Silhouettes of Indian Style (I)

A classic Indian silhouette that is as impossible to separate from its fashion timeline as Chicken Curry is from its culinary culture – the Bandhgala is literally a close-necked, cut-collar jacket mostly worn long, over crisp cotton pyjamas, churidars or pants.

Spotted on debonair actors and daunting villains alike from 1940’s – the silhouette was famously adopted by the country’s Prime Minster, Jawahar Lal Nehru in the 1960’s, earning it the eponymous title of the Nehru Jacket. Nehru wore it to great effect with a trademark rose tucked into the front button.

 If Cary Grant and Fred Astaire can be credited to carrying Saville Row’s Lounge suit to fame in 1940’s America – Raj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar and Sanjeev Kumar can be credited to bringing it into mainstream Indian fashion. 

Worn slightly oversized, with padded shoulders in the 50’s, the Suit in all its avatars - as a 3 piece suit, or a double–breasted suit, and with all its separates- the Jacket, or the Waistcoat  – has always epitomized international flair. The Jacket or Coat often in Tweed when worn over Jodhpuri breeches once again flipped its western counterpart to become exclusive to Indian style and spirit. The Combination Coat or the Tweed Coat worked its way into almost every Indian wardrobe as a semi-formal attire, reserving pride of formal place for the Lounge Suit. 

The Suit that went Rogue. Safari suits, as the name suggests, were versions that came about for going on a Safari. The silhouette found unparalleled favour with Indian actors. As it allowed a whole gamut of action, and offered the actor the flexibility of performing stunts, jumping off trees, mountains or serenading his love interest – all while looking perfectly impeccable!

Worn differently by villains and heroes the Safari Suit was a Jacket and Trouser of matching light-weight fabric, with extra pockets, epaulets and loops, and a self-belt all finished with a double-stitched detail. Worn famously in the 1970’s  by Roger Moore’s portrayal of Bond and Dharmendra, who favoured it in rugged Khaki to heartthrob Rishi Kapoor in Bobby who favoured it in an electric green – the Safari Suit has never failed to delight. While many actors may have contributed to its iconoclastic status, Dev Anand’s version - belted, with a cravat or polka dotted scarf is possibly the most memorable. 

The international silhouette of the 70’s, snug fit printed shirts with wide collars or velour jackets with wide lapels worn over seriously flared pants worked its way into Indian film and was immortalized by stars like Amitabh Bachchan, Vinod Khanna, Dharmendra and Shashi Kapoor. The latter being styled by his wife Jennifer Kendall for almost all his films, overriding his personal offscreen preference for white Kurta Pyjamas. 

Song and dance never go out of fashion in Indian Cinema. The 80’s Hero, in tight fitting boot-cut pants, capped sleeve T-shirts, sleeveless leather jackets or even electrified leather ensembles made moves that few mortals can rival. 

The Leather Jacket also known as the Bomber Jacket originated for the use of Aviators and Military personnel in the 1920’s. While its primary purpose was keeping the cold out, it soon became the generic for sub-cultures in the west where it was worn by bikers, punk stars and rockstars.

The leather jacket became the epitome of “cool” when it was adopted by film stars like Gary Cooper, Marlon Brando, Harrison Ford and Tom Cruise from the 1950’s to 1990’s. 

The arrival of stars like Ranveer Singh, Ranbir Kapoor, Ayushmaan Khurana, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Vicky Kaushal, Varun Dhawan has reconstructed reality.

While the current silhouttes favour the anti-fit, with hoodies like those worn by Ranveer in Gully Boy (2019)– the jacket makes a come back with The Bomber Jacket, worn plain or printed.