New Trend in Men’s Fashion Wear

Parent Category: News and Stories
Posted in: Fashion n Modelling on Saturday, 06 September 2008 00:00

Basking under the escalating shadow of metrosexuality, men’s fashion wear is rapidly adapting new trends everyday. The direction that the male fashion is heading towards nowadays is unraveled by Raahul Sharma.

Famous Irish playwright, George Bernard Shaw once stated that ‘Fashion is a form of ugliness, so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months.’ Well, things might not be as gross as they sound on the face of it but the statement is truly germane in today’s shifting fashion scenario. The way fashion is metamorphosing in recent times, it emerges that everyone is in a quest to jiggle around with the existing trend, in order to get rid of monotony. Today, male fashion, especially in India, is in a state of transition. It is gradually transforming itself from the traditional loop and stepping on to a global foothold.  but what is surprisingly apparent is the ‘inspiration’ that male fashion is taking from the female wardrobe, pastel colours and bold florals. It seems, men’s fashion is now more prone to women’s wear fashion and it is not a moonshine.

For instance, in the recently concluded ‘Paris Fashion Week’, the participating designers showed their mettle in praising ‘feminine touch’ in their spring-summer collection ‘08.  Ties for men were replaced by printed scarves, accessories subjugated by beaded neckpiece and feminine colours palette like pink, purple and fuschia reigned the ramp with floral prints. This trend it seems, could be considered as a precursor to the end of the macho male fashion. But is machismo really fading away and ‘feminine touch’ overwhelming the male fashion?

Fashionistas opine that the mounting metrosexual culture is giving a boost to this latest trend in men’s fashion. Avows Reetika Mehra Dalal, Executive Head- India, Savile Row Company, London, “It’s time for metro sexuality and I think it is always more pleasant to see men, who have attitude but nonetheless have a slightly soft side. In any case, people are sick of machos.”

To buttress the fact, Dalal suggests, “Men are more willing to experiment with fashion and are becoming accustomed to fast fashion because of the change in lifestyles. Also, because of the advent of more men's lifestyle magazines than ever before, information about fashion has gone beyond the transcendental parameters of being macho to being metrosexual. Even, the sociological impact has influenced the macho man going out of fashion, as the girls look forward towards the whole package and especially, clothes.”

In the same tone, coos Narinder Kaur, chief designer, Turtle Ltd., a leading men’s wear brand, “Yes, I agree. There is a definite feminine touch to the entire fashion scenario for men. Be it manicure, pedicure or grooming of the facial hair, the metrosexual man is comfortable with the female touch. A man is no longer shy of wearing a pink shirt, a purple T-shirt or a cool floral print attire. And this is now being universally accepted.”

Literally, the rising shadow of western lifestyle fashion brands and their ethos in south Asia continent are endorsing this renaissance culture prolifically, particularly in metros.

World's leading marketing information company, A.C. Nielsen stamps this fact as according to the company reports, every second man from the four Indian metros (Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Hyderabad) is the proverbial metrosexual man – an urban male focused on his looks.  “The survey proves that the mindset of the urban male is broadening, and that there is a definite style-consciousness creeping in,” concludes Vatsala Pant, associate director, client solutions, ‘Nielsen’.

Dinesh Sehgal, managing director, ‘Blues Clothing Company’, which has international designer brands like ‘Versace’, ‘Corneliani’, ‘Trussardi’ Jeans, ‘Cadini’ in India, also confirms this fact. “The feminine touch is more prominent in Indian styles, as compared to the western wear. The presence of pinks and purples dominate the western colour palette, while sequence work and embroidery has worked their way into an Indian man's wardrobe.”

“I think, it is now well accepted by the male gender, that the male choice is not limited to the earlier palette of basics hues like blue, black, gray and beige. The metrosexual man is experimenting efficiently and successfully with a hint of prints and colours and coming out a victor!” He further concedes that after a surveillance of the male fashion, it is an open secret now that macho males are ‘out’ and the metrosexual man is ‘in’. “Metrosexual man is this well versed, well groomed, smart, sexy yet considerate, sensitive and caring individual. And when you have such a strong, assured presence, there is no place for 'just a Macho male'!”

If we cast a look around some fashion weeks, we will discern that black has switched into pink as the masculine colour of choice and our male celebrities (models, actors, socialites) across the country have no problem with various shades of crimson in their wardrobes. But what is the reason behind the upsurge of ‘feminine touch’ in men’s wear fashion, especially in India?

Famous international fashion designer, Anita Dongre connects this trend with creativity. “Creativity is very personal and creativity in any form should be respected. Everyone has their own sensibility. It is one’s own expression and hence, cannot be judged. Designing is a huge field and options within the field are a matter of choice.”

Similarly Ravi Bajaj, a leading fashion designer, believes that everything, which has a prepossessing impact, is fine in the fashion world. "Put two different things together and if they look good then that's fashion. Anything is fashionable as long as people are dressing well."  Ms. Dalal considers the mode as “Experimental behaviour with the changing lifestyle matters, where men do not want to be dressed in a common fashion faux pas where black suit dominates as you cannot be wearing this funeral dress everyday and everywhere.”

“Today, the metro sexual male has corrected himself with the use of softer colours, which appear to be feminine. Men’s wear is more prone to women’s wear colours so as to play with the mixing patterns and a complementing colour family, which impresses the opposite sex,” points Ms. Dalal. Smilingly croons fashion designer, A.D.Singh, who wants to cash in on this watershed, “I would love to design for men if the women would  set me free!”

Metrosexuals, who are defined as urban, heterosexual men who pay close attention to grooming and fashion belong to the working population in India, a trend which is on a surge. The new age Indian males, loaded with bulging purses, are amalgamating with an attitude that continuously pushes them to be better and to be in a dynamic ‘on the move’ state. They covet and certainly pursue comfortable clothing, groovy looks and latest gazettes that facilitate them to craft their own style statement, with an assured sense of self-confidence. No wonder then, the demand for branded products and services is continuously on the rise.  Their attitude towards shopping is reforming and Pradeep Hirani, owner of Mumbai-based Ayamik, a fashion house, confirms, "The Indian man today is definitely much more willing to experiment with bolder or softer colours and haute styles."

Definitely the urban male is more aware of his appearance and Dalal relates this change to their working ambience. “They are under more pressure than ever before to look good and different. The motivation for many men appears to be the desire to replicate the male celebrity image,” avers Dalal. Surely, the male celebrities are on the vanguard of this upheaval, especially Bollywood’s nascent honchos like Shahid Kapoor and Ranbir Kapoor, (perfect examples of a mertrosexual male!), who are very much unruffled with their feminine touch costumes.  Therefore, the concept is catching on as the young guns follow their looks and appearance. “Today’s man is more health conscious and would prefer to be presentable and not just be considered as a macho guy. The current trend indicates a more liking towards leaner and fit muscle toned body, which resemble the likes of Brad Pitt and Akshay Kumar,” accentuates Saurabh Kesharwani, group head of branding and communication consultancy company, ‘Brand-Comm’.

“People now feel comfortable in almost all the shades of pinks and you can even find male models sporting the hair band comfortably. Earlier, colours and fashion were considered to be a feminine domain, but today’s male has taken a more aggressive approach to fashion,” he adds.

Fashion knows no boundary and prevails according to one’s easiness and accessibility.  And if we ponder on female fashion dominance over the male wardrobe, it is best to follow the French fashion legend, Coco Chanel’s golden words, “The best colour in the whole world is the one that looks good on one’s personality’ and that’s exactly what today’s fashion aficionado male fraternity is revelling in”.