27:24 it's a chikankari kurti made using georgette fabric, it's the THE IT GIRL outfit in India, and the style of the kurti is native to Lucknow not Lahore lmao
Even TV soaps have better sence of fashion. It might sound rude but when I see NRI Indians then I realize from where all the stereotypes about so called ugly Indians is coming from. When I see random school going teenagers in India, they look far better than Indian representatives on western midea. And I don't even live in tear 1 city. I live in a small town and children here have better sence of fashion than NRIs.
I feel like the reason NRI fashion sucks is because a lot of them are not aware of the current trends in India and they’re still stuck in the 70s and 80s, perhaps because their only exposure to Indian fashion is their parents.
just one internet search is all it takes , we are not in old times where you will only be aware of the trends if your physically living in that country
@@thewizard555 that assumes that people would like and want to wear the current trends in India specifically because they are in fashion there. NRIs have grown up with certain concepts of Indian fashion, often influenced by their parents and media, and from that evolved their own sense of style which happens to differ from current popular fashion in India. It's fine to dislike NRI fashion as it is, but it's silly to say that they're in the wrong for not "keeping up" with the current trends when their fashion has evolved independently from India's and been influenced by different factors.
Accents, culture, food, etc all work like that too. The US accent of English is closer to the UK’s accents from the time of the colonies than to modern UK speech. Taiwan has many Chinese cultural practices and words that have been outdated in the mainland accents and cousins. And Mexico has Spanish words that people in Spain stopped using ages ago. They aren’t stuck in the past, they just evolved different so the things that where kept and lost are not the same.
NRIs who feature in some American reality TV shows is often seen wearing weird and wacky ethnic outfits which Indians here never even dare to wear it these days
@@RojaJanemanthere's no need to be classist when the tackiest people in India are often the richest. And ur just filled with hatred and rudeness in these comments for some reason? Chill lol
Well yeah NO fashionable/with Dignity/ who have some Sense won't wear but the Dehati community/ beggers(I mean the poors too) would wear those!!! As they don't cares about Fashion etc etc thing...
As an NRI who moved back to India... it took me almost four or five years to start dressing "Normal." I have no idea WHY. But it definitely took time to figure it out. NRIs definitely dress weird, and it's noticeable.
Right!! Same with me. I had totally lost my tolerance for bright color and would only pick greys, navys, blacks or browns. Anything outside of that seemed glaring to me and people kept asking why I was wearing drab colors. Lol, it definitely took a long time to get back to wearing the normal Indian wear and rock them again! Funny though
As someone who grewup in a very desi neighborhood in USA, we can spot a fresh off the boat desi based on their outfit as well. The minimalist style doesn't work in USA desi community because everyone else is blinged out. I know plenty of "fashionable" girls who got married & moved to USA but couldn't fit in. Yes their everyday outfit is elegent but in wedding/parties they looked under dress. Each location has its own style just like NRI and desi have different vibe
tbh im an indian (i mean so are you lol just saying im not an nri) and tbh ya'll mostly dress just fine tbh- that turquiose saree was genuinely pretty and i think ok maybe its the millenial style etc etc etc so dont be too hard on urself tbh (or is it just me because im unable to judge people at all?)
It might sound rude but when I see NRI Indians then I realize from where all the stereotypes about so called ugly Indians is coming from. When I see random school going teenagers in India, they look far better than Indian representatives on western midea. And I don't even live in tear 1 city. I live in a small town and children here have better sence of fashion than NRIs. An Indian born and raised in India is easily distinguishable with an NRI who was born in West.
@@Kera707 Indians in India too wear heavy jewelries but there is a way to wear it. NRIs just have bad sense of fashion. For reference if u see old movies with history drama like "jodha akbar" There too Jodha wears traditional Rajasthani, colourful clothes with jewelries but it does not looks weird at all. In fact it looks extremely beautiful. In new movies as well, like "Ponniyin Selvan: I" they have heavy jewelries but looks gorgeous Even if u Look at wedding dresses of brides in India and in West. Both wear heavy Jewelry yet somehow NRI brides look weirdly dressed. Problem is not heavy clothes or jewelries. Problem is not knowing how to wear it.
People hate it and I thought the outfits were ok but that was because that contrast color style (pastels and small borders) was very popular when the film was made. I know because I owned several contrast coloured block suits/saris with tiny embroidered borders around 2003-2004. As many have pointed out that kind of outfit they were wearing is day wear not evening wear. Evening wear I remember wearing was influenced by Khabhi Khushi Khabhi Ghum, dark colours with small zari gold borders and flared pants.
Well tbh it was planned by british costume designers who just made what they thought Indian clothes were. Their tops literally looked like T-shirts and with some random skirt and scarf with a little bling. It was just embarrassing.
exactly and Hermione dressed way better. When I looked at parvati for the first time wearing that weird combination, i thought why are indians shown wearing weird color combination which we normally don't wear. They always choose wrong color combinations and most of the colors they choose are the brightest eye pearsing colors, or they are simply the shiniest clothes ew
I think the reason why there is vitriol against NRIs dressing in a “tacky” way because they get more of a presence in international media to represent Indian culture, if you’re gonna represent Indian culture it’s better that you get it right. Indian Fashion has been the backbone of the world. Textiles from india have been worn by egyptian royalty, european royalty and asian royalty for thousands of years, Part of European colonisation in India was as a a result of textiles. Therefore, NRIs have a responsibility to get it right. Indian textiles are expensive for a reason. But if NRIs just want to classify what they are wearing has uniquely become indian american culture or whatever I would personally be fine with it. I think it’s important to make that distinction
It doesn't make sense they are human not representive officially and house and a lot of things they wear are not original indian fashion but fashion of past after invaders
I mean no one has any responsibility to “get it right”, whether we classify outdated Indian clothing as uniquely Indian American or not. People can wear what they want 🤷♀️ We never signed up for any job to be anyone’s representative and u ain’t paying for our clothes anyways.
@@Dhfhucudu unfortunately because many non Indians end up believing that what u wear is actual Indian clothes, they start mocking our culture and many Indians abroad and online get bullied by being compared to those NRIs. If u can't do it properly then don't do it at all.
Y'all know that theory abt immigrants being like a time capsule of their cultures?? And they hold on to traditions closer while their home countries continue to change? Yh I personally felt that when I went back home and couldn't properly communicate with my cousins cuz of all the new slangs, and I've grown up there most of my life and only been overseas for like 4 years... worst feeling ever, but it is what it is
Omg. Girl you gave me goosebumps. Every 2-5 years I go back to taste and relive the nostalgia I had been romanticising for so long. My cousins have moved on from it, so it seems very strange to us. It all understandable but we're in time capsule.
Someone finally said it.... Devi saree gosh ! Am from tamilnadu, we have wide range of silk saree from different districts! Colours have no boundaries! When i saw her in that saree , am like its way too old fashioned!
OMG the sarees from Tamil Nadu are ELITE, you hear me? ELITE! There is a way to do colorful and vibrant saree drapes...unfortunately we need a lot of education on how that is done lol
@@KarraMeansSpicyso girl there's two types of blouses, front open and back open. The front open one you wore at the end is SUPPOSED to be worn with a saree or dhavni (lehenga) which covers your chest in either single or multiple pleats. (single pleats is seen in bollywood heroines a lot, the multiple pleated one is more traditional, but looks amazing on young girls) Anyway if you wanna wear the blouse with just jeans (which is still an abomination if not paired with high waist jeans, because it's not 2000s anymore) then wear a back open blouse or a side open blouse which has zips/hooks on the back or side. These are called designer blouses. The one you wore is very "aunty". When we wear lehenga with no dupatta or a dupatta not covering our chest, we usually go for these options. Hope this helps and sorry if i was a bit too harsh, i really think nri fashion is too tacky
this is another valid point!!! The shop that I like to go to, the one where I bought the chikankari kurti, she regularly gets shipments from India so I can count on her to stock up-to-date clothing. Other places, however, I wouldn't be shocked if they were selling the same wedding and Diwali ensembles that they were selling in 2004... you know, 20 years ago...
@@KarraMeansSpicyActually even if its 20yrs or 30yrs old still it can be customized at local tailor shop(which I don't know wheather you guys have access to😅) & style accordingly....There are some classic combos which never goes out of style, in fact some celebrities opting for their mother's outfit for their special days Actually makes me happy because they have huge influence on our youth....Its more about age-appropriate fashion to me because the same saree can be worn/styled differently both for an aunty as well as a young girl...Doesn't matter the fashion of the outfit is 20yrs old or 100yrs old... There are plenty of YT videos of infulencers who give tips & tricks on how to recycle age old clothes😅
I'm surprised NRIs only discovered in 2022 that sadly their ethnic fashion sense is way off. Ive been seeing it since the 90s. It's all basically very loud and crass, I'm sorry to say, although I don't mean to be rude. And ive noticed that NRIs don't choose clothes that (classically and not by trend alone) fit well, are styled well and are suitable to each person's skin colour and body type.
After watching your clothes collection, I'd say the best ones are the ones your mom chose. The turquoise-ish one you didn't like is actually pretty good. The lavender full set was also beautiful. But the kurtas turned into summer dresses are the ones that really give NRI vibes. Kurtas and dresses have different fits, so no Indian would wear a kurta as a dress because kurtas look like kurtas and therefore incomplete without the bottoms whereas short dresses are fitted well and distinctly look like dresses even if the style is a loose fit. But yes the concert outfit kinda-sorta works because it's black and blue.
I completely agree with the last paragraph!! I think the problem here isn't the fact that they wear outdated clothes, *even I wear some of my mom's old clothes and they look absolutely beautiful*- It's more about the style, colour, and what suits and looks the best on their body, and because they have so few options to choose from, they sadly have to opt for those clothes.. they are so ill fitted and look super uncomfortable!!
I think the fit is because at least in America we don’t have much of a culture of personally tailoring our clothes. It’s crazy to me that you can order clothes with custom tailoring on desi clothing sites, idk most Americans just buy things as is and if it doesn’t fit, most of us can’t sew or wouldn’t bother to get it tailored
NRI still wears that long komolika bindi 😅I mean we Indian girls forget when is the last time we wore that,...in short yes most of the NRI wore very tacky clothes like costumes
@@kittygirl_thetortie498they are wearing it because they think thats how Indians do ,not for a personal taste..but still if they look good its fine then but most people dont its just a over dramatic look used in Indian TV serials😂
You have a very self deprecating personality, which made this video very balanced and pleasant. My 2 cents on the debate - as an Indian who spent 5 years in the US, I think NRIs will do better if they can identify the beauty of hand embroidery and hand work, traditional fabrics and dyes, as opposed to machine embroidery, machine work and cheap synthetic fabrics and chemical dyes. (Totally get you on the financial implication though) If any NRI feels tacky, they can pretty much pick up any authentic handloom material or handloom outfit from India, and they can rest assured it is not going to be tacky and will be extremely good taste!
I could be completely off here, but I always assumed that the outfits with mirrorwork, sequins, rhinestones, beads, etc were all done by hand? Either way, this is good advice and I will look out for more hand-made pieces in the future (for another video perhaps...)
i think these days we mix or give a touch of gen z style to indian clothes like short kurti with baggy jeans we keep up with western pop culture and indian pop culture but NRIs still stuck in their parent's generation👀
The thing is that as an NRI I mainly wear western clothes 99% of the time. The only time I’m not is at the temple or if I’m invited to a wedding or special occasion. None of the times is it appropriate to mix match short Kurti with baggy jeans. The people who mix match that type of stuff get looked down upon. It’s considered trashy. Both white and NRI will think you came straight from India.
@@bratumn exactly your from India. The culture and what’s appropriate is different. You have to look presentable in front of others at the temple. I know in India a lot people go to the temple every day and any time of the day, so it’s a lot more casual. But going to a place once a week, it’s not as relaxed and theirs a dress code.
@komalpreetbrar7740 And what about boho chic fashion? Indo western? White people literally degrade us for our clothes and then use our clothes and ideas to make themselves feel better?
NRIs are quite behind than the current trends in India. That’s why it looks out of fashion. But that’s to be expected. I haven’t seen any women wear cheetah or animal print saree in my life around me. I would never wear an animal print saree ever. We also don’t wear kurtas as dress .The patterns are different on kurta and dress.
The thing about the inferiority complex - I don't think it's true for everyone. I would say Indian society is VERY judgemental and NRIs are just thought of as a "different sort of Indian" and so are judged if they dress "poorly" according to people in the motherland. And one other reason why NRI ethnic fashion is considered tacky by people (apart from the judgmental aspect of it) is because immigrants who moved out of India in the 70s and 80s haven't had the chance to evolve with Indian culture through the decades. Instead, they've gotten more attached to the culture that they grew up with (in absence of it in the country that they moved to) and have stuck to it even more ardently than ever.
I think the second reason is also true for movies too cause if you ask an NRI their favourite movie they say something like kuch kuch hota hai not something recent
I think that if you can get some wide leg jeans or trousers under all those kurtis, you won't need to turn them into sundresses. Add some boho jewelry and your casual indian fits are ready
Exactly, they don’t have the neckline or sleeves to work as a sundress. The fit is wrong too. Put some baggy jeans or palazzos with it, fit the sleeves and you’re good to go
All i suggest is a well fitted kurtas/saree blouses specially near the sleeves/shoulder areas. That's the main reason for the "tackiness". I rarely ever wear traditionals without alterations. Also, those cotton tops/kurtas need to be ironed before you wear them. Also for the love of almighty, don't wear saree blouses as crop tops over jeans, nobody has the rizz to pull that off!!
@@KarraMeansSpicyohh no the girl is right, it’s the worst combo of all. Blouse is not a crop top (mostly because of lace, pattern, cut and fitting type is not meant to be worn like that) n m not hating, being genuinely concerned. Also why Indian find this combo weird is cause blouse is meant to be half covered with saree or dupatta else it gives exposing or half naked vibe) .. hope I was able to explain. Tip--u can wear long jacket style of similar translucent fabric over the blouse or drape half saree or dupatta style
@@KarraMeansSpicy I absolutely agree with the person above me, and I mean this with love girl, but you only see a blouse at that stage while still dressing up or while undressing- there's many crop tops and garments that exist that are more revealing and look phenomenal, but with a garment like a blouse which is *meant* to be covered in that way (so much so they put the hooks on the front so it's not visible when draped on with the sari) it just *feels* more naked. So even if it looks good and the colours go well too, it just feels incomplete. I think you looked absolutely great on all of the garments you showed in this video! Just got thrown off on your last fit XD I would suggest styling perhaps a different kind of blouse that doesn't have tight sleeves all the way to the elbow and/or one without hooks on the front. Loved the video, keep it up!
The issue with that is that unlike India, it’s not at all the norm for clothing stores to offer tailoring and alterations as complimentary, so you have to go to a third party and it’s often expensive and time consuming (taking at least a week or two, not ready in two days). Well fitted is hard to do sometimes.
YES YES YESSSS!! As soon as i saw it i was like hmm this looks familiar, then i came across this comment and i was like Yes Exactly!! You were spot on lol
Check out Siddhartha Bansal, then! His designs are soooo fun and colourful, yet not at all tacky. Although they are like, super pricey, they're nice to look at.
Oh yeah, totally. My cousin was visiting, I took her to Lajpat Nagar. She had a blast. Unfortunately she was basically robbed a day before at W. Don't get me wrong I love W. But I'm never paying that full price when I can get basically the same thing for half price elsewhere.
@@simransimran9339 Thee only time I buy at W is when they have a 70% of sale and that too only if it is a very fancy, never before seen piece. So far I have only one skirt from W that I got through an online clearance sale
This is a great point, but worth pointing out that Indians from India wearing western clothes show a similar level of ostentatiousness. Lots of logos, brand names, bright colors, exaggerated styles. When they’re wearing western clothes, they want everyone around them to KNOW they are wearing western clothes - in the same way NRIs wearing indian wear want people to know when they’re in Indian clothes. Pretty easy to tell when people are wearing clothes to perform, vs when they wear for fit, practicality or comfort.
ok this is spot on, I never really noticed this pattern, how some Indians tend to do the same thing with Western clothes. I think we all have a part of ourselves that wants to dress to impress others, rather than dress practically.
Nah. Indians wear Western cloths because they are comfortable period. And most of these are not western ,it's just modern fasion after globalization. And no one wears logos here, it's only in some music videos or influencers where you collected data for. And as for colors, it's only because we are indians and we like colors. It's simply cultural diffrence where west prefers less colors and Indians prefer more. Infact western cloths are so common in India that we wear ethnic only during family functions, ethnic days in colleges and works. Only place Indians wear ethnic daily is those soap operas
This is such a good point. Really highlights how your everyday environment shapes your taste in fashion. NRIs wear western clothes more authentically because that’s our real everyday lived experience. And vice versa with Indians and Indian clothing
I was nodding along to everything she was saying until she brought out her outfits 😂 No girl, there is definitely people with questionable fashion taste. The clothes were giving Thrift store nighties, grandma's carpets and tacky Disco ball. The Fazals and blue indo western fit were gorgeous tho 💯 and the "marriageable" girl fits were Okay except for the lilac. Pastel "baby" shades don't suit our brown skin. I can't even with the Last one 🤣
I'll take "grandma's carpet" and "tacky disco ball" (I might even get t shirts made with those captions written across the bust), but I am a strong proponent of wearing color, regardless of whether it suits one's skin color or not
The lilac one looked amazing. You do what you do, that’s all. And agree with what everyone was saying, maybe pair those kurta dresses with jeans, it’ll look great.
You're so on the money about pastels, I had to learn it the hard way when I moved to Pakistan and got more access to desi clothing. Still, I CANNOT give up on pastel blue.
NRIs feel pressured to cater to the Westerner gaze. With all the stereotypical "colors" and "exoticism" and "Bollywood-inspired" wedding wear marketed to them online as "Indian" or "Desi". What's "Desi" abroad is "clothes" back home.
Maybe they are catering to their own gaze? Its not like they where raised in or consume the same consumer culture as most people in India. The western gaze IS their own gaze.
As a South Indian, middle-class NRI from Texas, USA, I think I understand why our traditional fashion might sometimes be perceived as tacky. Here are some key reasons: Just letting Y'all know this is my take on one particular group of Indian Community in a particular part of USA. Limited occasions and climate challenges: Many Tamil Americans, including myself, don’t have a large blood family living in the USA, so our social circles are often our found families. This means there aren’t many opportunities, like weddings, large family gatherings, or poojas where we can wear Indian attire. Most NRIs return to India for their weddings, and with the high cost of plane tickets, it's tough to justify traveling just for a single event for a friend you are not that close with. Additionally, we usually wear Indian clothes only during festivals like Diwali and Pongal, but these often fall in colder months. We might put on our lehenga, kurta, or sari for an hour to take pictures, but then we change into more comfortable "Winter Western clothes." This only happens if we’re part of a friend group that celebrates these festivals together. And if these festivals fall on a weekday, school, college, or work can make it hard to celebrate, so by the weekend, the festive spirit may have faded, leaving little motivation to dress up. Cost and practicality: Indian clothes can be expensive in the USA, so most of us have a limited wardrobe, usually selected by our parents. These choices often reflect older fashion trends from the early 2000s, where modesty was emphasized in traditional Indian dressing. As a result, we tend to wear daily wear kurtis more often because they’re comfortable, and with so few functions or pujas to attend, we might repeat outfits for only a few hours. This reality doesn’t encourage us to stay updated with the latest fashion trends. Additionally, in some areas of Texas, wearing traditional Indian attire could draw unwanted attention or even hostility (Thanks a lot Trump), so we often opt for clothing that feels safer like Kurthas that many people know about. In conclusion, I hope that those in India can understand that NRIs from USA have their own unique challenges when it comes to maintaining traditional fashion. While India has a vibrant and diverse fashion scene, our circumstances in the USA shape our fashion choices differently. It’s not about neglecting our culture; it’s about adapting to the environment we live in. So, before judging, try to see things from our perspective and appreciate the different ways we navigate our identity. Adios, and Have a great day y'all.
@@toraccess Last I checked, South India’s been part of India for more than a millennium, but thanks for the geography lesson. Maybe instead of trying to rewrite history, you could learn to appreciate the diversity that makes India amazing.
Honestly, as a 20 year old girl born and brought up in India, desi fashion is going to the stores with your mum and her side-eyeing everything until you find something she likes lmao and having the poor store clerks open at least 30 different fabrics when you go fabric shopping for a new Diwali fit. And mum trying to squeeze gold bangles you got when you were a kid, through your adult-sized hands lmao
I am not Indian so I cannot comment on the taste aspect, however I am a medium skilled home sewer and the two things that struck me about your wardrobe were fabric weight and fit: You seem to have a taste for what my latin american self would call a raised or empire like waistline (rather than a cinched waistline, that is prevalent in my culture so that bit was quite fascinating) and in general the ones you didn't like was because they didn't fit well in the chest area for lack of darts. I also noticed the ones you really loved (even though idk if they had bust darts) had very heavy embroidery work on top of that area or overall forcing the fabric to fall more flatteringly both around there and beyond kind of replacing the shaping by darts. In my personal opinion you could easily alter them yourself by hand. But otherwise maybe you just need help from a tailor or just choose heavier/more embroidered fabrics going forward. You can dye the ones you dislike the colours of too, nowadays you just need a washing machine. Dye rarely catches on embroidery thread and usually cannot cover patterns so you can preserve that too. It was great learning more about the differences and also that my home country isn't the only one going through this cultural divide of homeland vs overseas. Love your channel and as always: great make up!
@@KarraMeansSpicy if dye will help the Heavy Metal Desi vision come to life, then I think you should join the dark side. Three months ago I turned a rust orange cotton gauze dress into a lovely muted navy colour and I refuse to go back! Next up all my greens/yellows will be a lovely olive green rather than emerald or poopy brown, I will be unstoppable!
I'm an Indian who grew up in India and I didn't really know what you were talking about since my NRI cousins seem to dress fine, but then I saw 5:58 and screamed inside my head. But you see that look in Indian serials as well, usually worn by the mother-in-laws. Though we regularly consider it gaudy as its a costume. Edit: 11:29 This is not invalidating the NRI experience but Indian men LOVE to teach Indian women "sanskaar" and female fashion. This constantly happens here. One guy at my uni told my male classmate "She's showing everything" when I was wearing leggings and a full sleeved shirt. They have rot in their brains. Edit 2: Re: insecurity. I obviously cannot speak for every person who comments on NRI clothing, but from what I've seen, it's the same as my younger NRI cousin who doesn't fit into the Indian culture here because she didn't grow up here. When you go to school, hang out with friends, watch movies, you're part of the system. I can watch Hollywood movies all I want and use American slang, but I can't exactly catch every changing trend that happens because I'm physically not there. And NRI clothing is like a mismatched puzzle piece. It's Indian clothing but without the story we all grew up with, if that makes sense? Obviously you can't judge people for that; NRI clothing is a subset of Indian culture as a whole, after all. Just like you guys can't keep up with us, we can't keep up with you and don't understand the story behind YOUR Indian fashion. It goes both ways.
agreed, essentially I feel like us NRI are missing the context, which is what makes us lack "sophistication" when it comes to putting together Desi outfits. It really is more than "just clothes". Thanks for the input!
Great response. As someone brought up in the Middle East, my NRI experience is smack in the middle of the desi spectrum. I'm fairly on trend regarding desi clothes, but I never have the ease to pull off a sari/lehenga; the minimal desi girl aesthetic - including makeup! - which carries you through an Indian day is hard to capture for outsiders
About 2 decades ago my sister said that it was sad to see all the NRIs visiting India still wearing their grandparents clothes. I used to be very trendy growing up. As an NRI I had to rely on clothes already in my stash. They’re expensive. Cannot keep changing with the seasons. Trends in India are changing much faster in tune with the western world. Love this chat.
I finally got it, it doesn't matter much what top or kurti you're wearing, it's the bottoms. I love me some leggings but if you wanna go for trendy Indian fashion, go for loose fitting bottoms like straight fit/wide leg/tapered/alladin pants lol or just wear a matching lehenga (if you don't have one, just buy a boho long skirt from a thrift store or online) under your kurti i swear it will elevate the kurti itself so much more. Plus points if it matches the kurti and dupatta. It creates a flowy effortless feel.
Next time you're in India, I would definitely check out Anokhi (it's based in Jaipur but has 27 shop locations across India). The clothes there are really gorgeous, and you'll also be able to find more Western silouhettes with Indian-style prints on them (I have a few rompers/overalls and maxi dresses from them which I wear in the UK in the summer as normal outfits all the time). I'm an NRI but I also agree that NRIs desi fashion is generally outdated and tacky. Maybe that's because my parents and I left India in 2002 and my mother still very much keeps up with Indian fashion trends. I've let my non-Indian friends know that if they ever get invited to a desi wedding, I'm gonna go shopping with them because they're not gonna look bad on my watch!
As someone who's born and brought up in India, I definitely have cringed internally whenever I've seen the way NRI actors and actresses dress on TV. Like, no. Please leave that 20 year old fashion behind. But I feel like it's not entirely their fault. When you're living in a region whose culture is so different from your own, you don't really have a reference to bounce off of. I can keep up with the fashion trends because I see everyone wearing those clothes around me everyday. Whether that be simple Kurtis for everyday wear, a suit, salwaar kameez, lehenga choli etc. (In fact, I have more Kurtis to pair with my jeans for every day wear than t-shirts at this point lmao)
A lot of Indian men these days pride themselves on making "dank" comments as a hobby (or full time job, knowing how bad the unemployment rates have been). I love the idea of fusion fashion but there's a good chunk of Indians who prefer traditional wear, mainstream wear, some don't even like Indian fashion. Maybe increase the flare on the sundress along with the shaping?? The pink one looks great! The dark blue and gold one looks a bit too glittery, more formal? It looks like something my teachers would wear back home for teacher's day. Kurtas with pockets go HARD. My favourite lehenga ever had a pocket and I wore it to my farewell (it's Indian prom minus the date) The dupattas look so cute (bring back pastels please). India is not romantic by any means though, just moved abroad and it's ten times safer. There's also been a whole bunch of terrible headlines regarding women's safety and such.
I think the downfall of this Earth will ultimately be because of men with too much time on their hands and no hobbies LMAO Also I LOOK LIKE ONE OF YOUR TEACHERS?!??! brb gonna go burn that kurta real quick And to speak to your last comment, I have been keeping up with the news as best as I can from overseas. It's excruciating to read. There is a lot of Indian culture that I love, but there are things about India that absolutely HAVE to change, and fast.
@@KarraMeansSpicyas a boy I agree. I hate these dank genz, they donot care about other's feeling. They bash color, religion, height, face or literally anything.
Also i think NRIs do not have an intuition for indian prints. Like you people focus A LOT more on silhouette. That's where fashion is screwed up. Its more filling a puzzle piece whatever you have instead of an actual focus on content of it.
Thanks for making this video! I was following the tea on the dietsabya account. I'm a South African Indian. Most of our community comes from a lienage of indentured labour, so other communities like ours in countries such as Fiji, Trinidad and Tobago etc. are left out of these conversations supposedly because we're generations removed from India, however I feel the same costume-y way whenever I wear ethnic clothes. The NRI chat is very interesting from this perspective, too.
I would be very eager to know more about your communities and how you guys stay connected to your Indian heritage! I rarely ever meet people from this sub-section of the Indian diaspora, whether in-person or online, so unfortunately I'm missing that piece from my discussion, but that's what the comments section is for! ;)
@@KarraMeansSpicythe first Indian indentured labourers arrived in South Africa in 1860. They were brought in to work on the sugar plantations, slavery having been banned across the British Empire (of which SA was a part) some 30 years earlier. Mahatma Gandhi started his political career fighting for the rights of Indian South Africans. His grand-daughter was an anti-Apartheid activist and served as a Member of Parliament in Nelson Mandela's govt. Durban was (is?) called the most Indian city outside India
@@KarraMeansSpicyI live in Mauritius, one of the islands where there are descendants of indentured labourers. It used to be very much the same thing, 2000s inspired outfits that were bling-y and kind of tacky. We have more variety now, but the way styling and accessorizing is done is pretty much awful because the dos and don'ts aren't apparent to a lot of us in a if you don't know the rules, you can't break them kind of situation.
This was very interesting and fun to watch. You gave solid reasons for the differences, the two best imo won't be easily forgotten: if you can only wear them to special occasions, but there are (because of culture) no special occasions, then you don't invest time and money into keeping up with its fashion unless it's your wedding. And yeah there's massive overcompensation as with all things related to "non resident X" anyone. The culture is missing from you, and you try to keep it in your life. It might just be tacky but it's an effort to keep the culture instead of forgetting it and there's absolutely no need to be harsh or send personal attacks..
You’re gorgeous! I love your collection. My only 2 cents as an Indian would be to pair the kurtas with wider leg bottoms. The leggings you were wearing are not in trend anymore. Wider/straight fit bottoms are in. I love the altered tshirt and the whole outfit. Love the metal outfit too, v chic. I would also suggest to pair the “dresses” with jeans. The silhouette still says kurta and they look like they’re missing pants😅
@@aishwarya2426 I thought the same thing! I can also see the fuchsia top being paired with a dark blue bell bottom/ flare jean, farrah fawcett esque hair, and a platform heel. Really leaning into a more 70s look.
@@KarraMeansSpicyI think they want to say bootcut jeans, instead of bell bottoms, lol! All those Short Kurtis will go really well with bootcut jeans. Whereas longer kurtas go well with wide leg/straight leg jeans. You could also pair slightly loose fitted straight fit kurtas with boyfriend jeans and heels. It looks really chic and effortless. And bubba leopard prints are really out, I'm so sorry! I mean you could include some detail of animal print in your look, but the whole look with animal print is actually quite early 2000s. I remember a cousin of mine wearing faux leather leopard print flared trousers in 2003! 😅😅 Your collection is cute (for an NRI!! 😅😅). You've got potential! Keep up the effort! That teal kurta your mom gave is actually quite nice! However, that fuschia kurta with blue embroidery is not it! That sort of large machine embroidery is not appealing. Go for options that have smaller embroidery. Small prints, small embroidery. Short sleeves are also generally out. Elbow length sleeves are very in, shorter sleeves need to be fitted well too. Sleeves can make or break the outfit! ❤
The magenta sheer kurta is from Lucknow. This kind of embroidery is called "chikankari". Sometimes referred as "chikan ka kurta". It used to amuse me a lot when I was younger. (Pronounced chickan)
My NRI cousins strongly believe they are better than everyone. I think it’s mainly because how our Indian relatives treated them, so it gets into their head. I can imagine most NRI treat their Indian counterparts as inferiors.
you are literally so beautiful. i am gooped and gagged. like, your eyeliner??? insane. and then you feature dark-skinned girlypops in your examples??? iconic. love it. get out. looking at you, i wonder if i might be beautiful too. means a lot.
In Bollywood and Malayalam movie industry, they always introduce a trend that was evergreen or trendy for that time like sheer organza saris In the movie Qala starring tripti dimri.. Kareena kapoor with her outfits in k3g reflecting NRIs of early 2000s And nazariya’s outfits in om shaanti oshana and Bangalore days
I am a gulf NRI and I think this fashion outdated thingy stems from them being not connected to India. Like I go from Dubai to India like once every year so at that time you kinda catch-up with the trends and stuff.
I like the one your mom gave you and also the salwar kameez sets! I usually wear those short kurtis (or as you say long top) with jeans or loose pants. Leggings with kurta is falling out of fashion nowadays but it does look good.
So I'm not Indian at all in any way, but RUclips recommended me this video I think because I love fashion/history/culture. It made me realise that I had actually noticed this before, but I had never put it down to "tackiness", I had always thought of it as being different fashion trends in different countries. Western fashion, particularly in America (I'm not American, this is just an outsider looking in haha), but also in other countries too, loves the shiny jewellery and bright colours. Like, of course you have the clean girls and quiet luxury ladies, but in general I feel like there is a bigger emphasis on showing your personality through your clothes and using jewellery and colours to do that, including layering and any extras on the clothing items themselves (embroidery, beadwork, etc.). I think that's a mix of individualism and also having a lot of different people from different cultures living in Western countries and them bringing their own fashions which then become trends. I can't say for sure about Indian fashion actually in India because it's mostly something I look at rather than interact with, but I'd say the fashion right now is closer to clean girl-but-subtly colourful. Minimalism, demure, mindful, etc. I don't know how it is in India with subcultures, but I know in the West you can wear clothes from ages ago and people wouldn't really care that much mostly. You might get some weird looks, but nothing more. I like historical fashion and I live in a rural place in England, so my taste isn't necessarily the most blending in all the time, but nobody cares haha I could shave off my hair or dress all in lime green, and even here in the most old person, former (thank fuck) Tory town, people would really not care. I feel like in India there may be more comments or more pressure to keep up with the lastest trends? idk, again, not Indian, never been to India (want to, though!!!). That is something I have noticed with """developing""" (don't like that term, but can't think of a better one right now) countries' fashion - there can be more peer pressure to look good, and trendy, and look like you've spent money. Like how I imagine tiktok is for younger kids, I don't use tiktok but I know the peer pressure is immense there. At least tiktok has subcultures, but not all countries do, so you are kind of limited. Sorry this comment was really long, but I thought it was a really interesting video, especially as someone who is...not the target demographic haha
Yes in India there can be a lot of comments and pressure to look trendy. Like you've spent money, sometimes yeah that too, but mostly like you've been paying attention and put in a lot of effort.
I think you also need to recognise that Indian fashion is different in the North and the South of India. As I see it, majority of NRI fashion has stronger older south Indian fashion-sense influences - like strong colours and contrasts. The north Indian design motifs often have been more one color tone, with silver gold patterns. Today with western influences, colours are getting less bold for sure, as sensibilities change. Also more subtle design patterns like chikan etc are becoming more widespread, blending with western minimalist fashion.
I feel like this is something that isn't discussed enough- how the Westernization of Indian fashion may be fuelling some of the more intense comments on NRI tackiness. There's an insidious colonial undercurrent to favouring Western trends like "minimalism" that I think should be talked about more. Maybe NRIs could learn to be a bit more "hip," but maybe Indians could also learn to not be so averse to traditions of the past.
if one can't find a tailor who can make saree blouses, then a good option can be to find a tailor who can make bodices (which is what a choli or a ravika is by definition) or a bra (that can be worn as an outer wear, i.e., it can be blingy/colourful/etc)
We don’t really have tailors in the US. They exist, but they aren’t trained in Indian wear. Not sure of other countries but in the US, it’s hard to find a tailor that can actually work with Indian clothing. Or they’re Indian and overpriced.
I have NRI cousins and I have experienced this first hand and i think I know the reason why! 😎 Most NRI kids get their choice of desi clothes from their moms and elders, if you see in most cases the parents left india and settled abroad for a brighter future and their kids grew up with local kids in foreign countries and the only 2 sources of desi fashion is either through their mom's eye (which is mostly outdated) or through Indian films and they are over the top! Also NRI kids wear desi clothes rarely during festivals or wedding ceremonies, hence they go all out 😎
The lavender set is pretty af, the neck reads a little conservative for your age, i would imagine my mom with that neck shape. Maybe altering the neck would make it read more younger
NRI fashion is distinct from indian fashion. We also look and act different, NRIs use the clothing on special days so it is a "costume" for them. But Indian fashion is not a costum for us from india. I have been told several times since moving out of India that I dont dress like Indians (NRI). People in other countries consider NRI to be the benchmark.
While I will admit to having seen outfits by NRIs that were a lil odd, it never really bothered me until it became the pinpointer of Indian fashion in TV shows/movies. Like the examples, you put on your thumbnail. There are people in India who wear very similar outfits even today. And that is fine! It's just that the context of the shows and what they put the artists in just feel way too disconnected. The other aspect is, to take a wedding scene from such shows, it shows almost everyone dressed that way. I mention this because there are people who love the bling, the bold colors from top to bottom, the maximalist side of Indian fashion, and so on. But that comes down to personal styles and preferences. Because of this, if you were to actually go to an event you would see a variety of styles. When it is this generalized, extreme portrayal of Indian fashion, it feels icky and a misrepresentation. As someone who lived in the gulf for 1/3rds of my life, I can vouch that availability will play a crucial role. Because the Gulf countries have such a huge Indian (largely Malayali) population the options are a lot more in touch with what you would get in an Indian market and yet I think nothing beats buying from India itself. Price-wise, clothes were always cheaper in India but based on currency value, it was still understandable. The prices at which Indian clothes are sold in Western countries though are a whole other deal. It is so ridiculously overpriced (based off of what NRIs have mentioned) that it feels almost unfair to Indian artisans and to you guys. Never understood how the prices are off the roof for honestly poor quality- enlighten me please. Regardless, I understand many NRIs feel lost with their identity and feel like they don't fit in either way, so I think people need to be less harsh when addressing something that at the end of the day is luxury. Cause fashion is a luxury!
1st dress: Remove the sleeves. Pair the look with a full length or 3/4 length straight cut pants in white. Even wide-leg pants would do. Complete with casual summer slip ons. Even Birkenstocks. 2nd pink kurta: u can shorten it to hip length. Will pair well with dark denim pants. Simple sliver jhumka earrings are a bonus. 3rd dress: I get it. It’s a boring print. Looks comfy tho. 4th: Remove the sleeves. U can shorten the length and wear it as a cute top. Will go with white pants (baggy/skinny) or a long skirt. 5, 6, 7: These kurtas aren’t tacky but they’re not interesting either. These are everyday wear for women here. Can be worn outside or inside the house. At work or at home. Instead of tights, trying wearing wide legged pants with them. Tight leggings will also do but I see young people wear wide, flowy pants more often with their kurtas. 8th : This colour looks good on you! What it needs are golden accessories and, of course, straight cut or wide leg pants (like palazzo pants) in gold colour. U can also pair it with a simple gold lehenga (skirt). And a plain golden dupatta. With the right accessories u can wear this for special occasions. 10th: As much as I like this pale lavender shade, the fit and neckline are not giving. This look, overall, is the closest to enter Tackystan territory. Maybe it’ll look better if styled differently. 11th: A classic. This could be worn by a young Shabana Azmi (a veteran Bollywood actress known for her elegant looks and fashion choices). All in all, most of the clothes you’ve show represent the regular wear for a large section of women in India. If worn without interesting pairings, accessories, and alterations, many of these are just basic outfits and that’s fine.
Pastels shades are actually boring. Urban Indian women shying away from colour is simply following a colonial mind set. Rural Indian women on the other are not shy of bold colours and mix and match them with ease. Tackiness comes from how you carry yourself or not, and not from the colours you wear or your outfit. Perhaps NRI women just need to feel more comfortable in Indian outfits than worry about the colours.
Maybe I’m not chronically online enough because I had no idea this was even a debate going on for years 😂 One reason that I think strongly influenced NRIs’ outfits being “tackier” is a new found embrace NRI’s have of their Indianess. Just 10 years ago my own brother discouraged me from wearing a shalwar kameez for cultural day in high school because he was worried kids might call me a terrorist - fast forward to today and you can’t tell me SHIT if I’m stepping out the house with my Desi clothes on, or else 👊🏾 Also I think your proximity to the motherland plays a role too - if you have friends/family that still go back often, have moved out of the motherland only recently, or know folks who’ve recently married into the diaspora you’re more in tune with what’s “trendy” in the motherland. Or you could be like me who has none of those but by pure coincidence likes the more muted looks that’s “on trend” in the motherland now 😆
sorry, he was worried the kids would call you a WHAT? 😡😡😡 [i have had the same thing said to me in similar context] It definitely takes effort to stay up-to-date with Indian culture, it is not just "it's in my blood", if you live abroad, you have to have some level of "proximity to the motherland" as you put it so well, whether that's through the people you know or the content you consume.
@@KarraMeansSpicy yeah girl, the post 9-11 years were crazyyy 🙃 my neighborhood had POC but the school was still majority white so I think my brother was just trying to “look out for me” in his own way unfortunately. I think over the next few decades we might actually see less difference in fashion between Indians & NRI’s thanks to social media. Now that communication across continents is instantaneous I think we’re gonna see NRI fashion being influenced by the current motherland trends, instead of from previous decades fashion trends
@@KarraMeansSpicy Yeah as someone who grew up in the Middle East 3.5 to 4.5 hours flight away from South India, I really can't relate to these NRI vs Indian debates and honestly drives me up the wall cause I feel left out. Us ME NRIs will like visit India for 1 to 2 whole months, YEARLY where they will attend weddings and other functions, and buy Indian clothes and jewellery from India. You also have Indian gold jewellery and Sari brands from India having lots of stores in the Middle East. And add uncles selling stuff from the mother land in smaller stores. Not to mention that there are so many Indians there, that there are Indian only schools. Theaters play Indian movies from all across India and many come and watch them. In the end NRIs in ME have more proximity than NRIs in English or European speaking countries.
I love the Indian women I work with, I love to see pics of them when they go to events because I love the fashion. Im not Indian but I respect the culture and definitely the fashion showcased here in America! ***And I'm 5'8 1/2 and I am the queen of high heeled shoes! I love being tall, embrace your height and your heels!
I liked this deep dive you did into this issue; I have to say though, in my opinion, the articles you talked about at 14:55 absolutely hit the nail on the head in explaining the sheer amount of vitriol that’s being spewed from the Indian side regarding NRI fashion. I read everything that dietsabya posted when this was going on, and I saw so many posts of Indian girls trashing NRI fashion and then in the same breath complaining about feeling shunned and othered by NRIs when they would interact with them. There were so many posts like that, and honestly you can’t convince me that the two issues aren’t related. And I know you mentioned that this argument may not hold much weight because not all Indian girls long to go abroad, and most of them are happy being in India, but I don’t think that statement fully encapsulates the dynamic between resident Indians and NRIs. I think whether or not any individual Indian person actually wants to go abroad, there is still a collective and psychological hierarchy in Indian society wherein Indians who have the means and opportunity to either visit or live aboard are seen as superior. And that hierarchy is bound to breed resentment. So when an issue like this comes up, where resident Indians definitely have the upper hand, they go balls to the wall in trying to put NRIs in their place and come out on top. I’m not saying that NRIs have better Indian fashion (obviously Indians living in India will always have the advantage there), but what I’m saying is the AMOUNT of hate that Indians gave the NRIs about this topic definitely stems from something deeper and more sociological.
Man, this was a brilliant breakdown of the argument ❤️ I definitely sense that in India, the barometer of success has become whether or not you can leave the country and head West, but i couldnt think of a way to say it without sounding like a complete a-hole since i myself am an American, and the way you explain how it ties into the fashion debate is just *chef's kiss*
@@KarraMeansSpicy I totally get you! I was initially trying to find a way to state this without coming across as a dick as well because I’m American too 😅 but I remember everytime me and my family would go to India my grandma would go out of her way to make sure EVERYONE knew that we were visiting from the US and seeing how everyone reacted to that was the first time I got a glimpse into what being an NRI means to resident Indians
I disagree, although moving abroad (becoming increasingly common now) is seen as a status symbol in lower middle class and middle class section of India and there might be some who do overdo the hate bcs of some underlying inferiority complex, for most people it is an issue of NRIs representing indian fashion in the west and globally, especially when it comes to Indian representation in western movies. We are way too passionate about our indian dresses and no hate but most of the dresses worn by NRIs is so uncomfortable to look at that it always ends up turning into a debate even amongst ourselves (I think indian with their fashion is similar to Italians with their food 🫣🫣). But I understand the financial aspect of things and that most of the dresses available there probably come from more cheaper parts of India since that’s what’s affordable there.
Hi, You have gorgeous hair. Indian from India here, I had no idea about the post that started this conversation but I have always thought NRI's fashion sense is either stuck in 80's or they have no access to good Indian clothing. I understand the point about not wanting to spend an arm and a leg for clothing that you are only going to wear twice a year. My advice would be to invest in timeless pieces like Kurtis and Suit sets in Chikankari and other handmade embroidery pieces, print work like Ajrakh etc, classic cotton and silk sarees in colors that suit your skin tone will go long way I mean it can be passed down, These things hardly go out of style and can be styled up and down with accessories. fusion style clothing is a savior. about your Indian wardrobe First thing I noticed is length of sleeves . IMO Kurtis with 3/4 sleeve length or full sleeve length look the best or you can go sleeveless, the half / short sleeve does not go well with any style of kurti. another thing to watch out for is fit of the sleeve Kurtis give maximum comfort when sleeves are loose fit since there is no stretch in them. tight fit sleeves looks dated and constricting. About tailoring the kurti's to sundresses- try to find empire line kurti's or loose silhouette and then take in the bust with darts , you can also make midi length dresses. Its very difficult thing to let go of the comfort of leggings but its time retire the tights / leggings and opt for loose fit bottoms palazzos, dhoti style pants , cigarette pants etc etc. linen pants look really good maxi skirt pair well with Kurtis. BTW Kurti at 22:20 looks amazing on you. Top you are wearing at 27:42 is a Chikankari short Kurti and comes from Lucknow. Kudos on interesting outfit at 29:34😂😂 I don't think anyone can pull that off ..😉
As an Indian who's been out of the country for a couple of years, I think I can relate to both sides to an extent. At the end of the day, wear what you want!Indian culture is diverse enough not to be "maligned" by what any one group of people would wear!There's space for all of us to express ourselves the way we want. Also, Blue is definitely your colour, and mother knows best! ❤❤
I have a slightly different theory but it's based on my limited observation: A lot of NRIs are like time capsules as many have rightly pointed out. But in the generations gone by, there was little focus on Indian arts and crafts. While the previous generations would know a few, more complex forms of artisinal styles were not popular. For example, ajrakh has stepped into the spotlight, so have ikat/handlooms, rabari, bagh, Surat zari and more. Today a lot of Indians are actually wearing more traditional prints, weaves and fabrics albeit in modern silhouettes. It's also exposure to what was available to NRIs when they were leaving. Enjoy the renaissance and give Indian artisans some appreciation ❤
Don't know why algorithms sent me here ... But wil give advice anyways ... Indians in India Especially upper middle class buys a lot from westside , Myntra , pantaloons , shoppers stop , local markets ... Designers from Mumbai n Bangalore design stuff for all these outlets n currently they r predominantly using Deep autumn n deep winter color palettes as these r more suitable to Indian brown skin undertones .... NRIs can easily check websites of these to know wats in trend ... Acceptance of brown skin beauty is in trend ... Self pride is in trend ... Fair skin obsession is fading as India gets richer
I am Indian, thought I live in a small start, the urban areas are not so dreamy, there are potholes, garbage, constant construction and pollution. It sucks, the villages on the other hand with big villas, bungalow, small houses, open fields , mango , coconut and Cashew groves are definitely dreamy and romantic. Thankfully I live is a state that is communal tension free.
one question, if someone says only my ideas/views are "true" and other's views are "false" and "wrong" and hence they (others) should be damned for their "false" and "wrong" views, isn't this inherently a supermascist stance? and we very well know that from supermacism only comes hatred or dislike towards others!
As a fashion girlie I guess we don’t hate NRI that’s sure.And I guess more Indian businesses of clothing must exist as per my assessment of what you said. As Indians I GUESS we feel NRI ppl somehow represent us globally in a way. We want to create some sort of soft power just like Indian food has. And Indian girlies love their fashion and we want better representation. But still nobody is obligated to do so. But somehow what we see is not what we like majorly. No hate. I loved your lavender suit 💕
IMO, turn all your sundresses into tops. The tops look better. I don't know when they were bought but kurtas and kurtis have almost always been 3/4 sleeve length. That tiny sleeve makes it look awkward. Or make them sleeveless sundresses and pull in the waist, kurtas are meant to be straight and loose but not sundresses.
Here's my 2 cents on your wardrobe. All those dresses have a kurta neckline but end up being worn as a dress. That makes the out fit look lame. Also while those bright colors look great on you. It ls the harsh contrasting colors that makes a piece hideous. The black kurta you seem to like with the gold embroidery has muted colors in the same family. That's why it looks elegant.
from my perpective, your outfits seem distincly like what my mother and other aunties would wear way back when i was a young child (early 00s). While they would've been considered pretty at the time there's definitely a sense of having evolved past some of the design "mistakes" in the current Indian fashion scene. That's what makes them a little,,,,, unsettling seen from the perspective of newer generations of indians - you think "i thought we got over that ages ago!" Even with the coming back of old styles there's often an "evolution," solving the "problems" of the original design, or incorporating new elements. More than anything it just feels uncanny and out of place I suppose, like seeing a ghost
My two cents: Mostly the Nerdy Indians migrated leaving our cooler cousins behind! Cooler cousins have all the time to choose best of the best , any occasion( which is waay to often)a good opportunity to upgrade your style.We have sometimes just an hour to choose clothes when we go back home.And since we are kinda out of touch,choices explain themselves.😂 Having said that, your Mom has a great choice, your Aunt not so much! Blue looks great on you and the outfit to the music festival is great.
Yes, NRI fashion sucks! However, I don't think NRIs deserve the kind of hatred they receive just because they're poorly dressed (ironically, these pieces are beyond expensive!). A majority of kids raised abroad don't know what good Indian fashion even looks like. So Karra, if you need help styling.. Do contact me. Am willing to help.
The only beef I have is that foreigners use NRIs to understand Indian culture and fashion instead of India itself, that's like judging a burger by just tasting the sesame seeds on top? This skewed perception is harmful in the long run because in India, fashion is art - it celebrates excellent craftsmanship, fabrics catering to regions/climates and prints/embroidery that have ALOT of history in them; no hate to NRIs you don't get much choice, just wish that foreigners put a little more thought before using clothes or jewellery, because even our most local clothes mean more to us than Shien :) In India fast fashion means western fast fashion. Never Indian. It's all about being timeless. P.S.: NRIs, focus on a flattering neckline, colour and fit - the embroidery/fabric will always look good if it fits well. Most Indian fabrics are "GORGEOUS".
NRI here....This might be different for girls living in New Jersey or Manchester or California - but most of us who live in flyover states where we are still accutely aware of how we stick out, do not wear soft Indian fashion. So the soft fashion (Kurt plus jeans) for example that your average Indian girl wears is not something I would ever go for. I'd either go "full Indian" think what Indian girls wear to weddings or Diwali or not at all. Call me "not proud of my culture", but growing up post 9/11 and in the Trump era it can be hard not to fit yourself into a box. Not to mention I have the finances to go to India once every 3 years and international shipping is exorbitant. So I'm either 3 years behind or the clothes I'm getting are bought by my 65 year old aunties.
kurta plus jeans is cute girl 😂😂😂 anyway, if you wanna wear full on indian, and if you don't wanna appear like a tacky NRI, do check our trends going on in India, which aren't 20 yo
Tbh as an indian...I think the judgement comes from the fact that we see NRI as our representatives to the countries they live in like you kinda make or break our image(which is kinda unfair)in a lot of sense and one of it is fashion and culture. India is an amazingly creative country with immense versatility in handicrafts,designing and clothing and to have those be not represented kinda feels bad and wrong it's like potraying a false image or a bad one. Not only NRIs It also happened with this years olympic costume it was so bad and outdated and the designer got a lot of backlash and the reason was the same it almost feels like downplaying our culture even when we know our strengths..and this not only happens with NRIs for instance I live in uttarakhand (one of the northern Himalayan states of india) we have different culture but when we see it be misrepresented or wrongly represented outside of the state it makes us disappointed because we see those people who are from our states as our representatives of sort. I've felt this way for a long time I would always go on youtube and watch culture day performances in schools and stuff and everytime the indians would look like they were from a different decade 😅 also i think unlike a lot of asian diaspora NRIs do not keep up with their country it could be a disconnect or just an inferiority complex I don't know tbh but i think we need to not think od NRIs as our representatives but as own individuals but i doubt that's gonna happen cause i see these kinda debates in every culture nigerians,cambodians,etc 😂 that's why now i have taken the responsibility to keep my cousins NRI daughter up with all the stuff that goes on in the country🫡☠️ i even dressed her recently for rakshbandhan 🎉
To be fair, unlike NRIs, our Olympic athletes really did represent our country and we gave the world the impression that we are a shabby bunch. Not to mention that the designer could make beautiful, opulent wedding dresses, but half-assed the process for our national treasures and the doubled down on his lack of effort as 'humbleness' on national television.
I don't like nri for their alignment in extremist politics in india ( majority NRI) and when they wear indian clothes, it does look costumish but your indian clothes are good actually ( except for the last one). Hey karra ,look out for north east indian fashion ,they are the most dope in fashion in india for their indo western fusion.ignore those indian haters( indian incels) ,they are nuisance, they are the very same who moral police indian women from india for their indian values also.you are gorgeous 💜💜💜.
The pocket discovery was so pure omg that was the highlight of my night lol. You look incredible even in the jank ones. Drop dead gorgeous (yes you did something)
As an Indian who moved to the US 14 years ago I have completely lost touch with the current fashion trends in India. I'm pretty much stuck in the fashion of the 2010s and still like those styles the most. It's like you like the music of your teens and 20s the most even though music keeps evolving.
Ohhkay so my two very uneducated cents on this, you know when I see NRI fashion I see a shit ton of influence of early 2000s fashion. Like that was my mother's closet back then, that very specific kind of bling, those bright colors and heavy jewellery, I guess it is cause most of the NRIs either grew up and were more exposed to indian media of the time when NRI fascination was taking over bollywood or their parents that is the parents of gen Z were like in their late 20s and remember that fashion and introduced that era's desi fashion to them. This is very similar to a short I saw by a linguist who was talking about how the native language of immigrant is often a time capsule of the time when they left motherland, even though the language in motherland has now evolved similar idea might apply to fashion. (This is by no means a critical or highly educated opinion so if you find any logical or factual fallacies please feel free to explain it to me)
I am from Pakistan and overall Indian (ethnic) fashion seems very old fashioned to me. Out of date prints, silhouettes and colours seem to dominate the market. I always assumed it was because western wear is much more popular in India so it was given an afterthought, whereas in pakistan almost all girls universally wear shalwar kameez so the styles, trending prints, designs and silhouettes are constantly changing. The only indian clothing you will find imported in Pakistan is bridal lenghas, but i believe there is a big market in india for imported pakistani clothing.
Prolly true. I think we do well with sarees than other ethic wear, though. There are experimentations but the it's very niché and most feel comfortable in the tried and true (plus vintage is trending like crazy, so sarees' the item). Silhouette being outdated is prolly because, it feels indian(?), Like you KNOW when a suit isn't in native style. Pakistani salwar kameez are easy to differ because of that reason, if you've grow up in a more conservative household. Edit-- So, I went and Googled a bit (sorry if I sound obsessed or smth but I don't mean any harm) and saw some yt videos. And I don't see much difference, except for the usually baggy silhouette and sleeve and hem styles, which i mentioned is easy to spot. So, can you please describe the difference you found? AND, Pakistani culture and fashion is seeing a rise in the subcontinent, indian always been good market that could be reason and lack of imports could be because Pakistani produce quality good enough for themselves.
I feel like this is kind of given though?? NRI’s wont be up to Indian trends bc they dont live in India and are more disconnected from the trends. They wear more fancy and extravagant looks bc the only times most of us get to wear indian clothes is to fancy events and big festivals. Furthermore, its a lot harder to get rly good and trendy indian outfits when j live outside of india, not every brand does shipping and the ones that do get pretty selective. Its not like any of those outfits are *bad*, theyre just different from modern indian fashion. Ig in a way u could say NRI culture and fashion is more separate from Indian culture than most NRIs like to think.
I think the kurta/dresses need a belt of some kind to really get the "dress" silhouette rather than kurta. I have a simple cotton anarkali that I often play off as a sun dress by throwing a belt on it :-D
You are great !!😊😊😊 Love your wardrobe !!!!!❤❤❤ My 2 cents, cut off the hands of the summer dresses and make them V neck and tuck in the waist.. and you will have the best summer dresses in USA !!!!
28:33 Gurlll I see what you did there! This fit slays!!! It looks amazing on you, and I'm loving it! Btw, I just discovered your account today and I'm glad I did! I love your energy
I think what people misunderstand about NRI’s is that we know you guys dress in grungy, muted or pastel colours and are more minimalistic. But you guys are not understanding that minimalism is out of style in western fashion. Maximalism y2k style is in INCLUDING 90s and early 2000s Indian traditional wear. Hence the maximalist, colourful, heavy embroidery that we wear which you guys consider outdated. I think instead of saying we are out of style, we sort of just evolved our own branch of Indian pop culture fashion. That being said most NRI gen Z Indians I’ve met dress in muted colours too whereas I’ve noticed my mother and other Indian aunties do have slightly tackier taste.
No, NRIs have been dressing this way even before y2k became a thing. Pre pandemic and all nobody was wearing y2k inspired fits yet NRIs still dressed like they're in the 1980s
Your first outfit can go NRI to desi if you remove the border on neck and make a v neck sleeveless alterations to the dress. Can be done for others too.
Hi from another Karnataka origin NRI 🖐🏽 I know I already have a poor sense for fashion but I feel even worse knowing Indians are judging us for our traditional wear as well 😅 We have a ridiculously sparse but overpriced selection when it comes to Indian clothing over here in the UK. I rarely find anything I like in the shops so I end up wearing the same few outfits from my last visit to India, which could be have been bought anywhere from a few months to a few years ago. Generally, a lot of us don't have many occasions to wear these clothes as well - so you'll just have to forgive us if we want to pull out all the bright and dazzling garments we have from the back of our wardrobes and party like it's 2014!
What i do is when i visit india, i go to a cloth store immediately within a day of arrival, and buy 5- 6 outfits of latest trend and use that for the whole time during vacation and bring it and use it for indian Uk events. So,we utilised it to india and uk and stay on top of trends. Use that clothes as home clothes, if it kurta at home. Next year repeat the process
-ve: NRI children taste develop looking at their parents , aunts, uncles and not through absorbing culture and fashion experiencing all around. So yes NRI tastes are decades old naturally as they get influence from that older generation around. The Asian shops in your neighbourhood in US stocks not stylish Indian clothes based on the pink top with massive block embroidery front and loose frilly everywhere. Neck lines are hilarious high up to the throat almost. In India girls love styling their neck line or saree blouse neck line to show off more skin & yet be decent to wear anywhere. US has loads of fashionable online store that actually sell items from India. It may be a little expensive as those poor craftman work on those silk or embroidery for months +the export rules, taxes etc. The clothes you showed are not fashionable for last 5 years or more for your age group. The first few prints that you altered look like kurtis made from materials/ print used for bedsheets and curtains in India. The pink saree blouse did not look right with leopard print jeans. But if you put some short black denim or bomber jacket, it may look better and not 2 odd things put together that dont look good. Also since you like leopard print i guess a more yellow brown version of the print than whitish leopard print that you wore would look good. I still think full leopard looks not good. A hint of here and there makes it more appealing. I dont think that red lipstick suits you. But thats another common thing about make up in NRI children. Somehow they move too bright, blings, non fashionable stuff and wear it thinking it is fashionable. +ve: You are right with lack of avalability of good Asian clothing shops that sells modern practical Indian clothing in neighbourhood. They sell over the top , yet old fashion style used to be in fashion a decade and half ago. No idea why those shops sells old style items.They should call themselves vintage clothes store or something. Great you dabbled in sewing and alteration. The blouse with square neck opens way to much forward as it was not meant to be blouse. It needs more work on sides so its more blouse like. I think the black full embroidered salwar set and the one you called metal was nice in your collection. My suggestions: Just follow your heart/ mind is not enough as our mind or heart are trained by our surroundings and upbringing we are in. To have develop a taste of Indian sophistication without being rich is first not to have older family members influence your purchase or choices of clothing. What to use to influence: Find a website of a supermarket something like that sells clothing all over India. Take a look at their site to develop current fashion sense of local ordinary Indians who are not film stars or your family relatives or local store who wants to clear out their old stock gathering dust. About me: NRI 1st generation. I pick things from instincts that comes from living in India long time where Indian fashion originates, ability to make fashion decisions with full self awareness what suits on me and not get influenced by my parents or family members or even friends whose dont have broad tastes to be suitable for advising anyone. I think you have the look that will suit western or Indian or fusion clothing styles. I also think something about you reminded me of a young bollywood actress i seen 15 yrs ago Sonakshi Sinha. You can try testing her styles that you think she looks nice in. Wish NRI across come together , forgetting their differences and pride and Enjoy the core feelings all Indians have and create more ocassions to wear those beautiful clothings ourselves. Differences are keeping all of us apart and its us losing out being in our own bubble. Thanks for making this video. For years I thought to do 1 but i got i lack courage and motivation to follow through ideas to reality.
It is definitely not inferiority complex some of nri clothes look terrible like cheap costumes or like old clothes given for alms , . When i was a child i though because they are south indians and the dresses they wear are south indian dresses becauseost of moden indian fashion is based on north and west india
Can I just say; thank you for this video! As a white Canadian woman in her 50's, I recognize I am not in any way the intended audience for this video - but it's helped me a lot! One of my closest friends (since grade 3) is Punjabi. She lives far away (we only see each other once a year now) and has invited me to her daughter's wedding next year. My friend's sister discovered I do thrift-flips, and gave three grocery bags full of her old Punjabi suits so I could "cut them up and thrift-flip them so you can wear them at the wedding". In an effort to not totally embarrass myself and my friend I've been trying to research Desi fashion - and I've been so confused by what I've seen online, and what I've seen my Canadian-Punjabi friends wearing. While this video was not meant for me, it cleared up all my confusion - so thank you so much. I no longer feel quite so panicked and sick with anxiety about what I'm "supposed" to look like.
![Lil Uzi Vert - Chill Bae [Official Music Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/D7F42F_JM3U/mqdefault.jpg)
27:24 it's a chikankari kurti made using georgette fabric, it's the THE IT GIRL outfit in India, and the style of the kurti is native to Lucknow not Lahore lmao
I love Indian clothes made with georgette
@@desiladygamer2076 not skin friendly tho in a long run
Support desi cotton ❤️
Yeahh Lahore is in Pakistan lmao
27:24 As a Lucknowi girl , this comment is 1000% true.
This dress & embroidery are called "Chikankari"
You can find it everywhere in Lucknow 🙏
@@Thatonlyone678 sister, come to our Lucknow, you can find Chikankari on cotton cloth too ❤
NRI wear is TV soap inspired.
Indian fashion is livable fashion.
Correct
Even TV soaps have better sence of fashion. It might sound rude but when I see NRI Indians then I realize from where all the stereotypes about so called ugly Indians is coming from. When I see random school going teenagers in India, they look far better than Indian representatives on western midea. And I don't even live in tear 1 city. I live in a small town and children here have better sence of fashion than NRIs.
That depends on the NRIs.
😂
I feel like the reason NRI fashion sucks is because a lot of them are not aware of the current trends in India and they’re still stuck in the 70s and 80s, perhaps because their only exposure to Indian fashion is their parents.
just one internet search is all it takes , we are not in old times where you will only be aware of the trends if your physically living in that country
It's also because of prices. Ilyoud have to spend like $8k to get something decent here.
@@thewizard555 that assumes that people would like and want to wear the current trends in India specifically because they are in fashion there. NRIs have grown up with certain concepts of Indian fashion, often influenced by their parents and media, and from that evolved their own sense of style which happens to differ from current popular fashion in India. It's fine to dislike NRI fashion as it is, but it's silly to say that they're in the wrong for not "keeping up" with the current trends when their fashion has evolved independently from India's and been influenced by different factors.
Accents, culture, food, etc all work like that too. The US accent of English is closer to the UK’s accents from the time of the colonies than to modern UK speech. Taiwan has many Chinese cultural practices and words that have been outdated in the mainland accents and cousins. And Mexico has Spanish words that people in Spain stopped using ages ago. They aren’t stuck in the past, they just evolved different so the things that where kept and lost are not the same.
Then that's just ignorance man, I mean in the era of internet and pinterest, how can you not keep up with something if you wanted to
NRIs who feature in some American reality TV shows is often seen wearing weird and wacky ethnic outfits which Indians here never even dare to wear it these days
Kaamwali bai would wear it. Or bhojpuri dancer 😂
@@RojaJanemanthere's no need to be classist when the tackiest people in India are often the richest. And ur just filled with hatred and rudeness in these comments for some reason? Chill lol
Yes their yes to dress for asian i dont recall proper.. Horrific wedding lehengas.
They are not outfits they are costumes 😂
Well yeah NO fashionable/with Dignity/ who have some Sense won't wear but the Dehati community/ beggers(I mean the poors too) would wear those!!! As they don't cares about Fashion etc etc thing...
As an NRI who moved back to India... it took me almost four or five years to start dressing "Normal." I have no idea WHY. But it definitely took time to figure it out. NRIs definitely dress weird, and it's noticeable.
Right!! Same with me. I had totally lost my tolerance for bright color and would only pick greys, navys, blacks or browns. Anything outside of that seemed glaring to me and people kept asking why I was wearing drab colors. Lol, it definitely took a long time to get back to wearing the normal Indian wear and rock them again! Funny though
As someone who grewup in a very desi neighborhood in USA, we can spot a fresh off the boat desi based on their outfit as well. The minimalist style doesn't work in USA desi community because everyone else is blinged out. I know plenty of "fashionable" girls who got married & moved to USA but couldn't fit in. Yes their everyday outfit is elegent but in wedding/parties they looked under dress. Each location has its own style just like NRI and desi have different vibe
tbh im an indian (i mean so are you lol just saying im not an nri) and tbh ya'll mostly dress just fine tbh- that turquiose saree was genuinely pretty and i think ok maybe its the millenial style etc etc etc so dont be too hard on urself tbh (or is it just me because im unable to judge people at all?)
It might sound rude but when I see NRI Indians then I realize from where all the stereotypes about so called ugly Indians is coming from. When I see random school going teenagers in India, they look far better than Indian representatives on western midea. And I don't even live in tear 1 city. I live in a small town and children here have better sence of fashion than NRIs.
An Indian born and raised in India is easily distinguishable with an NRI who was born in West.
@@Kera707 Indians in India too wear heavy jewelries but there is a way to wear it. NRIs just have bad sense of fashion. For reference if u see old movies with history drama like "jodha akbar" There too Jodha wears traditional Rajasthani, colourful clothes with jewelries but it does not looks weird at all. In fact it looks extremely beautiful. In new movies as well, like "Ponniyin Selvan: I" they have heavy jewelries but looks gorgeous
Even if u Look at wedding dresses of brides in India and in West. Both wear heavy Jewelry yet somehow NRI brides look weirdly dressed.
Problem is not heavy clothes or jewelries. Problem is not knowing how to wear it.
in harry potter they gave parvati pink and orange lehnga 😅
People hate it and I thought the outfits were ok but that was because that contrast color style (pastels and small borders) was very popular when the film was made. I know because I owned several contrast coloured block suits/saris with tiny embroidered borders around 2003-2004. As many have pointed out that kind of outfit they were wearing is day wear not evening wear. Evening wear I remember wearing was influenced by Khabhi Khushi Khabhi Ghum, dark colours with small zari gold borders and flared pants.
@@desiladygamer2076 wow you hhave so many memories of it ..😇
Well tbh it was planned by british costume designers who just made what they thought Indian clothes were. Their tops literally looked like T-shirts and with some random skirt and scarf with a little bling. It was just embarrassing.
Both girls looklike going in wedding rather than a prom night.
exactly and Hermione dressed way better. When I looked at parvati for the first time wearing that weird combination, i thought why are indians shown wearing weird color combination which we normally don't wear. They always choose wrong color combinations and most of the colors they choose are the brightest eye pearsing colors, or they are simply the shiniest clothes ew
I think the reason why there is vitriol against NRIs dressing in a “tacky” way because they get more of a presence in international media to represent Indian culture, if you’re gonna represent Indian culture it’s better that you get it right. Indian Fashion has been the backbone of the world. Textiles from india have been worn by egyptian royalty, european royalty and asian royalty for thousands of years, Part of European colonisation in India was as a a result of textiles. Therefore, NRIs have a responsibility to get it right. Indian textiles are expensive for a reason. But if NRIs just want to classify what they are wearing has uniquely become indian american culture or whatever I would personally be fine with it. I think it’s important to make that distinction
PREACH
Yesss!!!
It doesn't make sense they are human not representive officially and house and a lot of things they wear are not original indian fashion but fashion of past after invaders
I mean no one has any responsibility to “get it right”, whether we classify outdated Indian clothing as uniquely Indian American or not.
People can wear what they want 🤷♀️ We never signed up for any job to be anyone’s representative and u ain’t paying for our clothes anyways.
@@Dhfhucudu unfortunately because many non Indians end up believing that what u wear is actual Indian clothes, they start mocking our culture and many Indians abroad and online get bullied by being compared to those NRIs. If u can't do it properly then don't do it at all.
I wanted to get a Kurta for Onam in Melbourne and the Kurta selection in most desi shops here looked like it was curated for my grandpa.
LMAOOOOO
Thank you I needed that laugh today
😂
Same bro the kurtas also old fashioned look like african touch
Y'all know that theory abt immigrants being like a time capsule of their cultures?? And they hold on to traditions closer while their home countries continue to change? Yh I personally felt that when I went back home and couldn't properly communicate with my cousins cuz of all the new slangs, and I've grown up there most of my life and only been overseas for like 4 years... worst feeling ever, but it is what it is
huh? culture evolves. it ebbs and flows throughout the years. the 'new slangs' are also just culture. if u aint part of it u dont gotta be mad.
@@anonanonloveslack of empathy response
@@anonanonloves They don't seem mad... They seem sad.
Omg. Girl you gave me goosebumps. Every 2-5 years I go back to taste and relive the nostalgia I had been romanticising for so long. My cousins have moved on from it, so it seems very strange to us. It all understandable but we're in time capsule.
Actually we are really westernised so this is not true at all.
Someone finally said it.... Devi saree gosh ! Am from tamilnadu, we have wide range of silk saree from different districts! Colours have no boundaries! When i saw her in that saree , am like its way too old fashioned!
OMG the sarees from Tamil Nadu are ELITE, you hear me? ELITE!
There is a way to do colorful and vibrant saree drapes...unfortunately we need a lot of education on how that is done lol
@@KarraMeansSpicyso girl there's two types of blouses, front open and back open. The front open one you wore at the end is SUPPOSED to be worn with a saree or dhavni (lehenga) which covers your chest in either single or multiple pleats. (single pleats is seen in bollywood heroines a lot, the multiple pleated one is more traditional, but looks amazing on young girls)
Anyway if you wanna wear the blouse with just jeans (which is still an abomination if not paired with high waist jeans, because it's not 2000s anymore) then wear a back open blouse or a side open blouse which has zips/hooks on the back or side. These are called designer blouses. The one you wore is very "aunty". When we wear lehenga with no dupatta or a dupatta not covering our chest, we usually go for these options. Hope this helps and sorry if i was a bit too harsh, i really think nri fashion is too tacky
And it was styled so poorly
The lucknowi kurti and the ones your mom bought you were nice
tn to kuch or hi h. Its not india
nris dont have market available . desi markets are regularly updated but in west stale desi fashion never get updated
this is another valid point!!! The shop that I like to go to, the one where I bought the chikankari kurti, she regularly gets shipments from India so I can count on her to stock up-to-date clothing. Other places, however, I wouldn't be shocked if they were selling the same wedding and Diwali ensembles that they were selling in 2004... you know, 20 years ago...
@@KarraMeansSpicyActually even if its 20yrs or 30yrs old still it can be customized at local tailor shop(which I don't know wheather you guys have access to😅) & style accordingly....There are some classic combos which never goes out of style, in fact some celebrities opting for their mother's outfit for their special days Actually makes me happy because they have huge influence on our youth....Its more about age-appropriate fashion to me because the same saree can be worn/styled differently both for an aunty as well as a young girl...Doesn't matter the fashion of the outfit is 20yrs old or 100yrs old...
There are plenty of YT videos of infulencers who give tips & tricks on how to recycle age old clothes😅
Yeah that's a point...but i think some times nri's should shop in India,once in a year or 2years
I'm surprised NRIs only discovered in 2022 that sadly their ethnic fashion sense is way off. Ive been seeing it since the 90s. It's all basically very loud and crass, I'm sorry to say, although I don't mean to be rude. And ive noticed that NRIs don't choose clothes that (classically and not by trend alone) fit well, are styled well and are suitable to each person's skin colour and body type.
After watching your clothes collection, I'd say the best ones are the ones your mom chose. The turquoise-ish one you didn't like is actually pretty good. The lavender full set was also beautiful. But the kurtas turned into summer dresses are the ones that really give NRI vibes. Kurtas and dresses have different fits, so no Indian would wear a kurta as a dress because kurtas look like kurtas and therefore incomplete without the bottoms whereas short dresses are fitted well and distinctly look like dresses even if the style is a loose fit.
But yes the concert outfit kinda-sorta works because it's black and blue.
I completely agree with the last paragraph!!
I think the problem here isn't the fact that they wear outdated clothes, *even I wear some of my mom's old clothes and they look absolutely beautiful*- It's more about the style, colour, and what suits and looks the best on their body, and because they have so few options to choose from, they sadly have to opt for those clothes.. they are so ill fitted and look super uncomfortable!!
U defined it exactly how I feel but was unable to put it out in words
I think the fit is because at least in America we don’t have much of a culture of personally tailoring our clothes. It’s crazy to me that you can order clothes with custom tailoring on desi clothing sites, idk most Americans just buy things as is and if it doesn’t fit, most of us can’t sew or wouldn’t bother to get it tailored
NRI still wears that long komolika bindi 😅I mean we Indian girls forget when is the last time we wore that,...in short yes most of the NRI wore very tacky clothes like costumes
@@Q-SusiSo, are you saying mixing with locals makes you wear long bindi?😂
What is wrong wearing bindi of that style? People wear according to their personal taste.
@@kittygirl_thetortie498they are wearing it because they think thats how Indians do ,not for a personal taste..but still if they look good its fine then but most people dont its just a over dramatic look used in Indian TV serials😂
only online
You have a very self deprecating personality, which made this video very balanced and pleasant.
My 2 cents on the debate - as an Indian who spent 5 years in the US, I think NRIs will do better if they can identify the beauty of hand embroidery and hand work, traditional fabrics and dyes, as opposed to machine embroidery, machine work and cheap synthetic fabrics and chemical dyes. (Totally get you on the financial implication though)
If any NRI feels tacky, they can pretty much pick up any authentic handloom material or handloom outfit from India, and they can rest assured it is not going to be tacky and will be extremely good taste!
I could be completely off here, but I always assumed that the outfits with mirrorwork, sequins, rhinestones, beads, etc were all done by hand?
Either way, this is good advice and I will look out for more hand-made pieces in the future (for another video perhaps...)
nope. a lot are done with machines. but you need to have an eye for what's handmade and what's not.@@KarraMeansSpicy
If a stranger being self-depreciating makes you feel "balanced and pleasant"... you might want to examine some of those subconscious insecurities.
i think these days we mix or give a touch of gen z style to indian clothes like short kurti with baggy jeans we keep up with western pop culture and indian pop culture but NRIs still stuck in their parent's generation👀
The thing is that as an NRI I mainly wear western clothes 99% of the time. The only time I’m not is at the temple or if I’m invited to a wedding or special occasion. None of the times is it appropriate to mix match short Kurti with baggy jeans. The people who mix match that type of stuff get looked down upon. It’s considered trashy. Both white and NRI will think you came straight from India.
@@komalpreetbrar7740 i am from India and I also go to temple wearing kurti with baggy jeans and no one sees it as a problem
I can see Gen Z/Gen Alpha kids wearing baggy jeans and kurtas to college classes, its a cute look!
@@bratumn exactly your from India. The culture and what’s appropriate is different. You have to look presentable in front of others at the temple. I know in India a lot people go to the temple every day and any time of the day, so it’s a lot more casual. But going to a place once a week, it’s not as relaxed and theirs a dress code.
@komalpreetbrar7740 And what about boho chic fashion? Indo western? White people literally degrade us for our clothes and then use our clothes and ideas to make themselves feel better?
NRIs are quite behind than the current trends in India. That’s why it looks out of fashion. But that’s to be expected. I haven’t seen any women wear cheetah or animal print saree in my life around me. I would never wear an animal print saree ever.
We also don’t wear kurtas as dress .The patterns are different on kurta and dress.
The thing about the inferiority complex - I don't think it's true for everyone. I would say Indian society is VERY judgemental and NRIs are just thought of as a "different sort of Indian" and so are judged if they dress "poorly" according to people in the motherland.
And one other reason why NRI ethnic fashion is considered tacky by people (apart from the judgmental aspect of it) is because immigrants who moved out of India in the 70s and 80s haven't had the chance to evolve with Indian culture through the decades. Instead, they've gotten more attached to the culture that they grew up with (in absence of it in the country that they moved to) and have stuck to it even more ardently than ever.
I think the second reason is more valid.
I think the second reason is also true for movies too cause if you ask an NRI their favourite movie they say something like kuch kuch hota hai not something recent
this is very well-worded, and indeed very valid, thanks for sharing!
Totally agree with you,@ neongreenkirby.👍
I think that if you can get some wide leg jeans or trousers under all those kurtis, you won't need to turn them into sundresses. Add some boho jewelry and your casual indian fits are ready
Exactly, they don’t have the neckline or sleeves to work as a sundress. The fit is wrong too. Put some baggy jeans or palazzos with it, fit the sleeves and you’re good to go
All i suggest is a well fitted kurtas/saree blouses specially near the sleeves/shoulder areas. That's the main reason for the "tackiness". I rarely ever wear traditionals without alterations. Also, those cotton tops/kurtas need to be ironed before you wear them. Also for the love of almighty, don't wear saree blouses as crop tops over jeans, nobody has the rizz to pull that off!!
are you kidding? In college, they called me The Rizzler 😤
@@KarraMeansSpicyohh no the girl is right, it’s the worst combo of all. Blouse is not a crop top (mostly because of lace, pattern, cut and fitting type is not meant to be worn like that) n m not hating, being genuinely concerned.
Also why Indian find this combo weird is cause blouse is meant to be half covered with saree or dupatta else it gives exposing or half naked vibe) .. hope I was able to explain.
Tip--u can wear long jacket style of similar translucent fabric over the blouse or drape half saree or dupatta style
@@KarraMeansSpicy I absolutely agree with the person above me, and I mean this with love girl, but you only see a blouse at that stage while still dressing up or while undressing- there's many crop tops and garments that exist that are more revealing and look phenomenal, but with a garment like a blouse which is *meant* to be covered in that way (so much so they put the hooks on the front so it's not visible when draped on with the sari) it just *feels* more naked. So even if it looks good and the colours go well too, it just feels incomplete.
I think you looked absolutely great on all of the garments you showed in this video! Just got thrown off on your last fit XD I would suggest styling perhaps a different kind of blouse that doesn't have tight sleeves all the way to the elbow and/or one without hooks on the front.
Loved the video, keep it up!
The issue with that is that unlike India, it’s not at all the norm for clothing stores to offer tailoring and alterations as complimentary, so you have to go to a third party and it’s often expensive and time consuming (taking at least a week or two, not ready in two days). Well fitted is hard to do sometimes.
20:14 i swear i’m not trying to be mean but this looks like that brightass bedsheet my dadi(grandmother)loves to buy 😭
YES YES YESSSS!! As soon as i saw it i was like hmm this looks familiar, then i came across this comment and i was like Yes Exactly!! You were spot on lol
YES I was about to type the same thing!!!
forget animal print saris. we need rainbow animal print saris in the Lisa Frank style.
Check out Siddhartha Bansal, then! His designs are soooo fun and colourful, yet not at all tacky. Although they are like, super pricey, they're nice to look at.
SOMEONE GET ON THIS RIGHT NEEOWWWWW
You can look for leheriya clothes they are so pretty
Listen, no tea no shade if you're ever in Delhi let's go shopping because those stores are ripping you offfffffff.
I'm not even joking I actually mean it I'm not joking
Oh yeah, totally.
My cousin was visiting, I took her to Lajpat Nagar. She had a blast. Unfortunately she was basically robbed a day before at W.
Don't get me wrong I love W. But I'm never paying that full price when I can get basically the same thing for half price elsewhere.
@@simransimran9339 Thee only time I buy at W is when they have a 70% of sale and that too only if it is a very fancy, never before seen piece. So far I have only one skirt from W that I got through an online clearance sale
Let's go bestie, just name the time and place
@@KarraMeansSpicygo INA MARKET have good option..
This is a great point, but worth pointing out that Indians from India wearing western clothes show a similar level of ostentatiousness. Lots of logos, brand names, bright colors, exaggerated styles. When they’re wearing western clothes, they want everyone around them to KNOW they are wearing western clothes - in the same way NRIs wearing indian wear want people to know when they’re in Indian clothes.
Pretty easy to tell when people are wearing clothes to perform, vs when they wear for fit, practicality or comfort.
ok this is spot on, I never really noticed this pattern, how some Indians tend to do the same thing with Western clothes.
I think we all have a part of ourselves that wants to dress to impress others, rather than dress practically.
Nah. Indians wear Western cloths because they are comfortable period.
And most of these are not western ,it's just modern fasion after globalization.
And no one wears logos here, it's only in some music videos or influencers where you collected data for.
And as for colors, it's only because we are indians and we like colors. It's simply cultural diffrence where west prefers less colors and Indians prefer more.
Infact western cloths are so common in India that we wear ethnic only during family functions, ethnic days in colleges and works.
Only place Indians wear ethnic daily is those soap operas
THIS! 👏🏽👏🏽👆🏼👆🏼
This is such a good point. Really highlights how your everyday environment shapes your taste in fashion. NRIs wear western clothes more authentically because that’s our real everyday lived experience. And vice versa with Indians and Indian clothing
not true. people in big cities like mumbai blore etc wear fashionable clothes whether western or indian
I was nodding along to everything she was saying until she brought out her outfits 😂 No girl, there is definitely people with questionable fashion taste. The clothes were giving Thrift store nighties, grandma's carpets and tacky Disco ball.
The Fazals and blue indo western fit were gorgeous tho 💯 and the "marriageable" girl fits were Okay except for the lilac. Pastel "baby" shades don't suit our brown skin.
I can't even with the Last one 🤣
I'll take "grandma's carpet" and "tacky disco ball" (I might even get t shirts made with those captions written across the bust), but I am a strong proponent of wearing color, regardless of whether it suits one's skin color or not
This is exactly what I wanted to say but didn't know how to put it in a good way 😂😂😂
The lilac one looked amazing. You do what you do, that’s all. And agree with what everyone was saying, maybe pair those kurta dresses with jeans, it’ll look great.
So many of the "kurtas" reminded me of nighties 😭 but really, they are just missing a part (lowers) of the outfit.. they look incomplete
You're so on the money about pastels, I had to learn it the hard way when I moved to Pakistan and got more access to desi clothing. Still, I CANNOT give up on pastel blue.
NRIs feel pressured to cater to the Westerner gaze. With all the stereotypical "colors" and "exoticism" and "Bollywood-inspired" wedding wear marketed to them online as "Indian" or "Desi". What's "Desi" abroad is "clothes" back home.
Even with the music, with that one song that had become really annoying to listen to
Maybe they are catering to their own gaze? Its not like they where raised in or consume the same consumer culture as most people in India. The western gaze IS their own gaze.
@@yucol5661 Then they would look more individualistic.
But they all copy each other.
I used to be an NRI copycat. Now, in India, I look more like me:)
As a South Indian, middle-class NRI from Texas, USA, I think I understand why our traditional fashion might sometimes be perceived as tacky. Here are some key reasons: Just letting Y'all know this is my take on one particular group of Indian Community in a particular part of USA.
Limited occasions and climate challenges: Many Tamil Americans, including myself, don’t have a large blood family living in the USA, so our social circles are often our found families. This means there aren’t many opportunities, like weddings, large family gatherings, or poojas where we can wear Indian attire. Most NRIs return to India for their weddings, and with the high cost of plane tickets, it's tough to justify traveling just for a single event for a friend you are not that close with. Additionally, we usually wear Indian clothes only during festivals like Diwali and Pongal, but these often fall in colder months. We might put on our lehenga, kurta, or sari for an hour to take pictures, but then we change into more comfortable "Winter Western clothes." This only happens if we’re part of a friend group that celebrates these festivals together. And if these festivals fall on a weekday, school, college, or work can make it hard to celebrate, so by the weekend, the festive spirit may have faded, leaving little motivation to dress up.
Cost and practicality: Indian clothes can be expensive in the USA, so most of us have a limited wardrobe, usually selected by our parents. These choices often reflect older fashion trends from the early 2000s, where modesty was emphasized in traditional Indian dressing. As a result, we tend to wear daily wear kurtis more often because they’re comfortable, and with so few functions or pujas to attend, we might repeat outfits for only a few hours. This reality doesn’t encourage us to stay updated with the latest fashion trends. Additionally, in some areas of Texas, wearing traditional Indian attire could draw unwanted attention or even hostility (Thanks a lot Trump), so we often opt for clothing that feels safer like Kurthas that many people know about.
In conclusion, I hope that those in India can understand that NRIs from USA have their own unique challenges when it comes to maintaining traditional fashion. While India has a vibrant and diverse fashion scene, our circumstances in the USA shape our fashion choices differently. It’s not about neglecting our culture; it’s about adapting to the environment we live in. So, before judging, try to see things from our perspective and appreciate the different ways we navigate our identity.
Adios, and Have a great day y'all.
So well said.
❤
south indians aren't indians. you are not one of us
@toraccess How important is your opinion when the Republic of India 🇮🇳 regards South Indians as Indians? 😃
@@toraccess Last I checked, South India’s been part of India for more than a millennium, but thanks for the geography lesson. Maybe instead of trying to rewrite history, you could learn to appreciate the diversity that makes India amazing.
Honestly, as a 20 year old girl born and brought up in India, desi fashion is going to the stores with your mum and her side-eyeing everything until you find something she likes lmao and having the poor store clerks open at least 30 different fabrics when you go fabric shopping for a new Diwali fit. And mum trying to squeeze gold bangles you got when you were a kid, through your adult-sized hands lmao
I am not Indian so I cannot comment on the taste aspect, however I am a medium skilled home sewer and the two things that struck me about your wardrobe were fabric weight and fit: You seem to have a taste for what my latin american self would call a raised or empire like waistline (rather than a cinched waistline, that is prevalent in my culture so that bit was quite fascinating) and in general the ones you didn't like was because they didn't fit well in the chest area for lack of darts. I also noticed the ones you really loved (even though idk if they had bust darts) had very heavy embroidery work on top of that area or overall forcing the fabric to fall more flatteringly both around there and beyond kind of replacing the shaping by darts. In my personal opinion you could easily alter them yourself by hand. But otherwise maybe you just need help from a tailor or just choose heavier/more embroidered fabrics going forward. You can dye the ones you dislike the colours of too, nowadays you just need a washing machine. Dye rarely catches on embroidery thread and usually cannot cover patterns so you can preserve that too. It was great learning more about the differences and also that my home country isn't the only one going through this cultural divide of homeland vs overseas. Love your channel and as always: great make up!
what great insight, and don't inspire me to dye things, I will ruin everything in my closet!!!
@@KarraMeansSpicy if dye will help the Heavy Metal Desi vision come to life, then I think you should join the dark side. Three months ago I turned a rust orange cotton gauze dress into a lovely muted navy colour and I refuse to go back! Next up all my greens/yellows will be a lovely olive green rather than emerald or poopy brown, I will be unstoppable!
I'm an Indian who grew up in India and I didn't really know what you were talking about since my NRI cousins seem to dress fine, but then I saw 5:58 and screamed inside my head. But you see that look in Indian serials as well, usually worn by the mother-in-laws. Though we regularly consider it gaudy as its a costume. Edit: 11:29 This is not invalidating the NRI experience but Indian men LOVE to teach Indian women "sanskaar" and female fashion. This constantly happens here. One guy at my uni told my male classmate "She's showing everything" when I was wearing leggings and a full sleeved shirt. They have rot in their brains. Edit 2: Re: insecurity. I obviously cannot speak for every person who comments on NRI clothing, but from what I've seen, it's the same as my younger NRI cousin who doesn't fit into the Indian culture here because she didn't grow up here. When you go to school, hang out with friends, watch movies, you're part of the system. I can watch Hollywood movies all I want and use American slang, but I can't exactly catch every changing trend that happens because I'm physically not there. And NRI clothing is like a mismatched puzzle piece. It's Indian clothing but without the story we all grew up with, if that makes sense? Obviously you can't judge people for that; NRI clothing is a subset of Indian culture as a whole, after all. Just like you guys can't keep up with us, we can't keep up with you and don't understand the story behind YOUR Indian fashion. It goes both ways.
agreed, essentially I feel like us NRI are missing the context, which is what makes us lack "sophistication" when it comes to putting together Desi outfits. It really is more than "just clothes". Thanks for the input!
This is the loveliest response ever!
Great response. As someone brought up in the Middle East, my NRI experience is smack in the middle of the desi spectrum. I'm fairly on trend regarding desi clothes, but I never have the ease to pull off a sari/lehenga; the minimal desi girl aesthetic - including makeup! - which carries you through an Indian day is hard to capture for outsiders
About 2 decades ago my sister said that it was sad to see all the NRIs visiting India still wearing their grandparents clothes. I used to be very trendy growing up. As an NRI I had to rely on clothes already in my stash. They’re expensive. Cannot keep changing with the seasons. Trends in India are changing much faster in tune with the western world.
Love this chat.
I finally got it, it doesn't matter much what top or kurti you're wearing, it's the bottoms. I love me some leggings but if you wanna go for trendy Indian fashion, go for loose fitting bottoms like straight fit/wide leg/tapered/alladin pants lol or just wear a matching lehenga (if you don't have one, just buy a boho long skirt from a thrift store or online) under your kurti i swear it will elevate the kurti itself so much more. Plus points if it matches the kurti and dupatta. It creates a flowy effortless feel.
Next time you're in India, I would definitely check out Anokhi (it's based in Jaipur but has 27 shop locations across India). The clothes there are really gorgeous, and you'll also be able to find more Western silouhettes with Indian-style prints on them (I have a few rompers/overalls and maxi dresses from them which I wear in the UK in the summer as normal outfits all the time).
I'm an NRI but I also agree that NRIs desi fashion is generally outdated and tacky. Maybe that's because my parents and I left India in 2002 and my mother still very much keeps up with Indian fashion trends. I've let my non-Indian friends know that if they ever get invited to a desi wedding, I'm gonna go shopping with them because they're not gonna look bad on my watch!
As someone who's born and brought up in India, I definitely have cringed internally whenever I've seen the way NRI actors and actresses dress on TV. Like, no. Please leave that 20 year old fashion behind.
But I feel like it's not entirely their fault. When you're living in a region whose culture is so different from your own, you don't really have a reference to bounce off of. I can keep up with the fashion trends because I see everyone wearing those clothes around me everyday. Whether that be simple Kurtis for everyday wear, a suit, salwaar kameez, lehenga choli etc. (In fact, I have more Kurtis to pair with my jeans for every day wear than t-shirts at this point lmao)
The city is Lucknow! Ans the kurti is a chikankari kurti
Chicken Curry Kurti 🤣🤣🤣 Gosh. That's so funny. From an Indian whose family has been in South Africa since 1860✌🇿🇦
A lot of Indian men these days pride themselves on making "dank" comments as a hobby (or full time job, knowing how bad the unemployment rates have been). I love the idea of fusion fashion but there's a good chunk of Indians who prefer traditional wear, mainstream wear, some don't even like Indian fashion.
Maybe increase the flare on the sundress along with the shaping??
The pink one looks great!
The dark blue and gold one looks a bit too glittery, more formal? It looks like something my teachers would wear back home for teacher's day.
Kurtas with pockets go HARD. My favourite lehenga ever had a pocket and I wore it to my farewell (it's Indian prom minus the date)
The dupattas look so cute (bring back pastels please).
India is not romantic by any means though, just moved abroad and it's ten times safer. There's also been a whole bunch of terrible headlines regarding women's safety and such.
I think the downfall of this Earth will ultimately be because of men with too much time on their hands and no hobbies LMAO
Also I LOOK LIKE ONE OF YOUR TEACHERS?!??! brb gonna go burn that kurta real quick
And to speak to your last comment, I have been keeping up with the news as best as I can from overseas. It's excruciating to read. There is a lot of Indian culture that I love, but there are things about India that absolutely HAVE to change, and fast.
@@KarraMeansSpicyas a boy I agree. I hate these dank genz, they donot care about other's feeling. They bash color, religion, height, face or literally anything.
That's true.. Many of the gate comments are actually misogyny in disguise..
Also i think NRIs do not have an intuition for indian prints. Like you people focus A LOT more on silhouette. That's where fashion is screwed up. Its more filling a puzzle piece whatever you have instead of an actual focus on content of it.
True
Thanks for making this video! I was following the tea on the dietsabya account. I'm a South African Indian. Most of our community comes from a lienage of indentured labour, so other communities like ours in countries such as Fiji, Trinidad and Tobago etc. are left out of these conversations supposedly because we're generations removed from India, however I feel the same costume-y way whenever I wear ethnic clothes. The NRI chat is very interesting from this perspective, too.
I would be very eager to know more about your communities and how you guys stay connected to your Indian heritage! I rarely ever meet people from this sub-section of the Indian diaspora, whether in-person or online, so unfortunately I'm missing that piece from my discussion, but that's what the comments section is for! ;)
@@KarraMeansSpicythe first Indian indentured labourers arrived in South Africa in 1860. They were brought in to work on the sugar plantations, slavery having been banned across the British Empire (of which SA was a part) some 30 years earlier. Mahatma Gandhi started his political career fighting for the rights of Indian South Africans. His grand-daughter was an anti-Apartheid activist and served as a Member of Parliament in Nelson Mandela's govt. Durban was (is?) called the most Indian city outside India
@@KarraMeansSpicyI live in Mauritius, one of the islands where there are descendants of indentured labourers. It used to be very much the same thing, 2000s inspired outfits that were bling-y and kind of tacky. We have more variety now, but the way styling and accessorizing is done is pretty much awful because the dos and don'ts aren't apparent to a lot of us in a if you don't know the rules, you can't break them kind of situation.
This was very interesting and fun to watch. You gave solid reasons for the differences, the two best imo won't be easily forgotten: if you can only wear them to special occasions, but there are (because of culture) no special occasions, then you don't invest time and money into keeping up with its fashion unless it's your wedding. And yeah there's massive overcompensation as with all things related to "non resident X" anyone. The culture is missing from you, and you try to keep it in your life. It might just be tacky but it's an effort to keep the culture instead of forgetting it and there's absolutely no need to be harsh or send personal attacks..
You’re gorgeous! I love your collection. My only 2 cents as an Indian would be to pair the kurtas with wider leg bottoms. The leggings you were wearing are not in trend anymore. Wider/straight fit bottoms are in. I love the altered tshirt and the whole outfit. Love the metal outfit too, v chic. I would also suggest to pair the “dresses” with jeans. The silhouette still says kurta and they look like they’re missing pants😅
The fuchsia kurta is GORGEOUS. Pair it with a light blue jeans, slicked back hair and big silver earrings and you’d be an Indian Pinterest girly 😍
@@aishwarya2426 I thought the same thing! I can also see the fuchsia top being paired with a dark blue bell bottom/ flare jean, farrah fawcett esque hair, and a platform heel. Really leaning into a more 70s look.
So does this mean I'm going to do a 70s ethnic wear look book in the future? [it certainly does]
@@KarraMeansSpicyI think they want to say bootcut jeans, instead of bell bottoms, lol! All those Short Kurtis will go really well with bootcut jeans. Whereas longer kurtas go well with wide leg/straight leg jeans. You could also pair slightly loose fitted straight fit kurtas with boyfriend jeans and heels. It looks really chic and effortless. And bubba leopard prints are really out, I'm so sorry! I mean you could include some detail of animal print in your look, but the whole look with animal print is actually quite early 2000s. I remember a cousin of mine wearing faux leather leopard print flared trousers in 2003! 😅😅 Your collection is cute (for an NRI!! 😅😅). You've got potential! Keep up the effort! That teal kurta your mom gave is actually quite nice! However, that fuschia kurta with blue embroidery is not it! That sort of large machine embroidery is not appealing. Go for options that have smaller embroidery. Small prints, small embroidery. Short sleeves are also generally out. Elbow length sleeves are very in, shorter sleeves need to be fitted well too. Sleeves can make or break the outfit! ❤
@@KarraMeansSpicyyeah actually I would totally wear those with bell bottoms and statement traditional earrings. They're trending rn
Bro I’m a whole black girl whose town had a total of 8 Indian people. I’m just sitting here taking in this lore like 😳🍿
The magenta sheer kurta is from Lucknow. This kind of embroidery is called "chikankari".
Sometimes referred as "chikan ka kurta".
It used to amuse me a lot when I was younger. (Pronounced chickan)
I think it’s also - NRIs are so used to the minimalism of western wear that they want to go all out with desi wear.
Girl i don't know who told you that you can't wear heels just cause you're tall. Wear em and be the 6' goddess you are and slayyyy ❤
Finally 😂 As an Indian-born who moved to America I always wondered what was up with the fashion sense of the desi people here.
My NRI cousins strongly believe they are better than everyone. I think it’s mainly because how our Indian relatives treated them, so it gets into their head. I can imagine most NRI treat their Indian counterparts as inferiors.
you are literally so beautiful. i am gooped and gagged. like, your eyeliner??? insane. and then you feature dark-skinned girlypops in your examples??? iconic. love it. get out.
looking at you, i wonder if i might be beautiful too. means a lot.
stop wondering, you're GORGEOUS
In Bollywood and Malayalam movie industry, they always introduce a trend that was evergreen or trendy for that time like sheer organza saris In the movie Qala starring tripti dimri.. Kareena kapoor with her outfits in k3g reflecting NRIs of early 2000s
And nazariya’s outfits in om shaanti oshana and Bangalore days
I am a gulf NRI and I think this fashion outdated thingy stems from them being not connected to India. Like I go from Dubai to India like once every year so at that time you kinda catch-up with the trends and stuff.
OMG I FINALLY FOUND A GULF NRI IN THESE COMMENTS 😂❤🫂
I like the one your mom gave you and also the salwar kameez sets! I usually wear those short kurtis (or as you say long top) with jeans or loose pants. Leggings with kurta is falling out of fashion nowadays but it does look good.
So I'm not Indian at all in any way, but RUclips recommended me this video I think because I love fashion/history/culture. It made me realise that I had actually noticed this before, but I had never put it down to "tackiness", I had always thought of it as being different fashion trends in different countries. Western fashion, particularly in America (I'm not American, this is just an outsider looking in haha), but also in other countries too, loves the shiny jewellery and bright colours. Like, of course you have the clean girls and quiet luxury ladies, but in general I feel like there is a bigger emphasis on showing your personality through your clothes and using jewellery and colours to do that, including layering and any extras on the clothing items themselves (embroidery, beadwork, etc.). I think that's a mix of individualism and also having a lot of different people from different cultures living in Western countries and them bringing their own fashions which then become trends. I can't say for sure about Indian fashion actually in India because it's mostly something I look at rather than interact with, but I'd say the fashion right now is closer to clean girl-but-subtly colourful. Minimalism, demure, mindful, etc. I don't know how it is in India with subcultures, but I know in the West you can wear clothes from ages ago and people wouldn't really care that much mostly. You might get some weird looks, but nothing more. I like historical fashion and I live in a rural place in England, so my taste isn't necessarily the most blending in all the time, but nobody cares haha I could shave off my hair or dress all in lime green, and even here in the most old person, former (thank fuck) Tory town, people would really not care. I feel like in India there may be more comments or more pressure to keep up with the lastest trends? idk, again, not Indian, never been to India (want to, though!!!). That is something I have noticed with """developing""" (don't like that term, but can't think of a better one right now) countries' fashion - there can be more peer pressure to look good, and trendy, and look like you've spent money. Like how I imagine tiktok is for younger kids, I don't use tiktok but I know the peer pressure is immense there. At least tiktok has subcultures, but not all countries do, so you are kind of limited.
Sorry this comment was really long, but I thought it was a really interesting video, especially as someone who is...not the target demographic haha
Yes in India there can be a lot of comments and pressure to look trendy. Like you've spent money, sometimes yeah that too, but mostly like you've been paying attention and put in a lot of effort.
I think you also need to recognise that Indian fashion is different in the North and the South of India. As I see it, majority of NRI fashion has stronger older south Indian fashion-sense influences - like strong colours and contrasts. The north Indian design motifs often have been more one color tone, with silver gold patterns. Today with western influences, colours are getting less bold for sure, as sensibilities change. Also more subtle design patterns like chikan etc are becoming more widespread, blending with western minimalist fashion.
I feel like this is something that isn't discussed enough- how the Westernization of Indian fashion may be fuelling some of the more intense comments on NRI tackiness. There's an insidious colonial undercurrent to favouring Western trends like "minimalism" that I think should be talked about more. Maybe NRIs could learn to be a bit more "hip," but maybe Indians could also learn to not be so averse to traditions of the past.
@@kohlinoor But modern Indian fashion IS more vintage and classic inspired. I get what u mean though for sure
if one can't find a tailor who can make saree blouses, then a good option can be to find a tailor who can make bodices (which is what a choli or a ravika is by definition) or a bra (that can be worn as an outer wear, i.e., it can be blingy/colourful/etc)
We don’t really have tailors in the US. They exist, but they aren’t trained in Indian wear. Not sure of other countries but in the US, it’s hard to find a tailor that can actually work with Indian clothing. Or they’re Indian and overpriced.
@@nidhi2693 that is why i suggested finding a tailor who can make bodices/bras instead of the usual saree blouse
I have NRI cousins and I have experienced this first hand and i think I know the reason why! 😎 Most NRI kids get their choice of desi clothes from their moms and elders, if you see in most cases the parents left india and settled abroad for a brighter future and their kids grew up with local kids in foreign countries and the only 2 sources of desi fashion is either through their mom's eye (which is mostly outdated) or through Indian films and they are over the top!
Also NRI kids wear desi clothes rarely during festivals or wedding ceremonies, hence they go all out 😎
The lavender set is pretty af, the neck reads a little conservative for your age, i would imagine my mom with that neck shape. Maybe altering the neck would make it read more younger
NRI fashion is distinct from indian fashion. We also look and act different, NRIs use the clothing on special days so it is a "costume" for them. But Indian fashion is not a costum for us from india. I have been told several times since moving out of India that I dont dress like Indians (NRI). People in other countries consider NRI to be the benchmark.
Girl pockets makes everyone of us happy. This happiness is beyond borders😄. Go MOM!!
While I will admit to having seen outfits by NRIs that were a lil odd, it never really bothered me until it became the pinpointer of Indian fashion in TV shows/movies. Like the examples, you put on your thumbnail. There are people in India who wear very similar outfits even today. And that is fine! It's just that the context of the shows and what they put the artists in just feel way too disconnected. The other aspect is, to take a wedding scene from such shows, it shows almost everyone dressed that way. I mention this because there are people who love the bling, the bold colors from top to bottom, the maximalist side of Indian fashion, and so on. But that comes down to personal styles and preferences. Because of this, if you were to actually go to an event you would see a variety of styles. When it is this generalized, extreme portrayal of Indian fashion, it feels icky and a misrepresentation. As someone who lived in the gulf for 1/3rds of my life, I can vouch that availability will play a crucial role. Because the Gulf countries have such a huge Indian (largely Malayali) population the options are a lot more in touch with what you would get in an Indian market and yet I think nothing beats buying from India itself. Price-wise, clothes were always cheaper in India but based on currency value, it was still understandable. The prices at which Indian clothes are sold in Western countries though are a whole other deal. It is so ridiculously overpriced (based off of what NRIs have mentioned) that it feels almost unfair to Indian artisans and to you guys. Never understood how the prices are off the roof for honestly poor quality- enlighten me please.
Regardless, I understand many NRIs feel lost with their identity and feel like they don't fit in either way, so I think people need to be less harsh when addressing something that at the end of the day is luxury. Cause fashion is a luxury!
1st dress: Remove the sleeves. Pair the look with a full length or 3/4 length straight cut pants in white. Even wide-leg pants would do. Complete with casual summer slip ons. Even Birkenstocks.
2nd pink kurta: u can shorten it to hip length. Will pair well with dark denim pants. Simple sliver jhumka earrings are a bonus.
3rd dress: I get it. It’s a boring print. Looks comfy tho.
4th: Remove the sleeves. U can shorten the length and wear it as a cute top. Will go with white pants (baggy/skinny) or a long skirt.
5, 6, 7: These kurtas aren’t tacky but they’re not interesting either. These are everyday wear for women here. Can be worn outside or inside the house. At work or at home. Instead of tights, trying wearing wide legged pants with them. Tight leggings will also do but I see young people wear wide, flowy pants more often with their kurtas.
8th : This colour looks good on you! What it needs are golden accessories and, of course, straight cut or wide leg pants (like palazzo pants) in gold colour. U can also pair it with a simple gold lehenga (skirt). And a plain golden dupatta. With the right accessories u can wear this for special occasions.
10th: As much as I like this pale lavender shade, the fit and neckline are not giving. This look, overall, is the closest to enter Tackystan territory. Maybe it’ll look better if styled differently.
11th: A classic. This could be worn by a young Shabana Azmi (a veteran Bollywood actress known for her elegant looks and fashion choices).
All in all, most of the clothes you’ve show represent the regular wear for a large section of women in India. If worn without interesting pairings, accessories, and alterations, many of these are just basic outfits and that’s fine.
Pastels shades are actually boring. Urban Indian women shying away from colour is simply following a colonial mind set. Rural Indian women on the other are not shy of bold colours and mix and match them with ease. Tackiness comes from how you carry yourself or not, and not from the colours you wear or your outfit. Perhaps NRI women just need to feel more comfortable in Indian outfits than worry about the colours.
I never thought about this but yes less color seems to be related to westernisation.
Maybe I’m not chronically online enough because I had no idea this was even a debate going on for years 😂
One reason that I think strongly influenced NRIs’ outfits being “tackier” is a new found embrace NRI’s have of their Indianess. Just 10 years ago my own brother discouraged me from wearing a shalwar kameez for cultural day in high school because he was worried kids might call me a terrorist - fast forward to today and you can’t tell me SHIT if I’m stepping out the house with my Desi clothes on, or else 👊🏾
Also I think your proximity to the motherland plays a role too - if you have friends/family that still go back often, have moved out of the motherland only recently, or know folks who’ve recently married into the diaspora you’re more in tune with what’s “trendy” in the motherland.
Or you could be like me who has none of those but by pure coincidence likes the more muted looks that’s “on trend” in the motherland now 😆
sorry, he was worried the kids would call you a WHAT? 😡😡😡 [i have had the same thing said to me in similar context]
It definitely takes effort to stay up-to-date with Indian culture, it is not just "it's in my blood", if you live abroad, you have to have some level of "proximity to the motherland" as you put it so well, whether that's through the people you know or the content you consume.
@@KarraMeansSpicy yeah girl, the post 9-11 years were crazyyy 🙃 my neighborhood had POC but the school was still majority white so I think my brother was just trying to “look out for me” in his own way unfortunately.
I think over the next few decades we might actually see less difference in fashion between Indians & NRI’s thanks to social media. Now that communication across continents is instantaneous I think we’re gonna see NRI fashion being influenced by the current motherland trends, instead of from previous decades fashion trends
@@KarraMeansSpicy Yeah as someone who grew up in the Middle East 3.5 to 4.5 hours flight away from South India, I really can't relate to these NRI vs Indian debates and honestly drives me up the wall cause I feel left out.
Us ME NRIs will like visit India for 1 to 2 whole months, YEARLY where they will attend weddings and other functions, and buy Indian clothes and jewellery from India.
You also have Indian gold jewellery and Sari brands from India having lots of stores in the Middle East.
And add uncles selling stuff from the mother land in smaller stores.
Not to mention that there are so many Indians there, that there are Indian only schools.
Theaters play Indian movies from all across India and many come and watch them.
In the end NRIs in ME have more proximity than NRIs in English or European speaking countries.
I love the Indian women I work with, I love to see pics of them when they go to events because I love the fashion. Im not Indian but I respect the culture and definitely the fashion showcased here in America! ***And I'm 5'8 1/2 and I am the queen of high heeled shoes! I love being tall, embrace your height and your heels!
I liked this deep dive you did into this issue; I have to say though, in my opinion, the articles you talked about at 14:55 absolutely hit the nail on the head in explaining the sheer amount of vitriol that’s being spewed from the Indian side regarding NRI fashion.
I read everything that dietsabya posted when this was going on, and I saw so many posts of Indian girls trashing NRI fashion and then in the same breath complaining about feeling shunned and othered by NRIs when they would interact with them. There were so many posts like that, and honestly you can’t convince me that the two issues aren’t related.
And I know you mentioned that this argument may not hold much weight because not all Indian girls long to go abroad, and most of them are happy being in India, but I don’t think that statement fully encapsulates the dynamic between resident Indians and NRIs. I think whether or not any individual Indian person actually wants to go abroad, there is still a collective and psychological hierarchy in Indian society wherein Indians who have the means and opportunity to either visit or live aboard are seen as superior. And that hierarchy is bound to breed resentment. So when an issue like this comes up, where resident Indians definitely have the upper hand, they go balls to the wall in trying to put NRIs in their place and come out on top. I’m not saying that NRIs have better Indian fashion (obviously Indians living in India will always have the advantage there), but what I’m saying is the AMOUNT of hate that Indians gave the NRIs about this topic definitely stems from something deeper and more sociological.
Man, this was a brilliant breakdown of the argument ❤️ I definitely sense that in India, the barometer of success has become whether or not you can leave the country and head West, but i couldnt think of a way to say it without sounding like a complete a-hole since i myself am an American, and the way you explain how it ties into the fashion debate is just *chef's kiss*
@@KarraMeansSpicy I totally get you! I was initially trying to find a way to state this without coming across as a dick as well because I’m American too 😅 but I remember everytime me and my family would go to India my grandma would go out of her way to make sure EVERYONE knew that we were visiting from the US and seeing how everyone reacted to that was the first time I got a glimpse into what being an NRI means to resident Indians
I disagree, although moving abroad (becoming increasingly common now) is seen as a status symbol in lower middle class and middle class section of India and there might be some who do overdo the hate bcs of some underlying inferiority complex, for most people it is an issue of NRIs representing indian fashion in the west and globally, especially when it comes to Indian representation in western movies. We are way too passionate about our indian dresses and no hate but most of the dresses worn by NRIs is so uncomfortable to look at that it always ends up turning into a debate even amongst ourselves (I think indian with their fashion is similar to Italians with their food 🫣🫣). But I understand the financial aspect of things and that most of the dresses available there probably come from more cheaper parts of India since that’s what’s affordable there.
Hi, You have gorgeous hair. Indian from India here, I had no idea about the post that started this conversation but I have always thought NRI's fashion sense is either stuck in 80's or they have no access to good Indian clothing. I understand the point about not wanting to spend an arm and a leg for clothing that you are only going to wear twice a year. My advice would be to invest in timeless pieces like Kurtis and Suit sets in Chikankari and other handmade embroidery pieces, print work like Ajrakh etc, classic cotton and silk sarees in colors that suit your skin tone will go long way I mean it can be passed down, These things hardly go out of style and can be styled up and down with accessories. fusion style clothing is a savior.
about your Indian wardrobe First thing I noticed is length of sleeves . IMO Kurtis with 3/4 sleeve length or full sleeve length look the best or you can go sleeveless, the half / short sleeve does not go well with any style of kurti. another thing to watch out for is fit of the sleeve Kurtis give maximum comfort when sleeves are loose fit since there is no stretch in them. tight fit sleeves looks dated and constricting. About tailoring the kurti's to sundresses- try to find empire line kurti's or loose silhouette and then take in the bust with darts , you can also make midi length dresses. Its very difficult thing to let go of the comfort of leggings but its time retire the tights / leggings and opt for loose fit bottoms palazzos, dhoti style pants , cigarette pants etc etc. linen pants look really good maxi skirt pair well with Kurtis. BTW Kurti at 22:20 looks amazing on you. Top you are wearing at 27:42 is a Chikankari short Kurti and comes from Lucknow. Kudos on interesting outfit at 29:34😂😂 I don't think anyone can pull that off ..😉
As an Indian who's been out of the country for a couple of years, I think I can relate to both sides to an extent.
At the end of the day, wear what you want!Indian culture is diverse enough not to be "maligned" by what any one group of people would wear!There's space for all of us to express ourselves the way we want.
Also, Blue is definitely your colour, and mother knows best! ❤❤
Blue us your colours, obviously you look gorgeous in every colour but blue is just ❤
I have a slightly different theory but it's based on my limited observation: A lot of NRIs are like time capsules as many have rightly pointed out. But in the generations gone by, there was little focus on Indian arts and crafts. While the previous generations would know a few, more complex forms of artisinal styles were not popular. For example, ajrakh has stepped into the spotlight, so have ikat/handlooms, rabari, bagh, Surat zari and more.
Today a lot of Indians are actually wearing more traditional prints, weaves and fabrics albeit in modern silhouettes. It's also exposure to what was available to NRIs when they were leaving. Enjoy the renaissance and give Indian artisans some appreciation ❤
Don't know why algorithms sent me here ... But wil give advice anyways ... Indians in India Especially upper middle class buys a lot from westside , Myntra , pantaloons , shoppers stop , local markets ... Designers from Mumbai n Bangalore design stuff for all these outlets n currently they r predominantly using Deep autumn n deep winter color palettes as these r more suitable to Indian brown skin undertones .... NRIs can easily check websites of these to know wats in trend ... Acceptance of brown skin beauty is in trend ... Self pride is in trend ... Fair skin obsession is fading as India gets richer
I am Indian, thought I live in a small start, the urban areas are not so dreamy, there are potholes, garbage, constant construction and pollution. It sucks, the villages on the other hand with big villas, bungalow, small houses, open fields , mango , coconut and Cashew groves are definitely dreamy and romantic.
Thankfully I live is a state that is communal tension free.
one question, if someone says only my ideas/views are "true" and other's views are "false" and "wrong" and hence they (others) should be damned for their "false" and "wrong" views, isn't this inherently a supermascist stance? and we very well know that from supermacism only comes hatred or dislike towards others!
As a fashion girlie I guess we don’t hate NRI that’s sure.And I guess more Indian businesses of clothing must exist as per my assessment of what you said. As Indians I GUESS we feel NRI ppl somehow represent us globally in a way. We want to create some sort of soft power just like Indian food has. And Indian girlies love their fashion and we want better representation. But still nobody is obligated to do so. But somehow what we see is not what we like majorly. No hate. I loved your lavender suit 💕
IMO, turn all your sundresses into tops. The tops look better. I don't know when they were bought but kurtas and kurtis have almost always been 3/4 sleeve length. That tiny sleeve makes it look awkward. Or make them sleeveless sundresses and pull in the waist, kurtas are meant to be straight and loose but not sundresses.
Here's my 2 cents on your wardrobe. All those dresses have a kurta neckline but end up being worn as a dress. That makes the out fit look lame. Also while those bright colors look great on you. It ls the harsh contrasting colors that makes a piece hideous. The black kurta you seem to like with the gold embroidery has muted colors in the same family. That's why it looks elegant.
from my perpective, your outfits seem distincly like what my mother and other aunties would wear way back when i was a young child (early 00s). While they would've been considered pretty at the time there's definitely a sense of having evolved past some of the design "mistakes" in the current Indian fashion scene. That's what makes them a little,,,,, unsettling seen from the perspective of newer generations of indians - you think "i thought we got over that ages ago!" Even with the coming back of old styles there's often an "evolution," solving the "problems" of the original design, or incorporating new elements. More than anything it just feels uncanny and out of place I suppose, like seeing a ghost
My two cents:
Mostly the Nerdy Indians migrated leaving our cooler cousins behind!
Cooler cousins have all the time to choose best of the best , any occasion( which is waay to often)a good opportunity to upgrade your style.We have sometimes just an hour to choose clothes when we go back home.And since we are kinda out of touch,choices explain themselves.😂
Having said that, your Mom has a great choice, your Aunt not so much! Blue looks great on you and the outfit to the music festival is great.
Yes, NRI fashion sucks! However, I don't think NRIs deserve the kind of hatred they receive just because they're poorly dressed (ironically, these pieces are beyond expensive!). A majority of kids raised abroad don't know what good Indian fashion even looks like. So Karra, if you need help styling.. Do contact me. Am willing to help.
The only beef I have is that foreigners use NRIs to understand Indian culture and fashion instead of India itself, that's like judging a burger by just tasting the sesame seeds on top? This skewed perception is harmful in the long run because in India, fashion is art - it celebrates excellent craftsmanship, fabrics catering to regions/climates and prints/embroidery that have ALOT of history in them; no hate to NRIs you don't get much choice, just wish that foreigners put a little more thought before using clothes or jewellery, because even our most local clothes mean more to us than Shien :) In India fast fashion means western fast fashion. Never Indian. It's all about being timeless.
P.S.: NRIs, focus on a flattering neckline, colour and fit - the embroidery/fabric will always look good if it fits well. Most Indian fabrics are "GORGEOUS".
NRI here....This might be different for girls living in New Jersey or Manchester or California - but most of us who live in flyover states where we are still accutely aware of how we stick out, do not wear soft Indian fashion. So the soft fashion (Kurt plus jeans) for example that your average Indian girl wears is not something I would ever go for. I'd either go "full Indian" think what Indian girls wear to weddings or Diwali or not at all. Call me "not proud of my culture", but growing up post 9/11 and in the Trump era it can be hard not to fit yourself into a box. Not to mention I have the finances to go to India once every 3 years and international shipping is exorbitant. So I'm either 3 years behind or the clothes I'm getting are bought by my 65 year old aunties.
kurta plus jeans is cute girl 😂😂😂 anyway, if you wanna wear full on indian, and if you don't wanna appear like a tacky NRI, do check our trends going on in India, which aren't 20 yo
Full Indian is NOT synonymous with being ticky tacky 🤣🤣
25:22 Dark blue cloth is very beautiful ❤️
Tbh as an indian...I think the judgement comes from the fact that we see NRI as our representatives to the countries they live in like you kinda make or break our image(which is kinda unfair)in a lot of sense and one of it is fashion and culture. India is an amazingly creative country with immense versatility in handicrafts,designing and clothing and to have those be not represented kinda feels bad and wrong it's like potraying a false image or a bad one. Not only NRIs It also happened with this years olympic costume it was so bad and outdated and the designer got a lot of backlash and the reason was the same it almost feels like downplaying our culture even when we know our strengths..and this not only happens with NRIs for instance I live in uttarakhand (one of the northern Himalayan states of india) we have different culture but when we see it be misrepresented or wrongly represented outside of the state it makes us disappointed because we see those people who are from our states as our representatives of sort. I've felt this way for a long time I would always go on youtube and watch culture day performances in schools and stuff and everytime the indians would look like they were from a different decade 😅 also i think unlike a lot of asian diaspora NRIs do not keep up with their country it could be a disconnect or just an inferiority complex I don't know tbh but i think we need to not think od NRIs as our representatives but as own individuals but i doubt that's gonna happen cause i see these kinda debates in every culture nigerians,cambodians,etc 😂 that's why now i have taken the responsibility to keep my cousins NRI daughter up with all the stuff that goes on in the country🫡☠️ i even dressed her recently for rakshbandhan 🎉
To be fair, unlike NRIs, our Olympic athletes really did represent our country and we gave the world the impression that we are a shabby bunch. Not to mention that the designer could make beautiful, opulent wedding dresses, but half-assed the process for our national treasures and the doubled down on his lack of effort as 'humbleness' on national television.
I don't like nri for their alignment in extremist politics in india ( majority NRI) and when they wear indian clothes, it does look costumish but your indian clothes are good actually ( except for the last one). Hey karra ,look out for north east indian fashion ,they are the most dope in fashion in india for their indo western fusion.ignore those indian haters( indian incels) ,they are nuisance, they are the very same who moral police indian women from india for their indian values also.you are gorgeous 💜💜💜.
May I ask what you mean by "extremist politics?"
@@moreakiko "Hindus For Trump" and salivating for the current fascist state head might be two clues for you.
@@djokerdevil You're right.
The pocket discovery was so pure omg that was the highlight of my night lol. You look incredible even in the jank ones. Drop dead gorgeous (yes you did something)
As an Indian who moved to the US 14 years ago I have completely lost touch with the current fashion trends in India. I'm pretty much stuck in the fashion of the 2010s and still like those styles the most. It's like you like the music of your teens and 20s the most even though music keeps evolving.
The purple top with white embroidery top is called "chikankari" from Lucknow
NRI dresses on American shows or any event are so weird and we can't even praise sincerely for flaunting our culture
Indian Aunties who're in there 50s wears such kind of clothes in india now which you just showed.
Ohhkay so my two very uneducated cents on this, you know when I see NRI fashion I see a shit ton of influence of early 2000s fashion. Like that was my mother's closet back then, that very specific kind of bling, those bright colors and heavy jewellery, I guess it is cause most of the NRIs either grew up and were more exposed to indian media of the time when NRI fascination was taking over bollywood or their parents that is the parents of gen Z were like in their late 20s and remember that fashion and introduced that era's desi fashion to them. This is very similar to a short I saw by a linguist who was talking about how the native language of immigrant is often a time capsule of the time when they left motherland, even though the language in motherland has now evolved similar idea might apply to fashion. (This is by no means a critical or highly educated opinion so if you find any logical or factual fallacies please feel free to explain it to me)
I am from Pakistan and overall Indian (ethnic) fashion seems very old fashioned to me. Out of date prints, silhouettes and colours seem to dominate the market. I always assumed it was because western wear is much more popular in India so it was given an afterthought, whereas in pakistan almost all girls universally wear shalwar kameez so the styles, trending prints, designs and silhouettes are constantly changing. The only indian clothing you will find imported in Pakistan is bridal lenghas, but i believe there is a big market in india for imported pakistani clothing.
Prolly true. I think we do well with sarees than other ethic wear, though. There are experimentations but the it's very niché and most feel comfortable in the tried and true (plus vintage is trending like crazy, so sarees' the item). Silhouette being outdated is prolly because, it feels indian(?), Like you KNOW when a suit isn't in native style. Pakistani salwar kameez are easy to differ because of that reason, if you've grow up in a more conservative household.
Edit-- So, I went and Googled a bit (sorry if I sound obsessed or smth but I don't mean any harm) and saw some yt videos. And I don't see much difference, except for the usually baggy silhouette and sleeve and hem styles, which i mentioned is easy to spot. So, can you please describe the difference you found?
AND, Pakistani culture and fashion is seeing a rise in the subcontinent, indian always been good market that could be reason and lack of imports could be because Pakistani produce quality good enough for themselves.
It's like people with immigrant parents speaking an out-of-date dialect of their mother tongue, because it's the one they learned from their parents.
The "out of date accent" being still spoken in the parent's home town or village tho
I feel like this is kind of given though?? NRI’s wont be up to Indian trends bc they dont live in India and are more disconnected from the trends. They wear more fancy and extravagant looks bc the only times most of us get to wear indian clothes is to fancy events and big festivals. Furthermore, its a lot harder to get rly good and trendy indian outfits when j live outside of india, not every brand does shipping and the ones that do get pretty selective. Its not like any of those outfits are *bad*, theyre just different from modern indian fashion. Ig in a way u could say NRI culture and fashion is more separate from Indian culture than most NRIs like to think.
I think the kurta/dresses need a belt of some kind to really get the "dress" silhouette rather than kurta. I have a simple cotton anarkali that I often play off as a sun dress by throwing a belt on it :-D
You are great !!😊😊😊 Love your wardrobe !!!!!❤❤❤ My 2 cents, cut off the hands of the summer dresses and make them V neck and tuck in the waist.. and you will have the best summer dresses in USA !!!!
Fran Dresher in a club on Bollywood night 🤣I was cackling! You hit the nail on the head.
28:33 Gurlll I see what you did there! This fit slays!!! It looks amazing on you, and I'm loving it!
Btw, I just discovered your account today and I'm glad I did! I love your energy
I think what people misunderstand about NRI’s is that we know you guys dress in grungy, muted or pastel colours and are more minimalistic. But you guys are not understanding that minimalism is out of style in western fashion. Maximalism y2k style is in INCLUDING 90s and early 2000s Indian traditional wear. Hence the maximalist, colourful, heavy embroidery that we wear which you guys consider outdated. I think instead of saying we are out of style, we sort of just evolved our own branch of Indian pop culture fashion. That being said most NRI gen Z Indians I’ve met dress in muted colours too whereas I’ve noticed my mother and other Indian aunties do have slightly tackier taste.
No, NRIs have been dressing this way even before y2k became a thing. Pre pandemic and all nobody was wearing y2k inspired fits yet NRIs still dressed like they're in the 1980s
Your first outfit can go NRI to desi if you remove the border on neck and make a v neck sleeveless alterations to the dress. Can be done for others too.
Hi from another Karnataka origin NRI 🖐🏽 I know I already have a poor sense for fashion but I feel even worse knowing Indians are judging us for our traditional wear as well 😅 We have a ridiculously sparse but overpriced selection when it comes to Indian clothing over here in the UK. I rarely find anything I like in the shops so I end up wearing the same few outfits from my last visit to India, which could be have been bought anywhere from a few months to a few years ago. Generally, a lot of us don't have many occasions to wear these clothes as well - so you'll just have to forgive us if we want to pull out all the bright and dazzling garments we have from the back of our wardrobes and party like it's 2014!
What i do is when i visit india, i go to a cloth store immediately within a day of arrival, and buy 5- 6 outfits of latest trend and use that for the whole time during vacation and bring it and use it for indian Uk events. So,we utilised it to india and uk and stay on top of trends. Use that clothes as home clothes, if it kurta at home. Next year repeat the process
-ve: NRI children taste develop looking at their parents , aunts, uncles and not through absorbing culture and fashion experiencing all around. So yes NRI tastes are decades old naturally as they get influence from that older generation around. The Asian shops in your neighbourhood in US stocks not stylish Indian clothes based on the pink top with massive block embroidery front and loose frilly everywhere. Neck lines are hilarious high up to the throat almost. In India girls love styling their neck line or saree blouse neck line to show off more skin & yet be decent to wear anywhere. US has loads of fashionable online store that actually sell items from India. It may be a little expensive as those poor craftman work on those silk or embroidery for months +the export rules, taxes etc. The clothes you showed are not fashionable for last 5 years or more for your age group. The first few prints that you altered look like kurtis made from materials/ print used for bedsheets and curtains in India. The pink saree blouse did not look right with leopard print jeans. But if you put some short black denim or bomber jacket, it may look better and not 2 odd things put together that dont look good. Also since you like leopard print i guess a more yellow brown version of the print than whitish leopard print that you wore would look good. I still think full leopard looks not good. A hint of here and there makes it more appealing.
I dont think that red lipstick suits you. But thats another common thing about make up in NRI children. Somehow they move too bright, blings, non fashionable stuff and wear it thinking it is fashionable.
+ve: You are right with lack of avalability of good Asian clothing shops that sells modern practical Indian clothing in neighbourhood. They sell over the top , yet old fashion style used to be in fashion a decade and half ago. No idea why those shops sells old style items.They should call themselves vintage clothes store or something. Great you dabbled in sewing and alteration. The blouse with square neck opens way to much forward as it was not meant to be blouse. It needs more work on sides so its more blouse like.
I think the black full embroidered salwar set and the one you called metal was nice in your collection.
My suggestions: Just follow your heart/ mind is not enough as our mind or heart are trained by our surroundings and upbringing we are in. To have develop a taste of Indian sophistication without being rich is first not to have older family members influence your purchase or choices of clothing. What to use to influence: Find a website of a supermarket something like that sells clothing all over India. Take a look at their site to develop current fashion sense of local ordinary Indians who are not film stars or your family relatives or local store who wants to clear out their old stock gathering dust.
About me: NRI 1st generation. I pick things from instincts that comes from living in India long time where Indian fashion originates, ability to make fashion decisions with full self awareness what suits on me and not get influenced by my parents or family members or even friends whose dont have broad tastes to be suitable for advising anyone.
I think you have the look that will suit western or Indian or fusion clothing styles. I also think something about you reminded me of a young bollywood actress i seen 15 yrs ago Sonakshi Sinha. You can try testing her styles that you think she looks nice in.
Wish NRI across come together , forgetting their differences and pride and Enjoy the core feelings all Indians have and create more ocassions to wear those beautiful clothings ourselves. Differences are keeping all of us apart and its us losing out being in our own bubble.
Thanks for making this video.
For years I thought to do 1 but i got i lack courage and motivation to follow through ideas to reality.
It is definitely not inferiority complex some of nri clothes look terrible like cheap costumes or like old clothes given for alms , .
When i was a child i though because they are south indians and the dresses they wear are south indian dresses becauseost of moden indian fashion is based on north and west india
Can I just say; thank you for this video! As a white Canadian woman in her 50's, I recognize I am not in any way the intended audience for this video - but it's helped me a lot! One of my closest friends (since grade 3) is Punjabi. She lives far away (we only see each other once a year now) and has invited me to her daughter's wedding next year. My friend's sister discovered I do thrift-flips, and gave three grocery bags full of her old Punjabi suits so I could "cut them up and thrift-flip them so you can wear them at the wedding". In an effort to not totally embarrass myself and my friend I've been trying to research Desi fashion - and I've been so confused by what I've seen online, and what I've seen my Canadian-Punjabi friends wearing. While this video was not meant for me, it cleared up all my confusion - so thank you so much. I no longer feel quite so panicked and sick with anxiety about what I'm "supposed" to look like.
You have more Indian outfits than I do and I live in India :D
all collected over several years!
An non NRI indian Subscribing you for spitting facts.