Commercials on television channels, advertisements in magazines and newspapers and hoardings across cities are all abuzz with the style savvy woman who wishes to sport a striking look that will see her through her times. No other decade has ever seen such a dazzling array of style and glamour. Trend and fashion have always attracted women, but earlier when it all looked farfetched, a domain reserved for models, today its flavors have been incorporated by women in all spheres. The extent and degree of this incorporation may vary, in persons and societies, but there is a marked desire in the modern woman to break free from the norm, and let her fun side out to play the time in a bit of glamour. However, as modernity outruns the conventional and trend obliterates the passe, it is seen that there is a defragmentation of the traditional, that paves the way for novelty. The process, which is often insensitive to the valued, sadly sees vanity vanquishing modesty.
Feminism is indeed an eclectic blend of beauty and charm, coupled with grace and poise, embraced with a marvelous fearlessness in the face of adversity. The possessor of this unique ability to nurture and nourish all she touches, is after all, God’s own Eve in Paradise. For, as she yields herself, she becomes an yield, this time of the world of trends, glamour and lifestyle that effervesces with its varied objet d’art.
The emancipated woman, as she peeps out of her snug enclave, is conscious of her affinity towards all things bright and beautiful. There are times when vanity overrules her sincere pleasures of everyday living, and she finds it alluring to shed her plain Jane looks and adopt a style that compliments her. This is when her dresser desires leading brands like Estee Lauder, Givenchy, Lancôme, Chanel and Yves Saint Laurent. Her fashion books speak of Vinci, Gucci, Prada, Versace and Alexander MacQueen. As the professional fashionista swirls in her work wear or a casual evening wear, her style file remains incomplete without accessories from Aldo, Nine West or Louis Vuitton. Her fetish shoe collection gives her a stride that says she is good to rule. She gets gorgeous with sumptuous fragrances, delicate body lotions, invigorating shower gels and rich hand creams. As she finds it hard to resist those Chanel earrings, the Tiffany's love band or the Cartier watch, the shopaholic monster within her coupled with her heightened level of brand awareness literally pushes the modern day Eve into an addiction for lifestyle patterns. The financial jargon like recession and pay cuts seldom affect her and the soaring gold rate does not dissuade her from her romantic association with jewellery.
As she celebrates her sparkling looks with scintillating outfits, accessories and well crafted jewellery, and enjoys a sophisticated style with passion, the ever watchful Adam wonders if this embellished woman is his ‘object of desire’ or the ‘desire of objects’.
The world of fashion that seeks its muse in the fairer sex brings out a creation that adds a host of feisty ways to break the monotone look. As the woman moves in an egalitarian society, her intrinsic beauty coupled with her warmth and intelligence, certainly become her benchmark as she pairs basics with a little modernity and mayhem to create a whole new look about herself. Even those who veer away from vanity do certainly agree that presentation matters. In such an age, a positive outlook draped in an assortment of visible hues, colorful patterns and an outburst of style, scores, if not wins.
Nonetheless, it would be inconclusive without mentioning that vanity becomes horrifyingly vain when it fails to integrate the soul with the spectacle. Any celebration of style, trend and vogue, is merely an adornment of physical beauty that is, after all, superfluous. The discovery of the simplicity that lies buried within us is the true essence of beauty. It is most comforting to live with the bare and unadorned, than to suffocate with a style that scrapes benevolence, a quality that needs no embellishments at all. It feels blissful to be a part of the genre that remains ignorant of the bold and glaring world of glamour and fashion. Much as, we celebrate style and outward beauty, we do completely realize that our need to celebrate the humanity within us is by far the greatest. Perhaps the most befitting conclusion to this piece would be the words of Yves Saint Laurent, the grand maestro of the twentieth century design, “Over the years I have learnt that what is most important in a dress is the woman who is wearing it.”
