HYDERABAD: Sartorial codes speak a lot about our personalities and fashion is a personality that we can buy. But, true artists wear free-spirited, norm-defying, highly expressive and frugal life on their sleeve -- they live a Bohemian lifestyle.
The words ‘boho’ or ‘boho-chic’ that we hear today in the fashion industry, are borrowed from ‘bohemia’, a philosophy associated with unorthodox or anti-establishment social viewpoints and voluntary poverty. In fashion, Bohemian philosophy reflects the free-spirited artistic personality.
According to city-based fashion designers and artists, we can always buy the boho personality, but the charm reflects when you earn it. “Designs made by artists, who put their heart and soul into the piece of fabric and stitches, are hard to re-produce,” says Asmita Marwa, a city-based fashion designer whose eclectic and vibrant avatar of Kalamkari took the fashion world by storm.
“I use fabric that I collected from different parts of the globe and the country. Some fabric is old and some new, I don’t stitch them away randomly like in a quilt. Each piece of fabric has got a place to complete the imagined look without any wastage. These are the pieces that cannot be mass-produced,” she says.
What we see in today’s boho-chic labels or designs lack that intimate, artistic touch, feels Asmita. Therefore, the look is retained, but the free-spirited charm is left behind. “Besides, people end up spending more to buy that bohemian-artist personality,” she adds.
Bohos typically use their apparel until worn out and try reusing them differently after they are tattered. “When in use, they style them differently they can use them as a blouse, an overcoat or as they wish. But, once it’s worn out, it can still be used in making another piece of cloth. So, there is maximal utility and zero waste, that’s exactly what we do at Sustainable Boho-chic label,” explains Asmita for whom sustainability is a concept close to her heart.
One has to be daring and free to make something out of nothing to live a non-traditional lifestyle. Dhanesh Lalita, who runs Terrassen Cafe, a vegan cafe at Film Nagar, lives a boho lifestyle. Every corner of his cafe reflects artistic expression and so does his sense of style. “I don’t buy denims. They cost somewhere around `2,000 to `4,000. Within that range, I can buy numerous pairs of cotton harem pants. They are much more comfortable and make me feel at ease. I wear whatever is comfortable and care little about the norms,” says Dhanesh, who built his cafe upon a dumpyard.