers when young designers present stark clothing with a great India disconnect. But then Thank God there are these weeks that still give a very befitting platform to the Indian designer and his designs .Even if the euphoria only lasts a week.
And, meanwhile a village of weavers applies for sarkari naukri. A row of looms go to wont and the rarest of embroidery that is too tough to sustain breathes its last,archival in a jiffy, forgotten soon after!!! Indeed if we don’t hospitalize the Indian design,put it back into an incubator, nurture it like a reborn soul we will soon be the most successful dumping grounds for global design…An identity free set of people who frown on our resplendent past and view the Indian reality as you view the tiger in the zoo….Nice to see from a distance,tough to live with forever.
This post is an introductory note to my blog that will celebrate all things made in India.The Author ,Anshu Khanna runs a media advisory Goodword Media Services Pvt Ltd that celebrates art,design and creativity.
Posted by : Anshu Khanna at 03:02 PM
