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Fashion distress
The universe at her feet — and she fainted! There’s a new twist to the tyranny of fashion, as the newly-crowned Miss Universe, Zuleyka Rivera Mendoza fainted during the contest. According to the pageant representative Lark Anton, “She got dizzy as her dress was tight.”
Her fainting episode has stirred a debate on fashion distress. Should women in glamour say no to fashion that makes them uncomfortable? “Yes,” says Indian designer Rina Dhaka. “Wearing a metal dress can be extremely uncomfortable and heavy. It seems the girl had starved herself to fit into her outfit. We must say no to fashion distress which takes toll on your nerves and body.”
In fact, the history of fashion lists various examples, where women experience extreme discomfort due to an outfit. Says choreographer Harmeet Bajaj, “Models and girls in showbiz have to cope with all kinds of fashion distress. It’s not just physical but emotional, as well. If you look back, during the World War II, when stockings went out of stock, women started painting their legs. Japanese women wore Obi belts around their waists that barely allowed them to breathe. They also wore shoes which were raised wooden clogs.”
Internationally, catwalk models have been protesting against designers who create uncomfortable clothes. Some models like Erin O’Connor, who opened John Galliano’s Christian Dior collection and accomplished table tennis player Iris Palmer and heiress Jasmine Guinness, have agreed to hang up their kitten heels. Former Miss Universe contestant, Amrita Thapar says, “There’s so much pressure when you participate: we have to wear tight outfits, look slim and wear pointed shoes. There’s every reason for distress. Why, even Japanese geishas wore shoes smaller than their size.”
‘Wearing a metal dress can be extremely uncomfortable and heavy. It seems the girl had starved herself to fit into her outfit. We must say no to fashion distress which takes toll on your nerves and body,’ says designer Rina Dhaka
In Greece, girls were swaddled in cloth from birth. From the age of six months, their arms and legs were bound in swaddling cloths restricting their movement and keeping limbs straight. Adolescent Greek girls were forced to keep trim. Their mothers used woolen bands to keep the developing body slim.
Right now, there’s a quiet movement against fashion distress. In fact, Bay Garnett, contributing editor of Vogue and editor of Cheap Date agrees, “We’re against creating physical discomfort by the wearing of uncomfortable clothes in fashion.” Indian Designer Suneet Varma disagrees, “Women wear elaborate wedding outfits coupled with chunky jewellery. But they don’t faint.”
Internationally, supermodels like Kate Moss have been accused of starving themselves to get a certain look. In fact, anorexia is one of the biggest causes of fashion distress. That’s the reason some of the global catwalk models have been protesting against designers who promote the waif-thin look and uncomfortable clothing.
Says designer Ritu Kumar of India, “It’s a very competitive world. I must admit Miss Puerto Rico wore a stunning gown. I recall in 1994, when Aishwarya Rai and Sushmita Sen created history after winning the pageants, one of the judges for Miss India from Finland remarked, ‘Indians need to put more professional effort into their outfits.’ Since then, we’ve become professional with our fittings and ensure there’s no fashion distress.”
— Dawn/Times of India news service
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