WE WERE WHAT WE WORE
Looking back at the Berlin Wall collapse, experts say that it was around 1989 that jeans became a symbol of youth empowerment. In India, however, denim empowered the masses sooner. Shortly after Indira Gandhi lifted her Emergency, India was switching to jeans with a new desperation. Fashion has always had a lot to do with freedom. Fabric and garment manufacturers like Vimal and Raymond realised that early on. With their ads and jingles, they wanted us to believe we would feel freer in their clothes. Today, it’s not their suits we’re nostalgic for. We only long for the days they made us feel free.
Paragon
Even in 1966, Paragon Textiles knew that branding was synonymous to survival. Their line of fabrics, ‘Elpar’, claimed to get you “dressed for the ’60s—in spirited, youthful, ‘go-anywhere’ suitings”. The fact that Elpar also sold sarees was an obvious plus.
Dinesh
Eleven years is a long time for a celebrity to endorse a brand, but then again, Sunil Gavaskar’s innings usually did last forever. Wearing a Dinesh suit, Gavaskar asked us to take the world in our stride. Sadly, its profits grew thin with time and its liabilities greatly mounted.
Raymond
Though around since 1925, India took serious notice of Raymond in 1969. In an ad by them, an elephant was seen wearing pants. A later tagline—’The Complete Man’ had legs and Raymond became a first stop for many who had sudden fabric and tailoring needs.
Vimal
Only Vimal comes to mind when one remembers watching the 1987 cricket World Cup on television. With models like Kabir Bedi and then Blitz editor R.K. Karanjia, Vimal seemed like the pioneer of India’s textile trade. Reliance sold the brand in 2014, but for a select few of us, there once was ‘Only Vimal’.
Garden Vareli
In 1987, Garden Vareli launched its line of pure silk and chiffon saris and every woman wanted one. By 2014, though, the brand was more heritage than vogue. Talking about competition, owner Praful Shah said, “It is nostalgia, like comparing old songs to today’s Hindi numbers. Nothing beats nostalgia.”