Today I began a project that at once strikes me as both frivolous and radical: wearing sarees on a regular basis in the U.S.
I was inspired by the discussion of desi fusion fashion by Bangle Banger. In the Aerogram interview, Anjana Raj argues for a conception of diasporic Desi fashion as subversive and radical. Here she is smartly responding to the growing trend of non Desis appropriating Indian culture and clothes:
So, here I am feeling bound by these set of expected norms in Desi dressing, coupled with then this huge influx of non-Desis wearing Desi clothes with no repercussion or added weight of what it meant. There were all these rules of Desi dressing that they didn’t have to learn to wear. The way they could put it on and off offended me. It didn’t strip away their identity when they took off their clothes. I was outraged.
Subversive fashion? Reclaiming and reinventing traditional attire? Of course I wanted to try it.
Admittedly, I’d tried several times in the past to wear Desi clothes as part of a daily routine. In high school I wore bindis on a regular basis. In college I attempted to wear kurtas and churidars to classes. But lately I’d given up. I’d given in, tired of the white gaze, tired of being asked what I was wearing constantly. It was time to try anew.
Day 1. Instead of full blown Desi clothes, I decided to try fusion. Plain saree from Fashion Village (Scarborough, Ontario). Crop top from Forever 21.
Reactions. For the most part, no one paid me any mind. I wore the saree to classes. Only one person commented. I felt self-conscious even though I was trying not to, perhaps because of the silence. Either way, I’d consider it a success, and the beginning of an interesting journey. I’ll continue to blog about my experiences.
OMG THIS IS AMAZING. YOU’RE SO CUTE AND BADASS. I’m so excited that I even had any thing to do with this.