Style and the City

Somebody once told me that her style changed according to the city she was in. I didn't quite understand that. I mean I lived in Calcutta, Chennai and Bangalore and I dressed pretty much the same. Obviously, my style had evolved with time but that had very little to do with the city and more to do with my state of mind and the weather. It wasn't until I moved back to Calcutta recently that I realised how much of a city you really imbibe. Even my night suits have Batik and Kalamkari prints now! You take a little from the architecture, culture and heritage of the city and incorporate it into your style.

Calcutta is about the arts, literature and its colonial heritage. It is a city so progressive in its thinking yet so attached to its past: the hand-drawn rickshaws, the yellow ambassador taxis, the tram and the British built crumbling buildings. In a lot of ways, Calcutta is a juxtaposition of the old and the new, a city unfazed by the changes happening in other major cities.

All this translates to how people dress in this part of the country. No one does ethnic wear like the women in Calcutta. Carrie and her friends walked down the streets of New York in designer dresses, skirts and pants discussing men and sex (yes, another Sex and the City reference). You will see that in Calcutta too, only the group of girls will be walking down casually wearing handloom saris or kurtas discussing men, books and more.

I have always loved Indian wear. There really is nothing as comfortable and stylish as a kurta! But as much as I loved Indian clothes, I didn't wear them enough in Bangalore. After having moved back to Calcutta, I see myself gravitating towards cotton sarees and kurtas and everything with beautiful Indian prints. You know how different stages of your life can be described with a style obsession of the time? Like your leather jacket period or your rainbow-coloured days. This is my Indo-Western period. I am absolutely enjoying mixing and matching my Indian wear with my Western clothing.

And that is the story of this outfit. A boxy white shirt paired with a Bohemian/ethnic skirt, DIYed kolhapuris, wooden bamboo sunglasses from Woodgeek Store and a colourful jhola. This skirt was made by a friend of mine as a part of his first design assignment in college.

Jhola: Gift from Rajasthan
White Boxy Shirt: Forever 21

Bohemian Skirt: Bought from a friend
Bamboo wood sunglasses: Woodgeek Store

DIYed Kolhapuris: Commercial Street