At least that's what commentator #44 on this post over at The Sartorialist, thinks my city is full of*. (they can't have meant any offence, but cliché, much? And - fish-eyed? Again, I know they wouldn't have meant it that way, but I'm getting a slight fit of giggles remembering fish market trips)
I'm still a little stunned by the fact that The Sartorialist is actually going to be here, in this country, by the middle of this month, not to mention wondering what kinds of things are going to end up on the blog from the trip and where exactly he's going to be taking pictures (this might be narrow-minded of me, but I really don't want to see more images of 'exotic India', and certainly not on a blog as good as that one). And overall, it's one big w00t at the very idea...even if most of the things I see people wearing on the street here generally verge between nondescrepit and horrendous (someone get APC and Topshop over here, STAT).
*And just for reference, alta is pigment- used, as the line says, to paint feet red. I'm not sure what it's made of exactly, but it is most definitely not a part of standard decoration for Bengali women. Not unless there's a major festival on, anyway.
15 comments:
I think in India either people don't really care or they can only wear what they can afford. And for some strange reason the man on the street is only offered those boring greys, blues and browns.
On the other extreme there's the gaudiness of Tams and Punjabis and suchlike. It'll be hard not to take pics of exotic India. Even I find it exotic! Taking Bollywood-inspired fashion images would probably be more disappointing.
Some bongs I've seen are fish-eyed. Tis a nice look.
I'll be interested to see what he gets over there. So much cool style from which to choose!
I remember being 100% pysched when I read that the Sart was going to be in Hong Kong... and crossing my fingers he might come to little Singapore. He didn't come, but it was still fun to think and hope.
I'm surprised India didn't have Topshop, seeing it is such a huge market.
Do you have H&M? Dottie and I are sorely missing H&M here in Singapore!
Stephie: No, we don't have H&M! Though I think they do some manufacturing here, so some of their stuff can be found in roadside markets. And believe me when I say we badly need Topshop! And any other chain that makes decent clothing here, really...M&S does not make the grade.
This shall be very interesting indeed!
Agreed, just a flick through the uninspired "exotic culture" india based shoots in Vogue make my head throb with boredom, but Scott will hit the nail on the head, I'm sure.
Can't wait to see the results..
Fish-eyed women? I looked at the comments but I couldn't see that ref. It doesn't sound very complimentary anyway - But how exciting that the Sart will be in India, I'm excited to see what he's going to find there.
ps. Thanks for the Mozilla tip, it worked!!!
oh wow! I hadn't checked the sart in ages, but this sounds so cool! I remember a looong while back he had some shots of some desi gathering in NY - it was slightly surreal to see all these sari-clad women featured on his site. But I agree with the other commentators - I really hope he doesn't just go for all the obvious exotic stuff - colourful saris fluttering coyly, wrinkly toothless grins in neon turbans and smiley happy kiddies. All of that has its place but it is such tedious oxfam-greeting card stuff. I'd really love to see a more insightful, contemporary glimpse of India, beyond the tourist board portraits.
wow, I'm so excited! I haven't been to India in so long, I have to do all my India-living vicariously.
Very exciting, a visit from Sart. I think he will do a good job, the same as he did in Hong Kong and other areas. He focused on good style--what he is known for.
I'm back to congratulate you on your great spot on the McQueen footwear! (:
Hmmm...it will be interesting to see what he comes up with on India, I'll be keeping an eye open for that. Thanks for the heads up.
I hope you blog about his visit and get to talk to him! And it's ridiculous that all the manufacturing happens in India, like the labor is exploited there, but Indian consumers are not considered a viable statistic in the global market...
I trust the Sartorialist, and I'm sure he'll bring up some good material that will be far from cliche and stereotyped images. Can't wait to see it!
Yohan: the lack of choice is exactly what I'm fed up of. It's not that people don't care, but when your options suck you generally take the best that you can get.
ENC: I have no doubt he'll find interesting things to shoot..
Discothequechic: I'm tired of those 'exotic India' Vogue shoots too (and Vogue India does even worse with those than other editions). However, The Sart isn't like that, which is why I have higher hopes of him.
Meg: it was there all right..Anon at 8:36 was the poster. Anyway, oldie Indian compliments are a bit bizarre in translation (walking like an elephant is a good thing in some books!), I think what they might have meant is that Bong women typically have big eyes. Kind of overkill, but still ok.
Headmistress: I remember that shoot too! by the looks of it, it seemed like an ISCKON gathering. And it was more than a little surreal.
The Clothes Horse: He does have a good eye, which is what I'm banking on here..it's just that streetstyle-wise, a lot here is pretty meh. Not all of it, though :)
Stephie: I couldn't tell whether they were juttis or mojris- but I'm glad it helped!
Bronwyn: I'm rather excited myself...
Riz: It all depends on just where he's going. If I'm not in the same city at the time, I won't get to attempt a meeting (though I definitely will try to, if possible). And yes, the lack of choice in the clothing sector is ridiculous. But then I read that Philip Green is planning to expand Topshop into India, so I can always hope.
Romeika: You know, it's only because it's the Sartorialist that I'm somewhat sure he'll find the good streetstyle (I must confess to being very curious aboutwhat he'll end up photographing..)
Fish-eyed? Yikes.
I had no idea he was going to be there. I'm excited to see what he comes up with, too. His photos from Hong Kong were definitely unexpected--he's obviously drawn to very classic elements and it was nice to see he stuck with that regardless of location. I'm excited to see what he focuses on.
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