September 2005
Beauty conscious Chandigarh males make
beeline for beauty parlours
Chandigarh:
Males in Chandigarh are going in for a makeover. So keen
are they about their looks that the city has had come with
its own special beauty parlour for men only, complete with
facial, manicure and pedicure services. Men are gradually
shedding their stereotyped traditional macho image and preparing
themselves for the _feminine world_. "It is a modern age and
everyone wants to look good and many movies are coming up...
bollywood movies. So nobody wants to see himself less than
anybody else. I think everybody wants to look good and compete
in this world," says Amartoos, a visitor to the parlour. For
many years, Indian men have been keen in presenting their
well-groomed persona to public. For well-dressed men, shaving
or getting a haircut is a routine, but now a regular manicure
and a pedicure are an absolute must. "It is not a question
of fashion consciousness or something like that, it is just
like everybody likes to maintain himself as presentable, so
that_s the main reason," says Gurpreet Aulakh, another parlour
visitor. With work environment getting increasingly competitive
and professional, the need to appear well-groomed and attractive
has assumed greater importance for all. Earlier, the beauty
treatments were perceived to be meant for male actors and
models in film or fashion industry. But during the last few
years, these treatment are being preferred by middle-class
men, especially, who are in the service sector. "Because the
time has changed. We are living in the 21st century, everybody
wants to look funky, it is not just girls, even we, guys,
do not wish to lag behind," says Nadeem, a parlour visitor.
-Sept 12, 2005
Ravi Bajaj launches his Winter 2005 collection
Mumbai: Well
known fashion designer Ravi Bajaj kicked off the fashion season
in Mumbai with his Fall Winter 2005 collection recently, marking
his return to the ramp after a gap of five years. Bajaj, who
is synonymous with elegant chic, showcased fuss-free evening
wear that included chiffon saris with little cholis, precisely
tailored tunics, pastel evening gowns and some interesting
leather jackets for men. When he started almost two decades
ago,there was practically nothing in terms of fashion for
men. But now, things have changed and Bajaj is one of a handful
of Indian designers who have specialised in menswear. Fashion-hungry
Mumbai ladies turned up in dozens to watch the show. Model
Gauhar Khan described the collection as fabulous. "I always
like Ravi's collection mainly because of the quality that
he gives to his clients. I think his finishing is fantastic
and that's what I look at in a cloth before going into embroidery
or what it looks overall," Gauhar said. Tapur Chatterjee,
another popular model, said Bajaj's collection was classy,
wearable, comfortable and can be worn by anybody. "I think
all are my favourites, especially the suit and sherwani what
I am wearing. It is something different. The fit is so perfect,
it looks amazing. And I think it will look amazing on anyone,"
said Tapur. Bajaj believed that there is a niche market for
saris. "It's an occasion wear collection which means mostly
evening wear. We have two collections which we have targeted
at the wedding market- the first one and the number 6 or 7,
the red collection. Those are targeted directly at the wedding
market and the rest of the collection is evening wear collection
which you could wear to a formal evening," he said. "There
is a huge market for saris and that's the only reason why
I do saris. I am basically not somebody who would do a saree.
I started saris three years ago and that to for a good reason
because Indian women look best in saris," he added.
-Sept 9, 2005
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