The document discusses the growing trend of genderless fashion and gender fluidity. It notes that gender identity is increasingly seen as separate from biological sex, and that some people identify as neither male nor female. It discusses how fashion is moving away from gendered clothing and embracing styles that can be worn by any gender. It provides several examples of designers and brands creating gender-neutral clothing lines. The document argues that this trend aims to give people more freedom to express themselves through clothing without rigid gender norms and roles. It reflects society's growing acceptance of gender diversity.

1. Volume No.- 2 , Issue No.- 83 Monday, September 26th
, 2016 (WEEKLY)
Gender has gradually become a term
to denote whether you’re male or female
with respect to sociocultural differences
rather than biological ones. Gender
identity however, is your innate sense of
being a man, women, both or perhaps
neither and it may or may not be the same
as that assigned at birth. This identity,
when represented through your body
language, hairstyle, clothing, becomes an
expression of your proclaimed gender.
An individual sporting a certain
garment (like a skater dress), a certain
profession (figure skating), or being
sentimental is instantly labelled as
feminine. Similarly going to the gym,
being athletic and showing aggression
are considered masculine traits. This
exemplifies the preconceived notions and
gender roles that lead one to define things
as masculine or feminine. It’s not just
how you express yourself but how that
expression is interpreted in the context of
preset societal definitions.
However, radicals today seek to
question these predefined socio cultural
norms that define gender in the first
place. Throughout the course of history,
human beings have gathered rigid
diktats and formed a database that
is now being challenged. We wish to
accommodate gender multiplicity –LGBT,
now LGBTQIA, also embraces those
that identify as queer, intersex
or asexual. Besides male and
female, Facebook provide a
custom gender option and
a choice of ‘they’ for those
who associate with neither
‘he’ nor ‘she’. Gender
neutrality got recognition
as a third gender at the
University of Vermont in
the US. Leading American
high schools are gradually
joining the trend by
introducing a policy
where students can
choose which restroom
to use depending on
how they identify and
not their biologically
defined gender.
Present day style
icons and celebrities
are realizing the
potential of their fame
to highlight greater
issues by challenging
societal mindsets. From
Ranveer Singh to Miley
Cyrus to Jaden Smith
sporting dresses to
Bruce Jenner liberating
the Caitlyn within
himself, they have all become symbols of
genderfluidity.
As society propagates the concept
of a gender-fluid identity, the fashion
industry works to satiate a want for
gender-less clothing. Girls are seen
donning ‘boyfriend jeans’, boys too touch
up their make-up time to time. The
term ‘boyfriend jeans’ however, would
be controversial in today’s time. It again
associates one with a gender, perhaps due
to the silhouette and appearance. The
shift towards a gender-less identity aims
to avoid any labelization of masculine
or feminine. Fashion is no longer about
physical appearance but also acts as a
medium of self-expression.
Worldwide there’s a smattering of
designers, labels, brands and even
department stores ready to ride the tide.
Selfridges made way for an ‘Agender’
section with clothes from labels like Rick
Owens and Comme Des Garcons.
Zara launched an ‘Ungendered’
capsule collection incorporating gender-
free clothing. TillyandWilliam make
gender deviant multipurpose garments
that complement a person’s personal
sense of aesthetic. Nicola Formichetti not
only takes an ungendered approach with
designs for Diesel, his brand Nicopanda
had men wearing sheer tops, frilly skirts
and dresses as well.
Jaden Smith was recently made the
face of Louis Vuitton womenswear.
“He represents a generation that has
assimilated the codes of true freedom,
one that is free of manifestos and
questions about gender,” said Louis
Vuitton’s creative director Nicolas
Ghesquière. Alessandro Michele, Gucci’s
creative director, took a bold stance and
sent men and women down the ramp
in hot pink suits and pussy-bow tops
transcending gender differences with the
gender of most models being ambiguous.
Be it designers or brands like
Purushu Arie, Lovebirds, Dhruv Kapur,
Christopher Kane’s, Rad Houran,
Burberry Prorsum, Acne Studios,
Todd Lynn and Sibling the list is
endless and its only getting longer.
Other corners of the fashion world
are also joining the movement
questioning archaic gender rules
with advertisements, campaigns,
editorials and magazines welcoming
transgender models and gender-
fluid clothing. Clothing marketed
and identified by a binary gender
system (male or female) may
become obsolete in the time to
come.
The goal is to be a part of a
collective that supports you
for who you are and lets you
be an individual the way you
want. To give you a channel
to find yourself by being given
the freedom to be yourself.
While change doesn’t happen
overnight, the seeds have been
sown to rethink, reinvent and
redefine fashion.
ARTSY COMMUNICATION
Young Mumbai artists have chosen
taxi interior as their canvas
PAGE : 4
TREND ALERT
Urban Nomad crosses the social
gender barriers
PAGE : 2
GENDERLESS MELODY
Androgynous culture cherished by
music icons for over 100 years
PAGE : 3
GREENER INDIA
Creative minds are leading India
towards a better eco-friendly future
PAGE : 4
BANNING BINARY
The InformerBecause the world wants to know.
Price- Rs. 10/-
Jaden smith captioned a photo of himself in a dress saying “Went to TopShop to
buy some girl clothes, I mean ‘clothes.’”
AALIYA GUJRAL
“I was fascinated about
drapes and picked up the
saree, I use it as a form of
gender fluidity, For me
it’s more about expresiing
what i love rather than being
feminine or masculine.”
-Himanshu Verma
Mon
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Wed
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Thu
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Model : Aveek Mitra
Styled and photograped by Aaliya Gujral,
Harshubh Kaur and Meher Bindra

2. People today move around a lot more than the previous
generations. It has become easier to move overseas for work
or studies. This trend of travelling has resulted in a lifestyle
shift towards working on the go which in turn has given
birth to the concept of an urban nomad. An urban nomad is
someone who doesn’t wish to live a routine and mundane
life with a permanent address and instead opts to live in
miscellaneous locations around the world and prefers to just
keep moving.
Traditionally nomads used to travel to find basic
necessities for survival like food and shelter, but the urban
nomad on the contraire travels to find work spaces. These
globe trotters wander from place to place in search of a
new experience (no matter good or bad) and the next
major career opportunity. The notion of an urban nomad
is that of a hardworking and creative class living in our
cities. They adopt a 24/7/365 lifestyle, creating their
own opportunities and spaces to work
and live. To sustain this lifestyle the
essential needs of an urban nomad
go beyond the basic requirements of
air, shelter, food and water to include
Wi-Fi connection, innovative forms of
travel, relaxed natural habitats and the
freedom to be themselves.
The modern urban nomad has an
interesting relationship with gadgets,
they usually own a mobile phone,
laptop and camera which help them
maintain contacts through social
media, manage their work and travel,
stay connected with the world and
be completely self sufficient. These
gadets are lightweight, multifunctional
and far less cumbersome than most
other belongings. Following the
principle of minimalism they tend
to live in compact spaces with bare
essentials. The same applies for their
clothing which tends to be comfortable,
unrestricted, minimal and casual. They
could easily associate with the rising
trend of genderless clothing in fashion
which is also built on the foundation
of comfort, individuallity, freedom of
choice and a radical shift in mindset.
A demand for the freedom to form
your own identity unbound by societal
constraints has resulted in the fashion
industry responding with a trend to
remove restrictive genderism from
clothing. This non-binary trend is
rooted in the concept of clothing
for the human and not the gender.
Clothing made to fullfill the basic
necessities and help enrich your life
rather than simply being ostentatious,
holding you back and binding you to
predictated rules of gender specific
behaviour.
The aim of these garments is not to
make women more masculine or men
more feminine. Instead the aim is to
altogether abolish the characterisation
of feminine or masculine based on
appearance and structure. The attempt
is to make fashion less binary and more
inclusive and accomodating of diverse
gender expressions and identities.
While gender division in western
wear has always been evident, in
Indian attire garments have often been
donned and altered by both sexes.
The male dhoti is quite similar to a
nauvari Maharashtrian sari, men are
often spotted wearing a skirt like lungi,
kings and queens have both worn
jewelry and turbans, anarkalis worn
by Sufi dancers and a classic morjari
or kholapuri chapal are all perfect
examples of gender-fluidity. Indian
designers are not far from latching onto
this new trend going back to our roots
to derive differing forms of inspiration to reimagine and
recreate a blend of nonconforming indo western garments.
Clothing that can be seamlessly worn by both women
and men and are liberating for those who seek to define
their individuality. From Varun Bahl and JJ Valya to R V
Purusothaman and Lovebirds this trend is spreading through
the veins of this industry. They wish to redefine distinctive
style in the truest sense of the word. Enabling the audience
to liberate their views & come out of clichéd concepts of
style and fashion.
People need to broaden their mindset and give everyone
the freedom to choose their lifestyle. The motive is to cause
disruption in the mindset of people to free them from the
constant struggle faced to conform to societal perception.
The urban nomad much like the trend of genderless fashion
wishes to lead a life of uncensored curiosity void of any
judgments. The lifestyle of a nomad is fun and is generally
an endless journey of constant change that brings you from
one experience to the next, enriching and enlightening your
life, making you feel alive.
People and information are moving faster than ever
before, a New York minute has become a minute too long,
even ‘change’ is mimicking this rapid pace. You see a
shift not only in lifestyle but also in the mindset of people
today. They work to push boundaries, question rigid
beliefs and intellectually challenge not only society but
even themselves. They strive to regain control over their
individuality and shun preset definitions and stigmatization.
They want to be comfortable with who they are, how they
live, what they wear and want the right to make that choice
for themselves. Functionality and individuality are of greater
value than conforming to what’s conventionally appropriate.
People are finally taking back the right to choose.
NEO NON CONFORMIST
Neo nomads venture into the uncharterd territory of genderfluidity.
AALIYA GUJRAL . HARSHUBH KAUR
“I quit my boring corporate
job to live an adventurous
nomadic life.I still work
actively to be able to fund my
trips. I hope to inspire people,
to come out of their cozy zone
to discover the globe and live
a little for themselves.” - Shivya
Nath, Blogger
2
The Informer
Model : Rishi Raj
Styled and photograped by Aaliya Gujral, Aveek Mitra, Harshubh Kaur and
Meher Bindra
Model : Rishi Raj
Styled and photograped by Aaliya Gujral, Aveek Mitra, Harshubh Kaur and
Meher Bindra

3. t’s an old nature of fashion to blend two of the main
existing rather socially accepted genders in our society
by removing the and thin line between male and
female clothing. Since 1920 when Coco Chanel decided
to liberate women from the crinoline and
illogically accentuated waistline she borrowed
fabrics and silhouette from menswear only
and made pantsuit, tweed jacket for women.
Genderless fashion is not about cross-dressing,
it is a more functional form of new age clothing.
Over the past years we have seen ample
amount of influences of androgynous culture
on music industry. Celebrating same sex love
or freedom of unconventional relationship has
started around mid-1930s with blues divas Bessie Smith,
Lucille Bogan and ‘Ma’ Rainey. These blues singers
were arguably the first one to have the guts to talk
about lesbian love in their songs.
Along with the designers who wanted to give fashion an
another vision, music industry were always up for putting
their step forward against orthodox social norms, binary
gender based ethics. Ever since in late 50s Elvis Presley
started wearing liner to cherish his clean metrosexual look
people started taking it further. Till then androgynous
fashion was just associated with woman stepping into
menswear in order to find comfort and free themselves
against social boundaries.
In late 60s a counter cultural movement started in
London named ‘The Peacock Movement’ where rockstars,
pop icons like jimi Hendrix, mick jagger, David Bowie
started liberating their own self through various experiment
in their attire leaving all inhibition behind. They challenged
the social conformity and rigid gender stereotype in terms
of clothes and relationship. They started embracing their
feminine side without putting their masculinity or sexual
orientation in question. Even in 80s Iconic popstar Prince
just redefined the image of a male pop icon with his slender
hips clad either in a jumpsuit or exotic Go go boots. But still
he used to be considered one of most desirable sexy men.
These men tried to blur the stereotypical line between two
genders by keeping their own self alive.
Even in early 90s Nirvana’s
lead singer Kurt Cobain’s new age
heterosexual take by leaving the macho
man image generated an effective path
for todays’ LGBT revolution. In recent
times Lady Gaga’s alter ego and her
tribute to David Bowie has evoked
the gender fluidity in our society in a
different way.
The immense participation of music industry in
androgynous culture created an effective boost for
legalization of homosexuality in many countries. Let’s have
a look at the most iconic music stars from past who has
encouraged androgynous culture through their creative
expression and clothing.
GENDERLESS MELODY
I
Since 1960 legendary inspirations from the music industry have changed the way we look at genderless fashion.
Their liberating ideology towards life works as a stimulus for new age androgynous movement.
One of the major influential persons in peacock
movement is David Bowie, an English songwriter
and a famous singer of popular music. At least
through five decades during his active career he had
set a new definition of any pop icon’s image by his
unconventional aesthetic choice . His androgynous
alter ego ziggy stardust has created some iconic
instance in fashion history. Be it his blue eyeshadow
in his famous music video ‘Life on Mars’ or his
asymmetrical jumpsuit he rocked all his unusual
fashion moment.His red mullet, gold circle makup and specially the long hair
was a completely unseen take on masculine beauty. Bowie’s look has been an
inspiration for many designers like Alexander Mcqueen, Miu Miu, Givenchy, Jean
paul Gaultier.
Another victim of peacock movement in 60s was
the lead singer and co-founder of famous rock band
‘The Rolling Stone’ Mick Jagger. His androgynous
appeal and daring acceptance of his drug addiction
made him the real poster boy for sex, drug and rock
& roll. A very unusual kind of sexuality had been
explored by Jagger during 60s through his extremely
chic mod attire on his pretty lean figure. His fashion
choices which includes unconventional colors like
pink, green; shaggy style hair and excessively tight
clothing like hip skimming jeans and poets blouse
(more like a girl’s cropped top or girl’s blouse) made
him a significant icon for androgynous fashion in music industry.
MICK JAGGER GRACE JONES
DAVID BOWIE
Prince was an American singer and songwriter famous
for variety of musical style including pop, rock, funk
and R&B. His experiments in clothing with feminine
embellishment on his metrosexual lean physique made
him distinctive amongst other pop icons. The way he
adopted the use of mascara and liner, his go go boots
and sometimes high heels or his slender hips clad with
jumpsuit made his image vulnerable, but not really
feminine. Apart from all these his seductive performance
in bikini bottoms, his worth watching dance and the way
he played his guitar made him consciously desirable with
a completely different sex appeal. He had that guts to
see androgynous clothing from a completely different perspective and present it as an
unconventional form of masculine attire.
PRINCE
Grace Jones is a Jamaican singer, lyricist, supermodel
and actress. She is considered to be one of the most
influential personality in fashion still now because of her
distinctive fierce femininity with a bold masculine vibe.
She is the perfect rebel to question the society about using
women as only a commercial sex object. Her personality
never said that she’s not a woman; but she’s a woman who
is beyond just being objectified like other pop icon through
their sensuality. Her signature flattop hair, 80s broad
shouldered suit and androgynous appeal makes her an
effective inspiration for gender blending fashion.
Kurt Cobain was an American singer, best known
as the lead singer, guitarist of the rock band ‘Nirvana’.
Everybody knows how Nirvana has changed vision of
rock music with their soft handed masculinity which
says men can also cry over pain, masculinity is not
only an arm racing game. Kurt Cobain was spotted in
babydoll dress with liner and his iconic locks in order
to challenge the grunge trend by pairing up tiaras and
women’s retro sunglasses. This approach led him to
move beyond the so called image of a rock legend by questioning the pre-decided gender
norms. They never wanted to be indicated by their sex appeal, they always wanted to
break the binaristic barriers like their songs.
KURT COBAIN LADY GAGA
Popstar Lady Gaga is never afraid to choose an avant
garde image for herself without thinking about the
acceptance of this society. If the question comes for
androgynous clothing she has unveiled her male alter
ego Jo Calderon for the the first time in stylist Nicola
Formichetti’s debut collection for Mugler menswear
for Vogue hommes japan’s cover in 2010. Gaga reprised
her alter ego again for her ‘you & I’ video. Her non-
conformist and carefree mindset towards fashion which
only talks about being yourself is appropriately justified to free spirited androgynous
fashion. It makes her one of the major boost for new age genderless revolution.
Late 60s : The Peacock Movement 80s : Power packed androgyny
90s : Grunge Aesthetic 2010 : Gaga over everything
“I have a very strong male side, which I
developed to protect my female side. If I
want a diamond necklace I can go and buy
myself a diamond necklace.”-Grace Jones
“I love Grace Jones and David Bowie because they both played
with gender and with what ‘sexy’ means.” -Lady Gaga in Maxim Interview, 2008
Credit : selvedgeyard.com
Credit : chron.com
Credit : thefashionisto.com
Credit : mtv.com Credit : wordpress.com
Credit : rollingout.com
AVEEK MITRA
TI
3
The Informer

4. Along with expensive couture collection fashion is also
about what people are wearing or want to wear in their
daily life while struggling for the whole day in order to
earn the basic needs
for life. Be it luxury or
pret collection, in the
world fashion scenario
there’s always an urge
for making fashion
more effective and
nature friendly for
a better future of
mankind.
In the similar context Adidas has taken an initiative
in collaboration with a nonprofit organization ‘Parley
for the ocean’, for cleaning up ocean pollution by using
them in making their footwear and garments. They have
converted all the plastics waste found under sea and the
coastal areas into fabric by knitting them together using
a technique called ‘Tailored Fabric Placement’. Adidas
have used the recycled plastic fabric for making their
new collection of shoe. The upper portion of that shoe is
made out of ocean plastic and the mid sole is 3d printed
with polymide and gillnet content.
Similar type of
instance have been
set by the world’s first
haptic technology
footwear ‘Lachel’
designed by Ducere,
India’s first wearable
technology company
from Hyderabad.
Their special shoes allow visually disabled people
to move around confidently as the GPS technology
Implanted in the shoe will take them to their desired
destination safely. The technology behind this cutting
edge innovation is Haptic Technology which uses
vibrations to indicate directions while walking.
In India designers like Paromita Banerjee,
Abraham & Thakore, Amit Aggarwal have
used recycle as a core element in their
creation. Amazon India Couture
Week 2015 was awestruck at
Paromita Banerjee’s ‘Boro
2’ collection where she
showcased garment made
of several small pieces of
discarded fabric with
different colors and
textures. Abraham &
Thakore had used x-ray
plate from hospital waste
to moulds for sequins
and then used those for
ornamentation along
with caps of coke cans
on the garment’s border.
Amit Aggarwal presented
his collection made
using industrial wastes,
his collection included
asymmetrical tops and tunics,
separates and the iconic straw
skirt. According to Livemint.com
Abraham said “We show one collection a
year but like to start some conversation
from our design space”
At the same time Suzanne
Lee, Founder of Biocouture
Ltd, is heading the world’s
first bio design consultancy
firm focused on embracing
nature rather than
dominating it by bringing
living and biological
materials into fashion.
She has developed a process of growing microbial
material in a mixture of green tea, sugar and yeast to
create a completely natural, 100% compostable
product. “This is a method of fashion which is
closer to brewing beer,” Lee says. The material
can be dried, cut and sewn together to make
clothes.
Even Ably
Apparel
has created
revolution
by making
water repellent
fabric. They
have inflexed
filium with
their garment’s
fabric which
turns their fabric into water shedding, stain-
resisting and odor refusing without losing
the natural features of the fabric. This logic
is applicable to any kind of natural fabric like
cotton, silk. This concept reduces the amount
of laundry and allows you to use same garment for a
whole long time without getting dirty or unhygienic.
These productive approaches by several brands from
different countries are definitely pushing the entire
world towards a more functional and truly sustainable
future for fashion.
In India art has always been used as a
form of communication through its own
individual way. But the commercial
showcase of communicative art might
not be very effective in this country.
Most of the time it has been restricted
within a particular art enthusiast social
groups in exhibitions or some other
mediums.
In Mumbai a group of designers
have recently taken such initiative
where applied art gets a little more
exposure to the society. ‘Taxifabric’, the
group of 30 young designers are using
Mumbai taxi’s interior as their canvas
for showcasing their graphic talent and
making communicative art closer to
‘The People’ of Mumbai by revamping
the taxi interior at the same time.
Up until now they have launched
36 taxis which narrates several stories
ranging from Bollywood to indian
freedom fighters, from mumbai’s very
own dabbawalas to their own childhood
memories like moments spent at juhu
chowpatty.
Their initiative has given
contemporary designers a great pathway
to showcase their creativity. At the same
time ‘Taxifabric’ is giving mumbai’s
one of the most convenient and popular
transport mediums an individuality
which is extremely Indian and close to
their heart.
Eco friendly
nature has always
been desirable by
humans since the
beginning of the
world. Few years
back technological
advancement used
to be liable for the
destruction of natural
balance. But now
people have started
using technology to save this planet.
People like Prof. Rajagopalan Vsudevan,
known as ‘plastic man of India’ has
generated a new process of using plastic
in making streets. By mixing waste plastic
with bitumen in a chemical process
he made the required mixture for road
making and this process reduced the use of
bitumen also. He has already paved 3000
miles of streets using plastic waste in 11
different states in India. This invention is
extremely effective for reducing pollution
since making one street involves a huge
amount of plastic waste which results
in removing the plastic pollution from
society.
Another example of green living has
been set by Priyashri Mani and Nishita
Vasanth who have left their cement
constructed home to live in their self-made
mud house in Kodaikanal. Ample amount
of research and creative use of technology
have helped them to make their dream
house to be built without any construction
workers. Yes! They have created their own
house with several kind of waste materials
which includes old tyres, cement sacks
and organic products like mud, cowdung ,
lime plaster for plaster.
Though humans have started using
science long time back, these inventions
justify the true power of technology and
science.
Credit : Mayur Mengle , Niqita Gupta & Siddharth Samant
Credit : Thestashed.com
Credit : Biocouture Ltd, photo
Credit : Biocouture Ltd, photo
Credit : Thebetterindia.com
“We show one collection
a year but like to start
some conversation from
our design space” - David
Abraham at Livemint.com
“We wanted to have the experience of working
manually”-Priyashri Mani at Thebetterindia.com
EFFECTIVE RENEWAL
ARTSY COMMUNICATION GREENER INDIA
Creating fashion out of nothing has become a regular nature of World Fashion Lexicon
Bunch of young talented artists from Mumbai are using
taxi interior as their canvas
Simple & creative thoughts by some people are
changing the way of living in India
AVEEK MITRA . MEHER BINDRA
Credit : Twitter
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AVEEK MITRA . MEHER BINDRA
AVEEK MITRA . MEHER BINDRA
4
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The Informer
Credit : Mayur Mengle , Niqita Gupta & Siddharth Samant