Men’s Fashion in LFW2017 Breaks Gender Constructs in Style

Lakme Fashion Week gives men’s fashion a nonconformist twist.

There is nothing that men can’t pull off. (Photo: Yogen Shah)

Men don’t wear anklets or hairbands and they certainly don’t wear heels.

Actually, they just did.

Day 1of Lakmé Fashion Week 2017 saw male models rocking accessories that have always been considered the sole property of women. It was not just the accessories but also the silhouettes. Designer Anuj Bhutani clothed his male models in jumpsuits and palazzos while Urvashi Kaur presented us with silhouettes which were so fluid that they managed to transcend the spectrum of sexuality.

Anuj Bhutani’s collections were new age and revolutionary. (Photo: Yogen Shah)

Fluidity in silhouette replace fusion. (Photo: Yogen Shah)

Get That Quirk Right

Shani Himanshu and Mia Morikawa of the brand 11.11 with their Summer/Resort collection have proved that they don’t believe in playing by the rules. If models wearing bright orange three pieces suits with headbands made out of belts and buckles don’t catch your eye, nothing will.

Hairband is the new hat. (Photo: Yogen Shah)

11.11 gave us an eclectic treat with contradictions married together in perfect harmony. Models with printed suit jacket, waistcoats and culottes sporting a gold anklet fashioned from wristwatch band were even more fascinating. 11.11 men’s fashion boldly stated that different is the new normal.

Metallic wristwatch bands doubled up as anklets and armlets for 11.11. (Photo: Yogen Shah)

Unisexual or Asexual?

Urvashi Kaur’s collections’ ‘one-design-works-for-all’ ideology proved to us that fashion can never be bound under the narrow constructs of gender. Models of both genders wore the same design with such ease and panache that we forgot to categorize one as the anomaly. Kaur’s work was new age and revolutionary while still managed to be wearable.

Same drape but different results. (Photo: Yogen Shah)

Man-enough to pull off a dupatta? (Photo: Yogen Shah)

Diversity in conformity. (Photo: Yogen Shah)

In the same vein as Urvashi, Anuj Bhutani brought out a collection with silhouettes so fluid that it would be wrong to assign them to any gender. Men and women’s wear is usually distinct because of its gender-specific cut, fall or drape but Bhutani did away with these markers in his collection, with models of both gender wearing the exact same style.

Kimonos and turtle-necks are for everyone. (Photo: Yogen Shah)

Every thing down the shoes is designed the same. (Photo: Yogen Shah)

New Age Fashion

Fashion has always been accused of recycling, but the work of these new designers work is almost revolutionary, especially in men’s fashion which has always suffered from stagnancy. India’s fashion now has a global appeal like never before.