Meher Varma | delhi fashion week

Meher Varma. Anthropologist/Fashion writer.

What do you do and where did you grow up?
I’m a graduate student and an anthropologist in the making. I grew up in lots of different places — Dhaka, Hong Kong, Beijing, LA, NY, Kodai, DC.

What’s the best thing about constantly moving?
It opens your mind. You are constantly re-introduced to new people and you have to reinvent yourself all the time. Things are temporary, there is a sense of influx, it prepares you for the world.

I am going to ask you a question that I am asked often: What do you think about Indian fashion?
When someone asks me this question I always ask them what do they mean by it and I twist it to ‘What do you think about fashion in India?’ Indian fashion as Indian fashion is very restrictive and we should see it as fashion in India.

I think fashion in India is a lens to see what’s happening in the country on a larger level. Without talking about all of the other things like class, modernity, economy, social/political issues we can not talk about fashion in India. When we say where is fashion in India going we are actually asking where India is going.

How did you get interested in writing about fashion?
I sensed a serious lack of analytical writing about clothes, designers, and the industry. I think clothes are never just clothes, they’re always elucidating something else. So with a background in anthropology, which gives me the tools for deep analysis, I thought fashion was a perfect subject to start asking some very tough questions and writing about them.

I’m interested in writing about fashion only as long as it elucidates something else about the world. My phD dissertation in anthropology is an example of this. I’m looking at the cultural industry of New Delhi based fashion designers as a lens to look into large issues like changing ideas of gender and class.

Do you have a favourite film?
I have watched Almost Famous 86 times. I liked the theme — crisis of fame, and the soundtrack.

Photographed at fashion week in Delhi. 2013

1980, woman in the mirror | wearabout vintage

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c. 1982 | #ooty #tamilnadu . Via @mehadavey . . To participate, tag & use #wearaboutvintage. Do include some info about the photograph(year/place + anything else of relevance) #fashion #1980s #vintagephoto #vintagestyle #wearaboutblog #india

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Lachic | delhi

Tell me something about yourself.
I’m from Ladakh. I am obsessed with wearing all white. My favourite film is Ghibli’s Kaguya Hime no monogatari. Stereophonics’ Maybe Tomorrow is my morning song. I am fluent in Japanese. My name means one angel in Ladakhi, it was given to me by my parents, and Rigzin Wangmo was given to me by a head monk. I have a pet rabbit who acts like a pup.

What’s the best thing about Ladakh?
It’s so quiet at night that you can hear the leaves move and the sound of water stream from my room.

Tell me more about the rabbit.
He’s called Tashi. He has a balcony full of plants all to himself. We’ve made toys out of cardboard boxes for him to play with. I’m also getting a tunnel made for him.

You know you can train them and apparently you can also teach them to play hide and seek.

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Hauz Khas Village, Delhi. October 2015.

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women in florals | Rajasthan

Rajasthani women at the Pushkar festival.

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Pushkar, October 2014.

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Women at a Funeral | Imphal

Traditional dressing. Women at a funeral. Imphal, Manipur. 2015.

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sentilila | Dimapur

Tell me something about yourself.
I’m a science student and just an everyday girl who loves reading, food, and clothes.

Do you have a favorite book and what are you currently reading?
I read mostly bad boy stories from Wattpad. So no favourites really.
Currently reading ‘I sold myself to the devil for Vinyls, Pitiful I know’. It’s not as cliché as it sounds.

Are there any words or phrases that you use the most?
‘Oh my God!’, ‘Like seriously?’ I gasp at almost everything.

What’s the best part about your life in Kohima?
The weather!

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2015. Dimapur, Nagaland.

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1960, Bombay Schoolgirls| wearabout vintage

Two school going girls.
c. 1960. Bombay, India.

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“This photo is of my mother and her sister(in their mid teens) from the late 1960s. It was taken inside a flat in a heritage building in this area called Prarthna Samaj where many Gujarati merchants had initially settled and when Bombay was still being made.

My mom is the one in a pinafore at the back. She is a very strong woman. She went from wearing minis to wearing ghunghats to raising 3 kids on her own and now she works as a jewellery designer.”

– Sent in by Isha

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Denim things | wearabout x Javed Khan

Carol & Thinley in menswear by Javed Khan // skirt: Anuj Bhutani

// more photos here

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Woman selling flowers at the flower market

Woman selling flowers at the Dadar flower market.

Mumbai. September 2015.

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Aien Jamir | dimapur

How was your childhood like?
I remember being one of the boys as I grew up with three brothers in the house. I grew up in a small town called Chumukedima near Dimapur.

What do you do?
Blogging.

What’s the hardest thing about blogging?
Location scouting for photo shoots.

What are you wearing?
Head to toe: thrifted
Sling bag: Zara

What are you currently listening to?
Jessie Ware – Say You Love Me

What’s the best thing you saw on internet this week?
Stage makeup tips on how to use makeup to look like a man.

Who cuts your hair?
Usually my friends. Whoever is around. This time my friend Temsuna cut for me.

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Dimapur, Nagaland. January 2015.

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pur & asano | dimapur

Where are you from?
We are from Dimapur, Nagaland.

What do you do?
Pur: Freelance interior decorator & event planner
Asano: I am a graphic designer & an entrepreneur.

What’s your favorite word?
P: Effervescent- I don’t know why!
A: Mush.

How would you describe your style?
P: Comfort & functional. Don’t know if theres a word for that. I wear what I feel like everyday.
A: A mix of classic and trendy I guess. I like some trendy styles but need them in black or white. That, and a bit of gold accessories. I say “a bit”, people say “a lot”.

Do you have any fashion icons?
P: No.
A: None, really. Maybe I lean towards what K-pop artistes wear.

What’s the best part about your life in Dimapur?
P: Family & friends. I cannot function without them.
A: The best part would be the security. I’m around family, friends, and working in the place I grew up and that familiarity is reassuring.

What song/band are you currently listening to?
P: I’m listening to a lot of K-pop lately like Big Bang, 2ne1. Bits of Tori kelly and Leroy Sanchez.
A: What Do You Mean? by Justin Bieber. Oriental Dream by Shalo Kent. (It’s not released yet.)

What was your last weekend like?
P: I don’t remember much. My head hurts thinking about it.
A: Work filled. Decorated a Ninja themed party and worked on a magazine design till 3 am.

What places do you recommend to hang at in Dimapur?
P: Upstairs for drinks & Tom Yum Goong for food- the chicken wings & liver chilly is amazing.
A: There’s not much to do but after dark – Upstairs and Hooligans.

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Dimapur, January 2015.

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Dayanita Singh | fashion week

Dayanita Singh. Outside pero show.

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Fashion week, Delhi. October 2014.

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Tibetan Pangden | dharamsala

Tibetan women in Pangden — “a striped apron worn around the waist by married Tibetan women. It is usually made from three colorful columns of cloth sewn together. The stripes identify their home area and village.”

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Mcleodganj, March 2015.

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Kuluvelu | kohima

Likes junk food, anime, and Bruno Mars.

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Kohima, December 2012.

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Amen | dimapur

Tell me something about yourself.
I am a baker by profession. I also teach children at church. I love food. I am faith & family driven. I live each day as it comes and I’m not worried about tomorrow.

What kind of music do you like? 
I like classical symphonies of Beethoven, Mozart, Erik Satie, John Kraemer, Yiruma, etc.

Do you have any favourites?
Gymnopedie by Erik Satie. Four Seasons by  Vivaldi.

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Dimapur, January 2015.

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Rixi | fashion week

Where are you from?
Bombay.

What do you do?
I am a Fashion Designer.

What are you wearing?
Quirk Box AW14 Jacket. Levi’s Jeans. Nike Shoes.

Who were your favourite designers at LFW this season?
ka – sha by Karishma Shahani

What are you currently listening to?
zaz – les passants

What are you up to this weekend?
Eat. Run. Sleep. Repeat.

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Lakme Fashion week, Mumbai.

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ig | twitter

Sharon | dharamsala

Likes lemon curd cake, Russia, and Sunlight.

Dharamshala, 2015.

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ig | twitter

hair of a drokpa woman

Hair of a drokpa woman. Generally speaking.

July 2014. Leh, Ladakh.

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ig | twitter

Shweta Kapur | fashion week

“I am sometimes shy sometimes not. I have an attention span of 5 minutes. I like listening to extremely loud music while getting ready. I drink a lot of coffee. I like a messy work space and I’m a little obsessed with my phone.”
— Shweta Kapur, Designer(431-88)

What kind of music are you into?
The XX, Florence and the Machine, Röyksopp.

What are you currently listening to?
Summer by Calvin Harris. I need a new song.

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Fashion week, Delhi. October 2014.

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ig | twitter

normcore indian fashion

Woman in sari.

Pushkar, Rajasthan. November 2014.

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ig | twitter

Young Ladakhi Girls | Leh Market

Young Ladakhi girls.

Leh, Ladakh. July 2014.

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ig | twitter

Imsu | art of the trench

Imsu.  Likes Chet Faker & The Kooks.

Photographed in Delhi in November 2011 for Burberry.

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ig | twitter

Working Class Woman in Ladakh

Working class woman.

Leh, Ladakh. July 2014.

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1970, Manipuri Bride | wearabout vintage

A Manipuri bride in Potloi — the Manipuri wedding attire. c. 1970. Imphal, Manipur.

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“That’s my aunt in Potloi.” –Sent in by Dolly

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ig | twitter

90 year old Ladakhi woman

90 year old Ladakhi woman.

Leh, Ladakh. July 2014.

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ig | twitter

Mercy & Kuvelu | fashion week

Mercy & Kuvelu(Tetseo Sisters) in péro.

Fashion week, Delhi. October 2014.

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ig | twitter

1980, Dimapur | wearabout vintage

Naga women in their early 20s.
c. 1980. Dimapur, Nagaland.

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“First photo is of my mom Aien(r) and her friend Akumla taken in the early 80s somewhere in Nagarjan in Dimapur.

Second photo is of my mom(l) and her friend Amen sometime in the late 70s. This was taken while on the way to their tuition classes.

My mom works as an assistant teacher now.”

– sent in by Temsuna

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ig | twitter

85 year old Mizo woman

Chalziki, 85. Likes watching WWE & Korean films on tv. Spends her time mostly cooking and working in the house garden.

2013, Aizawl.

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ig | twitter

1954, Shillong | wearabout vintage

A newly married Naga couple.
1954. Shillong, Meghalaya.

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“This photo of newly married Obu and Azao is from 1954 in Shillong where Obu was posted as the Assistant Commissioner for Scheduled Castes and Tribes.

Azao (Mrs Metongla Aier) now nearing 92, was the first lady evangelist among the Ao Naga tribe.
Obu (late Mr Sashimeren Aier) was the first MA among the Nagas. He was also known as the Architect of Modern Nagaland.
Azao now lives in Shillong. They are my mom’s parents.”

— sent in by Sirawon

wearabout x Anuj Bhutani

//* clothes: Anuj Bhutani  //* model: Ritu Chauhan

November 2014, Delhi.