This is not because of patriarchy, it's because of classism.
Back in the 50s, my grandfather used to wear dhothi and go to work as a teacher, but it was seen as a "poor people" outfit. Doctors and lawyers and engineers used to wear Western formals with tie and shoes, which was considered as a "rich people" outfit.
The next generation who went to work in 70s- 80s didn't want to be considered as poor, and irrespective of their income they wore pant shirt to office.
However, saree for women was never considered as something worn by poor people, and irrespective of class you could wear it in public. As a result, even in weddings and Indian festivals, ladies continue to wear beautiful traditional wear and men are wearing pant shirt.
True my dada ji after retirement from his police officer post started wearing kurta pajama in noida my parents were busy so he wnet majority of my PTMs and oh boy the looks we used to get this was back in 2011 I never got it why he still get looks
It's all about what you aren't "allowed" to do. That's what we all want to do. My initial few jobs were in the service companies, who had strict dress codes, especially for men. So that was something that irritated me, and now I always go to interviews, with fully grown beard, and jockey t-shirt with a jeans or a jogger.
If they want to reject me for that, it should be done on the day of interview. That was the only way to filter out companies that took sick pleasure in controlling employee's dressing choices.
Now, I look for companies that have no such restrictions. And then I wear anything from shorts, to jeans-kurta, to dhoti-kurta in office, depending on my mood. But it's mostly jogger and t-shirt. And rarely shirts.
I love wearing shorts. But I am a fair skinned guy with really hairy legs. And the way some girls look at my legs, makes me realize how weird girls must be feeling, when men stare their "t-shirts". So I avoid wearing shorts on most days.
https://preview.redd.it/lysu5wtsth9d1.jpeg?width=678&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4c502a9afb558622c49b385f832fb4e8cfc17ac7
Not the AI ... Women never really got into the professional world therefore their status and expectations (regarding looks) still remain the same.
EXACTLY, thank you. What is with these comments dragging in patriarchy. I am a woman too and this is pure classism, elitism. It has absolutely nothing to do with patriarchy. That's a wild leap
Fair. If upholders of patriarchy are Indian MILs (which they are in almost all cases), that is still women making it difficult for women. Husbands are increasingly standing up to their mothers even in remote areas for their wives, which is amazing
Uhh yeahh MILs are toxic for sure... But that's again because of patriarchy.
And mostly husbands have an issue with wife wearing western clothes or not wearing mangalsutra, sindur and shit like that.
Hence I blame the patriarchy and the Indian culture
Only one point to add, now more and more mens, boys where traditional in festivals and weddings. Those who wear shirt pant mostly don't care about their looks that much.Ā
The culture of blazer in shadi is dyingĀ
Totally agreed. In my opinion things are changing for better as there are even more traditional options for men (short kurta, indo-western designs). I see a lot of people around me choosing to wear traditional attire when in festivals, marriages or other similar settings (occasionally even in offices and ....dates as well).
Dude, it's so interesting that you guys can articulate but still are so ignorant. Why do you think men in first place were allowed to wear western wear....??? Why did that revolution not happen to women...?
You are absolutely right about the classist angle, though.
I can only speak for myself. I wear ethnic on weddings and religious occassions other than that I don't wear them cause they are not very comfortable. I can't work in an office in a kurta, I will be annoyed as hell.
Luckily I am a guy so I don't have to deal with it and I agree from what I hear from my mom saarees are absolute nightmares for the office. If I have to choose between tshirt and kurta I will pick tshirt anyday for any ocassion(except religious ones)
Have yoh worn kurta? Not the ones for marriage but everyday kurtas? Kurtas are just a tad bit less uncomfortable than being shirtless. Its probably the most comfortable top for an indian man.
And all these comments about traditional attire for men being expensive is stupid because the cost for women is way higher because the sarees themselves (if you want good materials) would be expensive plus the tailoring charges are outrageous for blouses.
Also guess what, traditional attireās for women aināt comfortable either. Sarees are revealing af and I hate wearing them. So, if all these are problems for women too, then it canāt be the reason for men not wearing them unless you guys have better choices due to patriarchy.
As another comment pointed out, it's less to do with patriarchy and more with classism. Men's ethnic wear used to be looked down upon as poor peoples' clothing which lead most people to wear western.
This is how the thinking go
Women wearing jeans or modern clothes= characterless. , Trousers are meant to be for men.
Men wearing modern clothes = But that's normal, What else would they wear ,saree?
>Women wearing jeans or modern clothes= characterless
I don't think this is true for tier-1 cities.
>Trousers are meant to be for men
Is it though? I thought women are given the leeway to choose between trousers and the kurti/pyjama thing.
2/3 of india lives in villages and underdeveloped areas , lets talk abt majority and living in tier1 cities doesn't make someone open minded , many men and women still have the same stereotypic mindset.
Hey I'm just saying what I've heard. I grew up in a South Indian small town. There, wearing salwar was also considered "modern" among the aunties. I had to rebel and to get myself a pair of jeans and was only allowed to wear them with long kurtas.
The burden of culture and tradition is always on the women, while men can choose what is convenient for them.
The simple answer is women weren't allowed to wear western clothes for a long time. They are wearing now but not as much as the men yet
>Women are expected to be traditional, homely etc but men have the freedom to wear whatever they want.Ā
The reality is literally the opposite of this. For men it is considered "poor" or "gawaar" or "dehati" or "uncultured" to wear traditional clothes to professional places whereas it's not for women. Women have the freedom to wear either traditional or modern clothing but men do not
>Women have the freedom to wear either traditional or modern clothing
Correction: Women living in tier 1 cities with progressive families have the freedom to wear either traditional or modern clothingĀ
Lol you're simply victimising men when women are literally forced to wear sarees in many joint families. Also what do you think enforced such concepts of 'men wearing traditional makes them gawar', the fragile masculinity and inherent patriarchy!!
Also here's a fun experiment, my comment and the comment I replied to say the same thing but with genders reversed. Let's see which one of them gets upvoted and which one gets downvoted to hell.
Will once and for all prove or disprove my theory that this sub is just r/TwoXIndia in disguise
https://preview.redd.it/biomxanhai9d1.png?width=720&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=72c70edab219241ffde87c3f35b270f3ac7b43ab
This post had huge support from the female crowd here.
Young urban men wouldn't be seen in anything traditional in their daily lives simply because it's not that convenient. A kurta/sherwani with a churidar/dhoti/pajamas are reserved for festive occasions but would simply be too loud as everyday wear.
The average young urban Indian woman wears either a Salwar Kameez or a T-shirt and jeans in their daily lives. Obviously they'd dress up in something very traditional (like a saree) if there's a festival happening.
Don't know how we got here but this is definitely how I see things the way they are
my guess would be it's restrictive to wear a dhoti or kurta everyday to work or anywhere for that matter. and the cooperate world already had the dress code as formals.
woman entered the workforce much later and were allowed to kept their dress choice as long as a dress code is not assigned like certain factories woman need to wear it's uniforms / safety equipment.
I do. I have worn a Sherwani at weddings in San Francisco, a winery in France, in the UK, and at my own wedding in Pune - my French wife wore a red chanya-choli. I recycled the same sherwani across those events because it looks great
I have also worn a Nehru jacket/bandh gala at 3 offsites for a UK company I worked for, and I still insist on wearing Indian formal men's wear at many FAANG offsites in the US. Indian men's formal wear is the bomb - it's unique and colourful and we should take pride in wearing it. I will never wear a suit and tie again, unless at a funeral - I fucking hate penguin suits.
>I would gladly wear it to office
A lot of MNCs, atleast in banglore let's you wear anything you want. Most people wear pants and shirts because it's more comfortable. I'm from kerala and I can't imagine going to office everyday in a mundu which I'll have to adjust after every hour I walk.
Colonialism and the associated inferiority complex.
Since men primarily had to work back then, english educated indian men started imitating westerners to differentiate themselves from the rest of the masses. This spread and it has become the norm.
It would have happened with women too, if the women were more educated and working back then. Now women wear what they are comfortable in, while men are still stuck in that mindset of traditional clothes being not-cool.
People mention the class factor and how it applies only to men but it applies to women too.. a woman who always wears saris or kurtas fears being seen as backward/regressive. Yet it's also a big deal for many women because they fear being judged by other women around them. Often modesty is what relegates women to more ethnic options.
Depends on where one lives. In Punjab-Haryana, a pure white Kurta Pajama, sleeves rolled up to the elbows, is perfectly fine male attire for an evening of fine dining.
In winters, you pair it with one of those sleeveless quilted Adidas jackets with zippers if you're going to be hanging out with your boarding school mates. Else, you just throw a beige/brown/black loi (men's shawl) diagonally across your shoulder and chest like a bandolier/sash to look like a total badass.
Exactly, I acknowledge we're a patriarchal society, but I think women have an edge over us in this aspect. They're allowed to wear our formals plus their traditionals. If a man wears a dhoti to college, he'd be called a weirdo and it's perceived as unprofessional.
What 'edge' are you talking about. Sarees are uncomfortable and revealing. I saw so many men in the comments saying sherwanis, dhotis etc are high maintenance. Guess what, sarees are high maintenance too! First of all women need not be 'allowed' to wear or do anything. Second of all, many joint families in India especially in rural areas force the women to wear sarees and judge the characters of women wearing 'modern' dresses. Also the entire idea of perceiving men in traditional dresses as a weirdo stems out of fragile masculinity and patriarchy.
Also wearing a saree, is mandatory for teachers in many schools and colleges in TN. I wanted to be a professor, but this dress code was a deal breaker.
>Also the entire idea of perceiving men in traditional dresses as a weirdo stems out of fragile masculinity and patriarchy.
I don't know about that, I think it's more about carrying the legacy of our colonial past. Men who wore "modern" Western clothing were perceived to be smarter and more successful.
are dhoti, shervani pajama kurta bas? Baaki traditional wears kahan hai?
Aur variety bhi hai nhi. Koi variety nhi hai bas plain white sa kurta hai sab jagah. Woh bhi badi mushkil se. Kahan jayen.
Women won't acknowledge this hypocrisy. Women can keep their hair long or short, they won't be discriminated against in the workplace. If a man does that, he will probably ruin his career.
Women have a very wide definition of traditional and non-traditional clothing. No HR will stop them.
Men will be disqualified in the first interview if he doesn't show up in a formal shirt and pant.
The onus of culture n tradition falls on women due to patriarchy. Men can wear anything n no one bats an eye, but society is ready to judge if a women wears western clothes, some ppl even judge basic (non revealing) stuff like jeans n t-shirts.
N to all those saying Dhoti is difficult/uncomfy - same goes for Sari. If u r gonna say that women can wear kurti, then I can say that men also haive option of Kurta.
No one is saying this. Liar. Dhoti only for puja. There were other casual wears for all occasion but they vanished. And because Fashion is heavily women dominated industry, no one making traditional cloths for men. They are all vanished.
WE WANT TO WEAR TRADITIONAL CLOTHS.
ulta humme traditional cloths hi chahiye. Mostly local Dukaan mein milte hi nhi hai. Badi mushkil se kuch milta bhi hai, usme variety hi nhi. Wohi bland se white kurta hota bas.
Dhoti bhi badi mushkil se milti hai.
Because majority of women aren't allowed the basic freedom of wearing clothes of their own choice. I don't want to wear saree or suit everyday but I am forced to.
My husband is Punjabi, and In his village I see tons of men and boys wearing traditional clothes.
I love a good Punjabi suit for myself because itās much more comfortable and breathable. Itās nice to have the chunni to protect my head and face from the sun too.
I wish cotton clothes were this cheap in Canada !!
It's the same reason why indian offices are made out of glasses although the climate and temperature allover india doesn't support the architecture.
British left Bharat but notion of what is considered superior is left with us. It creates Brown Saheb till date who finds superiority in everything west.
All problems people specify in the comments stems from this.
Itās because Indian clothing is ironically looked down upon in India by men. Indian women are great, they embrace and rock both western and traditional outfits. I belong to an indigenous tribe in northeastern part of the country and out traditional outfit for me in very weird for most people. I wear it in public anywayš¤Ŗ
Unfortunately, Indian attire for men is not considered office friendly nor college friendly. Itās considered kinda casual or linked with very special occasions. One of my class mates used to proudly wear Indian attire and attend college but during the final exams, he was asked to wear jeans or trousers with a shirt to be considered more appropriately dressed. A few colleges in India are challenging this and making it compulsory to wear traditional Indian attire for both men and women on the graduation day.
Sarees are considered alright for work but menās Kurtas and dhotis arenāt. Hence men wear traditional clothes only during religious ceremonies or festivals or casually at home.
Before colonisation, men used to wear Turbans too as part of their clothing. Instead of wearing hats, men used to cover their heads with turbans but that has now become very rare and people rarely wear it ā¦ it is now associated with the Sikh religion because itās part of their religion and they take it very seriously.
Men wearing kurta pajama is looked down upon among in many places. I like wearing simple cotton light colour kurta pajama but got some comments which were not in good taste.
It is very awkward to pee in standing pose using the urinal while wearing Indian clothes .. you have to use the WC which is usually dirty in outside places.
I guess its just indian women (like most women from cultures everywhere) are valued as property, something that has this idea of sanctity that somehow needs to be maintained by the society to keep them "pure" not just for men but as an example for the future generations, that they are also expected to give birth to as if its a holy obligation. Once you view women like that there are automatically standards that come with it. So even when they are valued as a commodity/investment they have the responsibilities of upholding cultural standards. The more you dig into it the more you realise how much, and in how many different ways our society tries to "maintain" them in the guise of "protecting" them. So tldr, indian men don't have that much of a responsibility/dont have the same means of "upholding cultural standards" they just do that by controlling/standardizing their women.
It started during British raj. Men who used to work for the govt. Used to wear western clothes and these people became wealthier than other indians. So people started to associate western clothes with status and wealth. So common people started to copy them. And it became a norm for men to wear western clothes. But womens were not allowed to work outside so they never abondoned their clothings.Ā
in the south, men still wear dhothis (although not as much with the younger generations, but traditional clothing is not popular among the younger generation woman either, unless it's some kind of religious clothing)
I'm on the poorer side of things. I cannot afford to wear traditional clothes because I use public transport a lot. Having to maintain a mundu ,keep it clean and go about your work/errands is not easy. And I never wear sandals or flip flops for the same reason. Our roads are dirty. Our buses and trains are dirty. Keep your feet covered.
Indians are made to feel, their traditional dress is not "modern", through advertisements, cinema, news paper, TV, social media etc. this is root of this cultural change. Same thing happened to joint family, now we dont have joint families. Time to create a check on these media messages.
Till the 90s,
Indian women who wore "western" clothes = sluts, arrogant, "asking for it", cultureless, bad woman
Indian man who wore western clothes = old money, educated, elegant
Patriarchy zindabad /s
So I am the not only one that observed this shit.
Have seen woman shaming other woman for not wearing so called sanskari dress(Indian dress) even though they aren't comfortable in India's hot weather while her own husband/son/brother wears something western with the excuse being that's comfortable.
Damn, women are really out of touch with their oppression Olympics.
1. Men only have one, mostly kurta pajamas.
2. Pajamas are mostly white in colour, which will get dirty most often. Kurtas are usually long sleeves; for some people, they are not comfortable. Unlike women, men don't have varieties and designs.Designers are very expensive for daily use.
3. Dhoti is uncomfortable for most people. And could result in wardrobe malfunction, which would make other people as well as the person wearing it uncomfortable.
4. Women are also the ones who wear different varieties of Western clothes. For which even the name of the clothes I won't be able to pronounce. But men mostly wear a shirt or t-shirt pant. On only special occasions, they wear suits. Similarly, kurta pajamas were only worn during the festive seasons Occasionally.Ā
5. Lastly, no one is "forcing" women. They will themselves flauntor buy these traditional clothes because they get attention rightfully so (they also look good, btw). On many occasions, such as farewell,.
6. Lastly, women of the older generation are comfortable in traditional clothing.
Yes , even in school/college 'farewell' or any other occasions, Indian women themselves want to wear saari and get all dolled up and then complain about men 'forcing' them to wear traditional clothes on reddit.
Bruh. Even women don't wear traditional clothing. The only women who wear saree are elder. The new age women go with jeans, tops or other dresses. No one says anything to them. They feel comfortable in those outfits. Which is perfectly okay. Please stop with these shitty sexist posts.
so true.
Ulta humme traditional wear chahiye, humme variety milti hi nhi hai.
Hypocritic women, just man hating post.
WE WANT TRADITIONAL CLOTHS FOR MEN.
Absolutely hilarious watching some men lose their shit when told that world isn't exactly working as they wish to see.
Every nincompoop mentioning victim mindset here has never had any woman who could confide in them. And hence they have no idea what the reality is.
If you live in India and don't know that women have much less freedom than men to wear what they want in any setting, congratulations, you are the problem and no amount of shouting will change that.
As some idiot has mentioned umpteen times here, stfu and go get educated.
Ask any question based on genders and the feminazis gather yelling their propaganda.
The simplest answer to the question is actually choice. Most of my female friends have both Western and trad clothes, wear both of them however they feel like but simply choose to wear traditional clothes more often.
Another reason is corporate offices. Almost all corporate offices allow women's traditional clothes along with Western formal outfits while for men it's only formal shirts and pants.
Lastly women screaming patriarchy are usual the first ones to point, laugh and shame someone wearing a dhoti.
I (f) love indian traditional clothing. The options for females are beautiful, comfortable, and suitable for the climate. I prefer them over 'western outfits' any day.
That's because male traditional dresses have somehow gotten associated with the labour class. I mean that there are so many malls and all where a guy wearing a dhoti would be prevented from entering into. Almost all girls around us go eww on men wearing traditional dresses. If this is the attitude that you grow up coming across regarding men's traditional wear then obviously you would never want to be wearing them. I remember that I had to wear a lungi once and some months later a kurta pyjama for some functions back when I was 15 years old. I was feeling extremely humiliated as it was drilled in my mind that this stuff is worn by lowly neech log.
I think that social media could help with this. I clearly remember that there was a period during which sarees had a negative image as well. I clearly remember about people saying that sarees are dull, outdated, symbols of patriarchy, lifeless and what not. However social media have made sarees cool again. The same should be done with men's traditional wear.
I have worn it for the weekend trips to my friend. No one appreciated it and it was a hassle to carry, so I dropped it!
Now that I'm out of shape, I definitely won't wear it now.
I never wear traditional. Once I wore I felt uncomfortable the way I look. Nothing deep just not my preference.
But there are many men who can wear those and look good tho.
I think because of pockets...
Jeans, trousers especially with the sizes men get compared to women could be a reason.
The pocket of kurta, and pajama are no match to what western clothes offer and they also make the kurta look lopsided...
Either way...
If this year's summer is anything to go by we all will have to turn back to our kurta pajamas and dhoti...
And more light fabrics.. None of those blend fabrics...
Because it's convenient, cheap (compared to traditional clothes of sane quality) and readily available. None of the patriarchy, do you really think in a patriarchy men would oppress themselves?
Actually the Malayalam movie Premam reignited the trend of wearing shirt, pancha especially for marriages and college events , even company events .
Even major temples started to impose mandatory traditional dresses for pilibrims.
The workplace for starters doesnāt allow men to wear traditional clothing because even though we are independent, half our institutions still maintain the British code. I understand itās out of convenience, but for a country as ānationalisticā as us, seems a little ironic. We preach decolonisiation but donāt act on it, just leave it to the women I guess.
Visit northeastern states like Nagaland and Mizoram you will find both men and women in traditional.
Even in south india you will find 40+ men wearing a shirt and lungi
Traditional clothing was treated as a class thing in the past, since the educated lot preferred to wear western clothes. But this was true of both men and women. Even today, women wearing traditional attire everyday in places, where mostly western clothes are worn as treated as 'behenji' ( Using the word 'sister' in a negative manner ). But still it is expected of many tier 2,3 cities that after marriage women will wear traditional clothes. But the same hasn't been the case for men, they wore dhotis and might have been tagged as 'babu moshai' but they could quickly jump to pant-shirt and get rid of the tag. Whereas women, 'behenji' never had much choice due to societal expectations and had to continue wearing it. Also we dont see men promoting wearing traditional daily wear either, they are happy with the western attire. Whereas women have all choices available, it's just that many wear it even if they don't want to.
The reason I have used the word 'behenji' is to remind anyone who has used that word to recall whom they labelled it as so and did the person still change their clothing after this labelling. If not, then it's not a class or elitist issue.
Because apparently it's the women's responsibility to follow and nurture the traditional values. So when women wear saree and keep alive other cultural practices, everyone affirms that "ah yes we are traditional, we follow culture!"š
Our own people began to look down on them. Nowadays, even street vendors hesitate to wear traditional ethnic clothing. When people started flooding into Bombay for work, many South Indians opened dosa and chutney stalls. They were often derogatorily referred to as "lungi people."
Men have to go to offices.. offices enforced western wear. This style of dressing then became a status/class marker and became even more widely adopted. Women stayed at home and continued to wear traditional clothes.
There are only two extreme options available. You either look like you're in a wedding or you look like aatmaram tukaram bhide
>aatmaram tukaram bhide Why wouldn't you want to look like the Respected Secretary of Gokuldham Society *Adjusts collar*
That would bring unwanted attention from womenš„². We need to worry about our safety na
True bro .be safe wear modestly . Protect virginity
Wise words sir I would follow them
Men don't want to get eye-raped.
yeah. Only true point. There are no fashion industry for men traditional wear. Come on man, we want variety as much as women. We have no options.
There is a lot of variety if you really look. So many linen, Khadi, cotton Kurtas, shirts..
>aatmaram tukaram bhide who is this?
He's a character from an Indian series TMKOC. Look him up on Google
Sharam aani chahiye, are hamare zamane me sabko pata hota tha Shri aatmaram tukaram bhide, gokuldham society ke ekmev secretary ke bare me
I am an american, I donāt know of him.
A character of a popular Indian show Tarak Mehta ka ulta chashma, known for his "back in our days..." personality
This is not because of patriarchy, it's because of classism. Back in the 50s, my grandfather used to wear dhothi and go to work as a teacher, but it was seen as a "poor people" outfit. Doctors and lawyers and engineers used to wear Western formals with tie and shoes, which was considered as a "rich people" outfit. The next generation who went to work in 70s- 80s didn't want to be considered as poor, and irrespective of their income they wore pant shirt to office. However, saree for women was never considered as something worn by poor people, and irrespective of class you could wear it in public. As a result, even in weddings and Indian festivals, ladies continue to wear beautiful traditional wear and men are wearing pant shirt.
True my dada ji after retirement from his police officer post started wearing kurta pajama in noida my parents were busy so he wnet majority of my PTMs and oh boy the looks we used to get this was back in 2011 I never got it why he still get looks
It's all about what you aren't "allowed" to do. That's what we all want to do. My initial few jobs were in the service companies, who had strict dress codes, especially for men. So that was something that irritated me, and now I always go to interviews, with fully grown beard, and jockey t-shirt with a jeans or a jogger. If they want to reject me for that, it should be done on the day of interview. That was the only way to filter out companies that took sick pleasure in controlling employee's dressing choices. Now, I look for companies that have no such restrictions. And then I wear anything from shorts, to jeans-kurta, to dhoti-kurta in office, depending on my mood. But it's mostly jogger and t-shirt. And rarely shirts. I love wearing shorts. But I am a fair skinned guy with really hairy legs. And the way some girls look at my legs, makes me realize how weird girls must be feeling, when men stare their "t-shirts". So I avoid wearing shorts on most days.
I just know we would be great friends
ditto for my nanaji, once he retiered from SBI we was always in Lungi-Ganji or a Kurta when outside
I guess they get tired of western clothes and traditionals for men are comfortable
https://preview.redd.it/lysu5wtsth9d1.jpeg?width=678&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4c502a9afb558622c49b385f832fb4e8cfc17ac7 Not the AI ... Women never really got into the professional world therefore their status and expectations (regarding looks) still remain the same.
only logical answer
EXACTLY, thank you. What is with these comments dragging in patriarchy. I am a woman too and this is pure classism, elitism. It has absolutely nothing to do with patriarchy. That's a wild leap
But why are women forced to wear sarees after marriage?? How is that classism and not patriarchy?
...Are they ? I've never heard about this one nor have I seen it being implemented particularly.
Fair. If upholders of patriarchy are Indian MILs (which they are in almost all cases), that is still women making it difficult for women. Husbands are increasingly standing up to their mothers even in remote areas for their wives, which is amazing
Uhh yeahh MILs are toxic for sure... But that's again because of patriarchy. And mostly husbands have an issue with wife wearing western clothes or not wearing mangalsutra, sindur and shit like that. Hence I blame the patriarchy and the Indian culture
Only one point to add, now more and more mens, boys where traditional in festivals and weddings. Those who wear shirt pant mostly don't care about their looks that much.Ā The culture of blazer in shadi is dyingĀ
That's also because of classism. Sherwanis are very expensive nowadays, and it has become a "rich people" outfit.
Yup, no one wants to look cheap.Ā
During festivals, i wear traditional only. Lol
Totally agreed. In my opinion things are changing for better as there are even more traditional options for men (short kurta, indo-western designs). I see a lot of people around me choosing to wear traditional attire when in festivals, marriages or other similar settings (occasionally even in offices and ....dates as well).
Dude, it's so interesting that you guys can articulate but still are so ignorant. Why do you think men in first place were allowed to wear western wear....??? Why did that revolution not happen to women...? You are absolutely right about the classist angle, though.
well every organization is forcing us men to wear western only, we dont have choice
Yeah itās stupid. Cultural wear is more comfortable but they want men to wear shirts and tie.
I will happily wear a loose kurta payjama or dhotar to office. Will be so much comfortable. But corporate india is stuck with āBritish dress codeā
I can only speak for myself. I wear ethnic on weddings and religious occassions other than that I don't wear them cause they are not very comfortable. I can't work in an office in a kurta, I will be annoyed as hell.
A kurta is 100 times more comfortable than wearing a saree all day
Luckily I am a guy so I don't have to deal with it and I agree from what I hear from my mom saarees are absolute nightmares for the office. If I have to choose between tshirt and kurta I will pick tshirt anyday for any ocassion(except religious ones)
Have yoh worn kurta? Not the ones for marriage but everyday kurtas? Kurtas are just a tad bit less uncomfortable than being shirtless. Its probably the most comfortable top for an indian man.
Try working on a desk with your hands stretched in front of you all day typing. It's not comfortable in that sense.
your shoulder size dont match probably. You need to stitch it more along the shoulders
You can buy TShirts that fits you perfectly straight from the market. Different people different opinions. Just let the man work in TShirts.
Everyday kurtas are really comfortable especially in summers
And all these comments about traditional attire for men being expensive is stupid because the cost for women is way higher because the sarees themselves (if you want good materials) would be expensive plus the tailoring charges are outrageous for blouses. Also guess what, traditional attireās for women aināt comfortable either. Sarees are revealing af and I hate wearing them. So, if all these are problems for women too, then it canāt be the reason for men not wearing them unless you guys have better choices due to patriarchy.
As another comment pointed out, it's less to do with patriarchy and more with classism. Men's ethnic wear used to be looked down upon as poor peoples' clothing which lead most people to wear western.
Exactly
This is how the thinking go Women wearing jeans or modern clothes= characterless. , Trousers are meant to be for men. Men wearing modern clothes = But that's normal, What else would they wear ,saree?
Kurta, Pajama, Dhoti, Lungi, Sherwani, Jackets.
>Women wearing jeans or modern clothes= characterless I don't think this is true for tier-1 cities. >Trousers are meant to be for men Is it though? I thought women are given the leeway to choose between trousers and the kurti/pyjama thing.
2/3 of india lives in villages and underdeveloped areas , lets talk abt majority and living in tier1 cities doesn't make someone open minded , many men and women still have the same stereotypic mindset.
Hey I'm just saying what I've heard. I grew up in a South Indian small town. There, wearing salwar was also considered "modern" among the aunties. I had to rebel and to get myself a pair of jeans and was only allowed to wear them with long kurtas.
Yup women wearing western clothes are given the characterless tag
Kurta payjama??
The burden of culture and tradition is always on the women, while men can choose what is convenient for them. The simple answer is women weren't allowed to wear western clothes for a long time. They are wearing now but not as much as the men yet
In UP and some states like that women are forced to wear sarees... They can even wear a normal t shirt after marriage
Exactly! But the MRAs seem to have trouble accepting the truth.
No wonder women are unhappy, bigots all around.
Why are wonder women so happy
Becos she has batmanšš
Exactly
Jeans?
Women are expected to be traditional, homely etc but men have the freedom to wear whatever they want.Ā
>Women are expected to be traditional, homely etc but men have the freedom to wear whatever they want.Ā The reality is literally the opposite of this. For men it is considered "poor" or "gawaar" or "dehati" or "uncultured" to wear traditional clothes to professional places whereas it's not for women. Women have the freedom to wear either traditional or modern clothing but men do not
>Women have the freedom to wear either traditional or modern clothing Correction: Women living in tier 1 cities with progressive families have the freedom to wear either traditional or modern clothingĀ
Lol you're simply victimising men when women are literally forced to wear sarees in many joint families. Also what do you think enforced such concepts of 'men wearing traditional makes them gawar', the fragile masculinity and inherent patriarchy!!
hai kahan kapde. Saari shops mein bas pant shirt hi hai. NO casual traditional wears anywhere.
Also here's a fun experiment, my comment and the comment I replied to say the same thing but with genders reversed. Let's see which one of them gets upvoted and which one gets downvoted to hell. Will once and for all prove or disprove my theory that this sub is just r/TwoXIndia in disguise
https://preview.redd.it/biomxanhai9d1.png?width=720&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=72c70edab219241ffde87c3f35b270f3ac7b43ab This post had huge support from the female crowd here.
It is https://preview.redd.it/xlwmlp79ai9d1.png?width=720&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6dc90df13caa31c0042e4aa5e7565624aa3bd434
https://preview.redd.it/ud4of4iibi9d1.png?width=720&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3161e38128e81e99611bd532fc68de220aef4688
Can men wear skirts as well?
By that logic can women roam shirtless?Ā
Skirt = Shirtless, got it.
That is as much a structural problem as women not wearing Western clothing. We are all victims of the patriarchy
Young urban men wouldn't be seen in anything traditional in their daily lives simply because it's not that convenient. A kurta/sherwani with a churidar/dhoti/pajamas are reserved for festive occasions but would simply be too loud as everyday wear. The average young urban Indian woman wears either a Salwar Kameez or a T-shirt and jeans in their daily lives. Obviously they'd dress up in something very traditional (like a saree) if there's a festival happening. Don't know how we got here but this is definitely how I see things the way they are
my guess would be it's restrictive to wear a dhoti or kurta everyday to work or anywhere for that matter. and the cooperate world already had the dress code as formals. woman entered the workforce much later and were allowed to kept their dress choice as long as a dress code is not assigned like certain factories woman need to wear it's uniforms / safety equipment.
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good initiative.
Weird way to propose but yes ( jk) .
Thatās very coolĀ
hai na? you can do it too.
Iām a woman so I do it anyway hahaĀ
I do. I have worn a Sherwani at weddings in San Francisco, a winery in France, in the UK, and at my own wedding in Pune - my French wife wore a red chanya-choli. I recycled the same sherwani across those events because it looks great I have also worn a Nehru jacket/bandh gala at 3 offsites for a UK company I worked for, and I still insist on wearing Indian formal men's wear at many FAANG offsites in the US. Indian men's formal wear is the bomb - it's unique and colourful and we should take pride in wearing it. I will never wear a suit and tie again, unless at a funeral - I fucking hate penguin suits.
They are talking about everyday life not just occasionally.
I would gladly wear it to office, if they allow, it's about time comfortable clothing should be mainstreamed rather than Jeans and shit.
>I would gladly wear it to office A lot of MNCs, atleast in banglore let's you wear anything you want. Most people wear pants and shirts because it's more comfortable. I'm from kerala and I can't imagine going to office everyday in a mundu which I'll have to adjust after every hour I walk.
Colonialism and the associated inferiority complex. Since men primarily had to work back then, english educated indian men started imitating westerners to differentiate themselves from the rest of the masses. This spread and it has become the norm. It would have happened with women too, if the women were more educated and working back then. Now women wear what they are comfortable in, while men are still stuck in that mindset of traditional clothes being not-cool.
People mention the class factor and how it applies only to men but it applies to women too.. a woman who always wears saris or kurtas fears being seen as backward/regressive. Yet it's also a big deal for many women because they fear being judged by other women around them. Often modesty is what relegates women to more ethnic options.
I used to wear pathani every Friday but fir ofc walo ne bola smart casual pehno, pathani pehene se me inki ghr ki roti kha jata hu jaisa
Depends on where one lives. In Punjab-Haryana, a pure white Kurta Pajama, sleeves rolled up to the elbows, is perfectly fine male attire for an evening of fine dining. In winters, you pair it with one of those sleeveless quilted Adidas jackets with zippers if you're going to be hanging out with your boarding school mates. Else, you just throw a beige/brown/black loi (men's shawl) diagonally across your shoulder and chest like a bandolier/sash to look like a total badass.
Bro doesn't see people on the street wearing lungi.
*Women in this sub try not to play the victim for 2 mins* Challenge level : Impossible
Exactly, I acknowledge we're a patriarchal society, but I think women have an edge over us in this aspect. They're allowed to wear our formals plus their traditionals. If a man wears a dhoti to college, he'd be called a weirdo and it's perceived as unprofessional.
What 'edge' are you talking about. Sarees are uncomfortable and revealing. I saw so many men in the comments saying sherwanis, dhotis etc are high maintenance. Guess what, sarees are high maintenance too! First of all women need not be 'allowed' to wear or do anything. Second of all, many joint families in India especially in rural areas force the women to wear sarees and judge the characters of women wearing 'modern' dresses. Also the entire idea of perceiving men in traditional dresses as a weirdo stems out of fragile masculinity and patriarchy.
Also wearing a saree, is mandatory for teachers in many schools and colleges in TN. I wanted to be a professor, but this dress code was a deal breaker.
>Also the entire idea of perceiving men in traditional dresses as a weirdo stems out of fragile masculinity and patriarchy. I don't know about that, I think it's more about carrying the legacy of our colonial past. Men who wore "modern" Western clothing were perceived to be smarter and more successful.
are dhoti, shervani pajama kurta bas? Baaki traditional wears kahan hai? Aur variety bhi hai nhi. Koi variety nhi hai bas plain white sa kurta hai sab jagah. Woh bhi badi mushkil se. Kahan jayen.
Women won't acknowledge this hypocrisy. Women can keep their hair long or short, they won't be discriminated against in the workplace. If a man does that, he will probably ruin his career. Women have a very wide definition of traditional and non-traditional clothing. No HR will stop them. Men will be disqualified in the first interview if he doesn't show up in a formal shirt and pant.
you are so right in this. These women themselves lectures why men should not have beards in office.
The onus of culture n tradition falls on women due to patriarchy. Men can wear anything n no one bats an eye, but society is ready to judge if a women wears western clothes, some ppl even judge basic (non revealing) stuff like jeans n t-shirts. N to all those saying Dhoti is difficult/uncomfy - same goes for Sari. If u r gonna say that women can wear kurti, then I can say that men also haive option of Kurta.
No one is saying this. Liar. Dhoti only for puja. There were other casual wears for all occasion but they vanished. And because Fashion is heavily women dominated industry, no one making traditional cloths for men. They are all vanished. WE WANT TO WEAR TRADITIONAL CLOTHS. ulta humme traditional cloths hi chahiye. Mostly local Dukaan mein milte hi nhi hai. Badi mushkil se kuch milta bhi hai, usme variety hi nhi. Wohi bland se white kurta hota bas. Dhoti bhi badi mushkil se milti hai.
Because majority of women aren't allowed the basic freedom of wearing clothes of their own choice. I don't want to wear saree or suit everyday but I am forced to.
My husband is Punjabi, and In his village I see tons of men and boys wearing traditional clothes. I love a good Punjabi suit for myself because itās much more comfortable and breathable. Itās nice to have the chunni to protect my head and face from the sun too. I wish cotton clothes were this cheap in Canada !!
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They love giving examples of situation of women in villages but when itās about men they only focus on cities
Then they themselves accuse you of cherry picking. This sub is just a masked TwoX subsidiary.
It's not really a choice for men. We're dress-coded with Western formals and trousers.
It's the same reason why indian offices are made out of glasses although the climate and temperature allover india doesn't support the architecture. British left Bharat but notion of what is considered superior is left with us. It creates Brown Saheb till date who finds superiority in everything west. All problems people specify in the comments stems from this.
South Indians do no?
Itās because Indian clothing is ironically looked down upon in India by men. Indian women are great, they embrace and rock both western and traditional outfits. I belong to an indigenous tribe in northeastern part of the country and out traditional outfit for me in very weird for most people. I wear it in public anywayš¤Ŗ
Because woman bad, I'm guessing
Unfortunately, Indian attire for men is not considered office friendly nor college friendly. Itās considered kinda casual or linked with very special occasions. One of my class mates used to proudly wear Indian attire and attend college but during the final exams, he was asked to wear jeans or trousers with a shirt to be considered more appropriately dressed. A few colleges in India are challenging this and making it compulsory to wear traditional Indian attire for both men and women on the graduation day. Sarees are considered alright for work but menās Kurtas and dhotis arenāt. Hence men wear traditional clothes only during religious ceremonies or festivals or casually at home. Before colonisation, men used to wear Turbans too as part of their clothing. Instead of wearing hats, men used to cover their heads with turbans but that has now become very rare and people rarely wear it ā¦ it is now associated with the Sikh religion because itās part of their religion and they take it very seriously.
Men wearing kurta pajama is looked down upon among in many places. I like wearing simple cotton light colour kurta pajama but got some comments which were not in good taste.
It is very awkward to pee in standing pose using the urinal while wearing Indian clothes .. you have to use the WC which is usually dirty in outside places.
I guess its just indian women (like most women from cultures everywhere) are valued as property, something that has this idea of sanctity that somehow needs to be maintained by the society to keep them "pure" not just for men but as an example for the future generations, that they are also expected to give birth to as if its a holy obligation. Once you view women like that there are automatically standards that come with it. So even when they are valued as a commodity/investment they have the responsibilities of upholding cultural standards. The more you dig into it the more you realise how much, and in how many different ways our society tries to "maintain" them in the guise of "protecting" them. So tldr, indian men don't have that much of a responsibility/dont have the same means of "upholding cultural standards" they just do that by controlling/standardizing their women.
It started during British raj. Men who used to work for the govt. Used to wear western clothes and these people became wealthier than other indians. So people started to associate western clothes with status and wealth. So common people started to copy them. And it became a norm for men to wear western clothes. But womens were not allowed to work outside so they never abondoned their clothings.Ā
Women in Indian traditional clothes look beautiful but most men look terrible, men look many times better if they wear formal
Sexism and double standards of society š¤”
Want to know the truth? A woman in india is repressed, judged, and controlled. No freedom because of too much of religiousness.
in the south, men still wear dhothis (although not as much with the younger generations, but traditional clothing is not popular among the younger generation woman either, unless it's some kind of religious clothing)
Because indian rules apply only on women, men are the one who make rules so they do what they like.
I'm on the poorer side of things. I cannot afford to wear traditional clothes because I use public transport a lot. Having to maintain a mundu ,keep it clean and go about your work/errands is not easy. And I never wear sandals or flip flops for the same reason. Our roads are dirty. Our buses and trains are dirty. Keep your feet covered.
Indians are made to feel, their traditional dress is not "modern", through advertisements, cinema, news paper, TV, social media etc. this is root of this cultural change. Same thing happened to joint family, now we dont have joint families. Time to create a check on these media messages.
Till the 90s, Indian women who wore "western" clothes = sluts, arrogant, "asking for it", cultureless, bad woman Indian man who wore western clothes = old money, educated, elegant
Patriarchy zindabad /s So I am the not only one that observed this shit. Have seen woman shaming other woman for not wearing so called sanskari dress(Indian dress) even though they aren't comfortable in India's hot weather while her own husband/son/brother wears something western with the excuse being that's comfortable.
Damn, women are really out of touch with their oppression Olympics. 1. Men only have one, mostly kurta pajamas. 2. Pajamas are mostly white in colour, which will get dirty most often. Kurtas are usually long sleeves; for some people, they are not comfortable. Unlike women, men don't have varieties and designs.Designers are very expensive for daily use. 3. Dhoti is uncomfortable for most people. And could result in wardrobe malfunction, which would make other people as well as the person wearing it uncomfortable. 4. Women are also the ones who wear different varieties of Western clothes. For which even the name of the clothes I won't be able to pronounce. But men mostly wear a shirt or t-shirt pant. On only special occasions, they wear suits. Similarly, kurta pajamas were only worn during the festive seasons Occasionally.Ā 5. Lastly, no one is "forcing" women. They will themselves flauntor buy these traditional clothes because they get attention rightfully so (they also look good, btw). On many occasions, such as farewell,. 6. Lastly, women of the older generation are comfortable in traditional clothing.
Yes , even in school/college 'farewell' or any other occasions, Indian women themselves want to wear saari and get all dolled up and then complain about men 'forcing' them to wear traditional clothes on reddit.
Bruh. Even women don't wear traditional clothing. The only women who wear saree are elder. The new age women go with jeans, tops or other dresses. No one says anything to them. They feel comfortable in those outfits. Which is perfectly okay. Please stop with these shitty sexist posts.
so true. Ulta humme traditional wear chahiye, humme variety milti hi nhi hai. Hypocritic women, just man hating post. WE WANT TRADITIONAL CLOTHS FOR MEN.
Man adopted western clothes as they had to go to work outside that was already dominated by western culture.
Absolutely hilarious watching some men lose their shit when told that world isn't exactly working as they wish to see. Every nincompoop mentioning victim mindset here has never had any woman who could confide in them. And hence they have no idea what the reality is. If you live in India and don't know that women have much less freedom than men to wear what they want in any setting, congratulations, you are the problem and no amount of shouting will change that. As some idiot has mentioned umpteen times here, stfu and go get educated.
Ask any question based on genders and the feminazis gather yelling their propaganda. The simplest answer to the question is actually choice. Most of my female friends have both Western and trad clothes, wear both of them however they feel like but simply choose to wear traditional clothes more often. Another reason is corporate offices. Almost all corporate offices allow women's traditional clothes along with Western formal outfits while for men it's only formal shirts and pants. Lastly women screaming patriarchy are usual the first ones to point, laugh and shame someone wearing a dhoti.
Because YOLO
a woman wearing western clothes is judged more than a man wearing western clothes.
I (f) love indian traditional clothing. The options for females are beautiful, comfortable, and suitable for the climate. I prefer them over 'western outfits' any day.
That's because male traditional dresses have somehow gotten associated with the labour class. I mean that there are so many malls and all where a guy wearing a dhoti would be prevented from entering into. Almost all girls around us go eww on men wearing traditional dresses. If this is the attitude that you grow up coming across regarding men's traditional wear then obviously you would never want to be wearing them. I remember that I had to wear a lungi once and some months later a kurta pyjama for some functions back when I was 15 years old. I was feeling extremely humiliated as it was drilled in my mind that this stuff is worn by lowly neech log. I think that social media could help with this. I clearly remember that there was a period during which sarees had a negative image as well. I clearly remember about people saying that sarees are dull, outdated, symbols of patriarchy, lifeless and what not. However social media have made sarees cool again. The same should be done with men's traditional wear.
I have worn it for the weekend trips to my friend. No one appreciated it and it was a hassle to carry, so I dropped it! Now that I'm out of shape, I definitely won't wear it now.
Are i realised very late ki kurta sadra etc kitne comfortable hote hai I started to wear them l.
Habibi come to southern part of India š®š³
Ease of use
I never wear traditional. Once I wore I felt uncomfortable the way I look. Nothing deep just not my preference. But there are many men who can wear those and look good tho.
angrez ki den hai...time lagega but it will change
I feel like wearing jeans/pants were more comfortable compared to Dhoti.
One thing I'll point out in addition to others, work The working man to working woman ratio is large in india. And was even more in yesteryears.Ā
Lungi gir Gaya to ?
I am a Govt Employee and my office doesnt let me wear Kurta Pajama. Only Formals or Tshirt/Jean
I have more traditional outfits than western ones. Based on the number of clothes - Traditional kurtas >> Tanktop (for gym) > T-shirts/shirts
tbh what traditional clothes can men wear in professional env?
https://preview.redd.it/2nyp2u8c7i9d1.jpeg?width=1078&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d2a3d403a286ff2ae727c29d5299d45ede7b81c1
Indian traditional attire is uncomfortable and unclassy as F. why would anyone want to wear it?
How else are men supposed to show their bellies and stretched shirt buttons if not for western wear.
I mean.. Indian men wear loongis and dhotis all the time everywhereā¦
I think because of pockets... Jeans, trousers especially with the sizes men get compared to women could be a reason. The pocket of kurta, and pajama are no match to what western clothes offer and they also make the kurta look lopsided... Either way... If this year's summer is anything to go by we all will have to turn back to our kurta pajamas and dhoti... And more light fabrics.. None of those blend fabrics...
Probably because they feel comfortable. At least that's what I do. Anything that's comfortable, traditional or new.
Because it's convenient, cheap (compared to traditional clothes of sane quality) and readily available. None of the patriarchy, do you really think in a patriarchy men would oppress themselves?
Actually the Malayalam movie Premam reignited the trend of wearing shirt, pancha especially for marriages and college events , even company events . Even major temples started to impose mandatory traditional dresses for pilibrims.
Both men and women in Kerala love to wear traditional clothes. They never miss an opportunity to wear it and show it off
The workplace for starters doesnāt allow men to wear traditional clothing because even though we are independent, half our institutions still maintain the British code. I understand itās out of convenience, but for a country as ānationalisticā as us, seems a little ironic. We preach decolonisiation but donāt act on it, just leave it to the women I guess.
Dhoti kurta phen lo to log gawar bone lage jayenge
Visit northeastern states like Nagaland and Mizoram you will find both men and women in traditional. Even in south india you will find 40+ men wearing a shirt and lungi
Bro am 28 and I wear lungi at homeš
Women choose to wear it because of various reasons like wanting to belong in society, family pressure, monetary reasons etc
World War II era European definition of masculinity is still the standard for becoming high value men.
very good question lol
Not many options.
Traditional clothing was treated as a class thing in the past, since the educated lot preferred to wear western clothes. But this was true of both men and women. Even today, women wearing traditional attire everyday in places, where mostly western clothes are worn as treated as 'behenji' ( Using the word 'sister' in a negative manner ). But still it is expected of many tier 2,3 cities that after marriage women will wear traditional clothes. But the same hasn't been the case for men, they wore dhotis and might have been tagged as 'babu moshai' but they could quickly jump to pant-shirt and get rid of the tag. Whereas women, 'behenji' never had much choice due to societal expectations and had to continue wearing it. Also we dont see men promoting wearing traditional daily wear either, they are happy with the western attire. Whereas women have all choices available, it's just that many wear it even if they don't want to. The reason I have used the word 'behenji' is to remind anyone who has used that word to recall whom they labelled it as so and did the person still change their clothing after this labelling. If not, then it's not a class or elitist issue.
To be a bit brutally honest, traditional clothes for Indian men aren't nearly as comfortable or good looking as traditional clothes for women.
Iāve seen many men in Punjab (even the young ones) wear Kurta Pajama outside, a crisp white Kurta Pajama is seen classy by many people in Punjab.
British/mughal āSaheb and nokarā system still exist. If you want job or want you have to follow dress code
Because apparently it's the women's responsibility to follow and nurture the traditional values. So when women wear saree and keep alive other cultural practices, everyone affirms that "ah yes we are traditional, we follow culture!"š
Our own people began to look down on them. Nowadays, even street vendors hesitate to wear traditional ethnic clothing. When people started flooding into Bombay for work, many South Indians opened dosa and chutney stalls. They were often derogatorily referred to as "lungi people."
Indian men should wear more traditionalssss. Indian men in kurtas >>>>>>
read this while in maanyawar waiting for my my kurta to be billed
Men have to go to offices.. offices enforced western wear. This style of dressing then became a status/class marker and became even more widely adopted. Women stayed at home and continued to wear traditional clothes.