FASHION ON WHEELS

Mumbai

I'm in the city of Mumbai at the moment - the city that never sleeps, the city where people come to fulfill their dreams with stars in their eyes and hope in their hearts. What never fails to impress me is how people are so very 'alive' here. It's like the word 'lazy' doesn't exist in their dictionaries. Everything is so fast paced and nothing is constant. Except the people I see every morning in the local train I take to work. I'm interning at Vogue, Mumbai at the moment, was looking out for some work experience and what better place than Vogue. It's got everything I ever dreamed of. Fashion, Art, Beauty, Creativity and a team of extremely learned and skilled professionals running the company.


Now coming back to the local train bit. The most convenient, easiest and fastest way to travel to work if you're living miles away from your work place. Cause there's one thing at which Mumbai completely sucks, handling the road traffic (it's crazy). Everyday when I climb the 9:12 train I see familiar faces (well they're familiar now as I have been travelling in these trains for over 2 months) who I'm now not comfortable with analysing or criticising their fashion or dressing sense. In the beginning when I started using the train as a mode of transport and I'd see these women dressed in what they thought was 'cool' or 'fashionable' I would scowl at the thought of even wearing anything they put on. It was so not the 'in' thing to do. But then over the weeks I realised how wrong I was. We are a free country and what we do or wear is a matter of choice. It's upto us also as to how we choose to perceive it. Since I am at Vogue and I have been amongst fashion conscious people all my life it is very easy to assume and decide what's in and what's out. And in the case of my co-passengers on the train it was an easy decision to make.

So the point im making here is that we are always taught that Fashion is a kind of free expression, its like art, a creativity that can flow into endless extremes and is a representation of what we see and how we feel about it. If fashion is free then why do we make judgements on how people dress. If wearing the 'it' bag or putting on those oh-so-fashionable' heels is what makes us worthy of adorning this all encompassing word called FASHION then where is our own identity or interpretation of the word. But then also we live in a country where 'hierarchy' is something that is so important and none of these women are forced to put on any of the so called fashion items or turn into fashion divas overnight. So I guess it all comes down to being a matter of choice.

contrasting fashion choices

Since we have decided that we love the world of Fashion and we love how it traps us with its beautiful claws, my point is don't judge. Everyone dresses according to what they think is right. So next time you form opinions on someone else, remember you are being judged too.


P.S. - All pictures are courtesy Google. (I forgot to carry my camera and its chord to upload original pics and I just felt like making this post asap)


Ciao