Fit Check: Looks change, Style endures

CONSIDER FASHION AS a mirror to the times and it feels hardly surprising that some of the most pressing First-World problems of modern living are already on the season’s runway agenda—from Ozempic skinny to looksmaxxing. Some de­signers are now putting popular looksmaxxers like Clavicular and Bryan Johnson on the catwalk, Amer­ican Psycho’s Patrick Bateman—the poster child for the community—inspires A-list designers, and there is an undercurrent mood and look to collections and shows that feels undeniably hyper-masculine. In the lexicon of looksmaxxing, fashion becomes more than just a pursuit of dressing well. It is a tool for optimisation—clothing choices driven by how they emphasise and elevate optimisation the body, and the social standing they signal for their wearers.

But fashion’s self-expression reaches far beyond the calculated, algorithmic ideals of looksmaxxing. Its power is exerted in the very act of dressing up. Whether they resort to extreme lengths for the sake of vanity or not, men are certainly putting thought and time into their clothes—and owning their looks more than ever before. There is diversity in men’s fashion and a keen understanding that style is not limited to a single standard.

Take, for instance, the Indian fashion ecosystem where menswear has bloomed from a fringe catego­ry to a market force. Indian men have conventionally not been known for their sartorial skills—historically armed with little more than blue shirts and a classic dark suit, a smattering of t-shirts and denim for lei­sure dressing, and that single item of Indianwear to be recycled through weddings and festivities. These are old jokes now, when even your neighbourhood uncle dabbles in colour and the market is flush with options for every sort of fashionable man.

The menswear boom has led to a number of parallel moves in the Indian market. On one hand, there is an array of international menswear brands, from ultra-luxe to high street, which have set up shop in the country. On the other, there is the emergence of a robust homegrown fashion industry. Even as some labels and designers dedicate themselves solely to men, others who have only designed for women in the past are turning their attention to this new opportunity. It’s worth noting that among the wave of Indian labels making their mark internationally, many focus entirely on men’s fashion.

And, there’s a staggering variety of fashion to choose from. For every sharp suit and classic band­hgala, there is also a streetwear embedded with the codes of youthful dressing. There are weddingwear ensembles with enough sparkle to give brides a run for their money and cocktail fashion that adds a dose of party fervour to occasionwear. For the crafts-con­scious man—a growing tribe of consumers—India’s handloom-forward labels are tailoring looks that ground contemporary fashion in cultural storytelling. And, then there are gender-neutral and unisex designs that designers increasingly turn to—turning the very notion of conventional menswear on its head.

Pop culture and social media are also fuelling the Indian man’s penchant for dressing up. Fashion is serious business for male influencers and digital creators, and nothing is too maximalist or too outré when it comes to creating a viral look—be it a fuchsia pantsuit, oversized flared trousers and sheer shirts, or an anarkali jacket. Movie stars too are joining the style wagon, their promotional events and Instagram grids packed with photographs featuring luxury labels, edgy streetwear and Indian designerwear. The impact of influencers and celebrities, combined with the abundance of market offerings, has sparked a desire among men to find their own form of fashion expres­sion. They are willing to research fashion, browse the market, dress up and find pleasure in it.

Here lies the real disruption, in the very act of honing a sense of style. It takes good taste, patience, self-confidence and a fair bit of shopping. But a well-dressed man is guaranteed to turn heads. The best part: it’s nowhere near as intense as jaw-smashing.