Wearing a colourful sarong doesn't make us aliens: Northeast designers

Their bold fashion sense has often made northeasteners the victims of racism, but designers at the North East Festival aim to sensitise the mainstream population to their unique style of dressing.
How many times have you looked at a northeastern girl in the Metro or on the streets and mentally noted her style statement which made her stand out in the crowd? Quite a few times, we assume.But northeasterners tell us that their fashion sense often make them objects of ridicule with people accusing them of wearing weird or provocative clothes. We spoke to performers and fashion designers at the ongoing North East Festival in the city about how the northeastern people, whose fashion sense some admire and others use as ammunition to stereotype them, have merged the traditional with the contemporary to find their unique style of dressing.
IT'S FASHIONABLE, NOT PROVOCATIVE
The designers at the festival tell us that western influence plays a big role in the way people from the northeast dress, and that, coupled with their traditional colourful clothes, makes them different from the way mainstream people dress. Designer Arita Kashyap from Assam says, “People from main land India are quite fashionable, as are people from northeast india. Yes, back home people are more western in terms of culture and use a lot more colours. And that, combined with our looks, makes people perceive us as firangs and we're stared at and ridiculed. Hopefully, educating the country with fashion shows like the ones in this festival will help change that perception, as people learn about our culture and fashion sense.“
Designer Dhiraj Deka, who is also from Assam, says, “Fashion has no rule.People from the northeast like to wear a lot of colours, and maybe people from other parts of the country don't get that concept.Northeasterners are quite fashionable and the way they talk and look and dress up, it is all very different, and hence northeastern people are ridiculed. But it's wrong to accuse people from the northeast of wearing weird or provocative clothes. I mean, it's just a lot of colours. What's the harm in that?“ Adds designer Yana Ngoba from Arunachal Pradesh, “I don't mind being called chinki if the intention is not bad. But if a northeastern person living in Delhi or any other metro city decides to wear a colourful sarong, people look at the person as if she was an alien! Maybe when people come and see the kind of clothes showcased in the fashion shows at the festival, they'll know that we are just fashionable and not `dressing weirdly'. And the violence and discrimination will decrease.“
“People from the northeast are very western as opposed to ethnic fashion sense prevalent in the rest of the country . I think that, combined with the fact that we look different, leads people in metro cities to perceive us as foreigners! We aren't identified as Indian citizens by the rest of the country due to this combination, which also makes us objects of ridicule.This festival might help people understand the fashion sense of the people from the northeast ­ that we are very contemporary while working with traditional fabrics. Meanwhile, the only thing we can do is ignore the taunts,“ says LD Rosylyn Konshai from Manipur.Shyamkanu Mahanta, the or ganiser of the North East Festival agrees. “This festival has been developed so that all such acts of racial discrimination stop. I hope that when people come and see the northeastern culture and where the roots of fashion in the northeast emerge from, then the violence and racial discrimination will go down.“
WHO'S THE MOST STYLISH OF THEM ALL?
Well, according to these designers, people from the northeast are the winners when it comes to fashion. “The northeast is the most fashionable region in India. All the western styles that have come into India started in the northeast! People back home are very particular about their fashion sense and strictly follow international fashion. They use a lot of colours, which makes their wardrobe very vibrant. People from Delhi, Mumbai and other cities might think twice if their ensemble has a bunch of colours, but people from the northeast actually use a lot of colours in their clothing, hair, etc,“ says Payal Oshan Goswami from Assam, whose collection comprises traditional patterns and material from three Assamese tribes with a contemporary touch. “The fashion industry back home is growing rapidly and more people are getting inspired to get into this line,“ she adds. But she was also in awe of the Dilliwallahs' fashion. “People in Delhi are very up to date with their fashion too.“ Says Rosylyn, who has a collection of palazzos comprising contemporary Manipuri fabric and traditional patterns. “Men and women back home are very hip.They know what's happening beyond Bollywood and their fashion icons are mostly international. Even with a low income, we mix and match and fix something together, which may look strange to people, but if you know how to carry it, then it works.“ Adds Arita, “The difference in the fashion sense lies in the material used. In northeastern states, most clothes are in silk and cotton, but in other parts of India, like Delhi, you will die in silk in summer! But Delhi girls can definitely adapt to fashion very quickly and so it's a good market for us.“
THE KOREAN TOUCH
“People from the northeast are very colourful, experimental and even daring with their clothes. And back home, there is a lot of Korean influence in the way people dress. Maybe it's because we look similar and so, people from the northeast can relate to people from Korea more than the rest of India,“ adds Bani from The Vinyl Records, a band from the northeast, known for their music and style.
“Back home people watch a lot of Korean sitcoms and movies. So, there is a lot of Korean influence in terms of how people dress and their hairstyles.Fashion isn't about the clothes, it's about whether you can carry it, and people from the northeast can pull off colourful and vibrant clothes,“ says Rinzing Bhutia from Sikkim, whose collection comprises the eight lucky symbols as motifs.Agrees Roslyn, “Fashion in the northeast is more Korean than ethnic like in mainland India.People back home watch a lot of international television, like Korean programmes, as opposed to saas-bahu sagas primarily because people aren't well-versed in Hindi. So, we pick up fashion trends from abroad.“
GOING TRADITIONAL
The fashion shows in the festival have a lot of traditional designs with a modern twist. But the northeast has a different sense of traditional fashion from the rest of the country .Dhiraj Deka tells us, “I worked in Delhi and Mumbai, but decided to go back to Assam because the northeast has a lot of handloom products and we get a lot of raw material here. I use a lot of Muga silk, which is pleasant to wear all year round and comfortable as well as good to work with.“Adds Pushpa Chaube from Meghalaya, “I have taken the three tribes of the state ­ Khasi, Garo and Jantia ­ and used shades of red, white and black to represent their traditional patterns.“
Yana Ngoba from Arunachal Pradesh has used hen feathers in her jewellery pieces and headgear. “I have incorporated traditional motifs like the feathers in my collection.“ She jumped on to the fashion wagon when she learnt how to make her own jewellery from her mother. “In Arunachal, everyone makes their own jewellery and clothes. It's a habit to do all this yourself back home,“ she adds.
For all those who complain about a sari being too difficult to handle, Arita Kashyap from Assam has infused the sari with northeastern elements. “My collection comprises of a twopiece sari, which is a more hassle-free sari, with an Assamese touch to it. I want to bring it to the national platform.“