Were we employing the phrase ‘well-heeled’ all these years without realising that it is also synonymous with ‘high-heeled’, at least when it comes to women’s wear? The ongoing Cannes Film Festival in France controversially made the point upfront by shooing off women in flat shoes from the event recently. Back home, when we learned (or was it just a reminder?) that bureaucrats have to wear bandhgalas at official events, many of us were trying to recollect the last time we saw an IAS officer in that attire. It’s there in the rule book alright – a point that was made to two district collectors in Chhattisgarh, who were reprimanded for not wearing the formal attire while welcoming Prime Minister Narendra Modi to their district. Besides, one of the babus committed the ‘cardinal sin’ of shaking hands with Modi with his Ray Ban Aviator glasses on.
Though wearing dark shades is not accepted anywhere in the world, until it is a prerequisite for the job — say like those flying planes or driving cars or riding motorbikes or looking out for potential assailants who may pounce on the VVIP one is guarding – many people, particularly the youth, were aghast on social media that the bureaucrats were warned. So, are dress codes relevant? One of the Collectors made the point that it was not easy to put on a bandhgala when the sun was blazing at 40 degrees Celsius and got away with it. But then, no man can walk into a Chennai pub (those that call themselves Pub with a capital P) without closed shoes, even if the floater he wears is a Gucci.
And then there are dress codes that describe the profession — the legal’s black and white and the medical’s white apron – and give its practitioners a distinctive identity. Also, the IT and ITES industry employees reverentially wear their swipe cards around the neck visibly. In fact, we now see more MNCs insisting on uniform for their staff, not just those on the assembly line but for those in air-conditioned offices, too. Of course, many higher educational institutions enforce them as a rule. But do we really need dress codes? Express explores
Free speech, feminism, gay rights, ‘kiss of love’ — student demonstrations are part of college culture now with many wanting their voices to be heard not just within the campus but also outside. But, when it comes to dress codes in Chennai, many still remain conservative, preferring to play by the rules.
Recently, there was a debate on ‘provocative’ clothing on the campus after the Delhi University instructed students going on a college trip to avoid wearing skirts, shorts and ‘spaghetti’ tops. Such debates may not find enough resonance in Chennai, where not all students get permission to even wear jeans on the campus.
Vishvesh Raj, a former student recounts a time when he was asked to go back home because of unpolished shoes. “We had disciplinary committees and a HOD who would issue warnings to dress code breaches. No one had the nerve to talk back,” he adds. Harish S, a former engineering student, agrees. “Protests would happen if there is scope for students’ voices to gain traction. Here there is none.”
While students hesitate to protest, they keep complaining bitterly. “Next they will tell us what colour inners to wear!” declares one engineering student. She, like many other college-goers, detests the system she follows like clockwork. But like them, she also hastens to add, “but please don’t mention my name.”
Apart from ‘protecting girls’ that is often cited as the reason for dress codes, social acceptability too is another unwritten rule. “There is a social and economic status associated with dress. In Chennai, wearing western or ‘skimpy’ clothes are often perceived as culturally foreign, economically rich and socially ‘the other’. So people tend to blend in,” believes S Krishna, a liberal arts student, who has lived both in Chennai and Delhi.
With this ‘moderation’ in dressing prevailing in the city, colleges that do not have ‘strict’ dress codes too usually have students who choose not to cross that invisible barrier on unwritten dress codes. “We did not have a code in our college and could wear western clothes. But nobody I’ve seen has taken it to the extent of wearing something like shorts, because we are uncomfortable wearing them in the city,” says Divya N, a student. Those not too particular about dressing are also quite happy with Chennai not being all-too-modern. “In other cities, I’ve felt the pressure to dress well and be more stylish. I am glad this is not the way here,” says Dhanya R, an architecture student.
Discipline, uniformity and identification are usually the parameters the colleges quote for having dress codes. “Dress codes are not just for rearing students to a corporate lifestyle, it’s to enforce dignity. It is only a deviant five to ten per cent who want to rebel. The dress codes also to ensure safety — the people who campaign for these causes are usually from a better economic background and do not know the realities of travelling by bus or train,” says Uma Maheshwari, Head of the Department of Sociology, MOP Vaishnav College.
Economic equalisers too are also a reason why some prefer dress codes. “My daughter started asking for jeans and T-shirts after going to college and seeing her peers. It was too expensive for me. I would have preferred if they had a uniform,” says Mala, a domestic worker. Ranjani S, another parent, recounts how her daughter had received catcalls and whistles during a college function. “I used to find the dress code harsh. But when I went to the college with her once, I saw that the girls were receiving unwarranted ogles even with parents around, just because they were dressed in a western attire.” The invisible line, it appears, may not be easily broken as dress codes go beyond college rule books to perceptions of safety, status and cultural acceptance.
FACTFILE
Uniforms were first worn in England in the 16th century by children of low social status. The reason: Mass production of uniforms costs only a fraction of regular clothes
In Japan, school uniforms are called Seikufu. They are fashioned after European style navy uniforms
Nazi Germany never saw any school uniforms for children
In the United State, it is believed that school uniforms help reduce crimes
In South Korea, Municipal Education Department has enacted a Student’s
Rights Act, which include freedom of hairstyle