You might have heard the term androgynous fashion floating around on social media but what does androgyny really mean? Androgyny essentially means blurring the lines between what is considered the masculine and the feminine.
It is a way of understanding gender outside the traditional binaries. While the concept is nothing new to the 21st century, it seems to cause as much controversy today as it did back in the day when designers Coco Chanel and Yves Saint Laurent made pants and tuxedos for women more than a 100 years ago.
Earlier this year, Bollywood actor Ranveer Singh was brutally trolled on Twitter for wearing heeled boots. This is because fashion is intrinsically linked to our identity, and dressing styles have been imposed based on binary genders for the longest time. And even though women wearing menswear-inspired clothing is accepted, if not lauded, the same courtesy is not always extended to the boys.
But celebrities like Harry Styles, Justin Bieber and Billy Porter as well as big brands like Gucci and Sabyasachi are a part of a move towards a new direction.
One Directioner Harry Styles is the pop culture icon for gender non-conforming style. From ruffled sleeves and romantic pinks to a full-blown ballerina look, Styles is not afraid of embracing his feminine side.
In India, actors like Ranveer Singh, Jim Sarbh, brothers Aparshakti and Ayushmann Khurana often play with feminine silhouettes and gender-neutral styling without boarding the full cross-dresser train.
Addressing the rising demand for clothes that defy boundaries, many young labels say they now focus on silhouettes and fabrics rather than the gender of the person who will wear them. Brands like Huemn, Bloni, NorBlack NorWhite and Bobo Calcutta all want to envision a future of fashion where there are no gendered sections in a clothing shop.
International behemoth Gucci is the world leader in making androgynous garments. So much so, that you’d be hard-pressed to call out conventional genders of even the models featured in Gucci ads.
Boarding a similar train, Sabyasachi also recently featured a male model wearing a delicate sequinned gold-bronze slip dress but it wasn’t without ruffling some feathers.
While the nasty trolling can’t be ignored, social media has also given a platform for people to express their individual definitions of gender. Influencers like Alok V Menon, Arka Patra, Dr Trinetra Haldar, Pushpak Sen and many, many more are shattering stereotypes about gendered dressing, one Instagram post at a time.
Displaying your true identities isn’t always easy and more so in the age of social media, where your every move is scrutinised by the public. We applaud these icons for pushing the general public to change the way we wear, advertise and discuss fashion.
Here’s hoping that one day, expressing yourself wouldn’t be considered the greatest rebellion.