Saturday, April 30, 2011

The Self Proclaimed Fashionista


“Oh, the wedding was amazing but I expected more out of Kate’s gown. It was lame.” A lady invited to the studios of a news channel commented during the broadcast of the royal wedding. I suppose she’s one of those fashionistas, who gets a two inch space once in a while on page 3 and wouldn't have given up the chance of hogging any amount of limelight that shone on her all thanks to William and Kate.

Before I speak about the spill over members of our fashion industry, let’s once mull upon the most exquisite piece of couture created under extreme caution and secrecy which finally gave one young lady memories she would cherish for the rest of her life. The wedding gown created by Sarah Burton, Alexander McQueen’s protégé. Burton designed a gown for Kate Middleton. Not just any other girl but someone who was to wed a man who is second in succession to the throne of England. And naturally the presence of the royal who’s who had to be borne in mind while designing the gown as it had to be befitting of a royal wedding and not that of a Hollywood sex kitten turned jewellery designer. The queen would have beheaded her at the altar of the abbey itself had the gown exuded an iota of sleaze.

I liked the gown personally and most of all what mattered was that Kate liked it else she would not have chosen to wear it on her big day. So why bring a blunt comment by calling the gown lame and comparing it to the ‘BLING’ (she said it, not me) that Indian brides wear. The entire concept of marriage differs from one tradition to another. An Indian bride is different from an American bride and a bride from the Middle East is an ethereal beauty in her own rights. A comparison is a complete no. And just how many of such self proclaimed fashoinistas are going to rule supreme and dictate the rules of fashion to millions of aspiring couturiers in the nation, without knowledge or responsibility of the field they are associated with?

Shobha De was perhaps the only one who remarked that as long as the bride was happy the rest of us had no say in the matter whatsoever. My thoughts on it, one region in the nation cannot control fashion in the entire nation even if it has coveted the title of the fashion capital recently. And people belonging to that region should shed the holier than thou image before making any statements about any creation that sees the light of the day. Responsible journalism should ensure that the right kinds of people are included in the panel for any discussion and not mere wannabes.

PS – Ms Fashionista, Kate was wearing a veil on her head and it’s NOT a mosquito net. And no, we can’t have bling on it either.

Friday, April 29, 2011

Marriage and Heaven.................?


Let me begin this post by stating the most abused, exploited and over used clichéd statement that somehow does not seem to have caught any rust during the passage of time, ‘Marriages are made in heaven’. I wonder, is that really true? I mean, is there someone hired by Human Resource Department in heaven to handle the wedding department? If yes then let me tell you then the guy hired must have been some government official when alive on earth. Never on time for work, never knew what he worked on, extended lunch and tea time and left early from work to reach home. The files on his table never moved unless one of them brought him some extra cash under the table. Thanks to the lousy guy, a lot of young beautiful boys and girls wander single these days.

Frankly, let’s for once give the govt guy above a benefit of doubt and try unearthing a fact. Marriages are not made in heaven. They are made on earth by you, me and a lot of other people around us. It could be either love, arranged or according to my school of thought, just marriage. The very thought of commitment makes most of them shiver timbers. I’ve noticed this trend in girls. The thought of not being emancipated anymore makes the fairer sex push the matter every time it’s presented in a platter. I’ve met a few of them who gingerly sit in their car, come home, talk to my brother, are sweet enough to engage me in a conversation (usually, it gets way too boring) and finally given up on marriage.

Are they being paranoid? Does the loss of emancipation make them sceptic not to explore the grass on the other side of the fence? How exactly do they define the word ‘Matrimony’? it looks more to me that most of us either men or women are definitely looking for a relationship sans commitment. It would be nice if the world could be divided into two places. A hanamachi and the other, rest of the world. That way those of us who are serious could find a lifelong commitment without the fear of the dark clouds of divorce or infidelity looming over us.

Am I asking for too much?