Desi Priorities.

Amid the protests in India, what’s a fashion blog got to do? 

That’s what I thought too… Until I saw an instagram reel (apparently, that’s where we get accurate information now). It was a “GRWM to protest” reel, I am sure ya’ll think how unserious she might’ve been during such a crisis (In fact, the unserious one is the government), but what you forgot to notice were her words.

The one sentence that changed the way I watched the reel was:

“Education will not become a national debate, but women’s clothing definitely will” 

This one sentence perfectly stated the country’s priorities. Have you ever wondered if fashion belongs in politics? Here is the answer, in that sentence. This is what I mean when I repeatedly chant in blogs: fashion is expressive, fashion is representation, fashion is a language, fashion is a metaphor, fashion is art. Uniforms represent authority and discipline. White clothing symbolizes peace. Black has become the color of melancholy. Scarves, pins, slogans, hand painted t-shirts, what people wear at protests says a lot before they even speak.

Outrage often proves a point. A woman can stand in the middle of a road demanding accountability, and the internet will still question what she is wearing. There you go, the point is proven. It is easier to scrutinize what a woman is wearing, than answer questions she is raising, and since when did India not choose the easier option. 

So? Amid the protests in India, what’s a fashion blog got to do?

Maybe, the most radical decision a fashion blog writer can make isn’t to ignore politics. It’s to refuse to separate fashion from the world people actually live in.