Finance, Forex and Investments

For Women a Bolder Path

Summary: By SOMINI SENGUPTA WOMEN IN INDIA are opting for form fitting business suits In Sudan a woman who dares to wear trousers is sent to jail In the capitals of Europe a Muslim head scarf becomes a political lightning rod And across the Islamic world new designers are nudging women to step out of fashion purdah with clothes that meld global catwalk trends with Muslim mores In old societies facing a flurry of Western goods and ideas a woman often carries the competing demands of tradition and modernity on her back How she dresses conveys a great deal more than her individual sense of style She is evaluated by what she does or does not wear whether it is by her parents in laws co workers loutish men on the bus and even as with the debate over the Islamic head scarf by politicians Sometimes she conforms to tradition sometimes she challenges it Consider India today where a decade of roaring economic growth has been accompanied by new opportunities for the urban educated woman and in turn is offering her a vast menu of new looks Almost every day I feel this country changes said Anupama Dayal a designer in New Delhi whose autumn collection features short dresses and floppy tunics And who changes the fastest It s the woman As a woman earns more money power and freedom how she dresses often changes But more so than men women find that their wardrobe choices are often calibrated by cultural expectations modesty authority shifting ideals of femininity What may connote tradition to a Westerner could telegraph a higher status to an Asian or African woman In Nigeria for instance a college student may wear skinny jeans or slinky dresses but once she climbs the career ladder a woman would rarely be seen in anything but customary Nigerian clothes whose costliness and craft may be unclear to the Western eye Similarly in India a young office worker today almost always wears trousers or suits But a senior female manager would more likely choose a sari I actually do think the sari makes me feel a lot more authoritative said Ambika Nair who has worked as a journalist and a lawyer and now runs the legal publishing arm of Thomson Reuters in India And I don t look at the sari or churidar as traditional and I don t think wearing a suit particularly an illfitting one connotes modern The lives of Indian women are in a state of profound flux Today there are as many girls as boys enrolled in primary school Women s share in the workplace has risen Women increasingly live on their own travel widely adopt children as single mothers and even divorce All the while they have to deal with entrenched social and religious customs sexual harassment and sometimes outright violence As prosperity creates a class of nouveau obese a new consciousness about being fit has engendered a new female ideal lean taut and nothing like the curvaceous beauties of India s past with clothes to match Cocktail saris as they are known are usually made of gauzy chiffon sometimes studded with crystals perhaps paired with a bustier In some places globalization has exported Western ideas of female beauty and pushed women to bare their bodies Elsewhere the onslaught of Western images and ideas has hardened tradition but the clothes are by no means dowdy In Indonesia the world s most populous Muslim country the hijab or jilbab as it is known there is far more common than it was a generation ago But now it could be a designer scarf held in place with an eclectic brooch or paired with a trendy sun visor We look to the West for style and trends and we modify them to suit our modest needs said Liana Rosnita Redwan Beer a magazine editor in Jakarta The balance is particularly tricky for Muslim women living in the West Rabia Zagarpur was living in California when she began dressing according to Islamic code 10 years ago There s the dilemma that Oh my God that s a cute trend but I can t wear it she said of her own experience It s depressing to shop And then of course there s work Corporate wear What do you wear Ms Zagarpur now based in Dubai began designing clothes for women like herself track suits with longer torso covering tops bold printed silk caftans even a one piece hoodie hijab made of stretchable breathable fabric Fans write her to express their relief critics sometimes deride her clothes for being too attractive To me Ms Zagarpur insists being modest and chic is very compatible Chic seems not to have been the concern of Lubna Hussein in Sudan when she was arrested last year on charges of indecency for wearing trousers a crime punishable under Sudan s version of Sharia law by 40 lashes The court eventually spared the whip but imposed a fine of about $200 When Ms Hussein refused to pay it sent her to jail In India where society is churning rapidly women are required to make delicate choices all the time Suhasini Haidar a TV anchor wears a tailored blazer on air But she knows that for an official government dinner she must drape on a sari There are several places she says where it would be rude to show up in Western clothes For Ms Dayal the sari is reserved for moments of reckoning When I most need my self confidence I must wear a sari she says When I can take no risks I must wear the sari despite having Armanis and Guccis and hundreds of Anupamas in my wardrobe Clothing by Culture In a series of articles columns and multimedia reports we examine where women stand in the early 21st century Women s clothing choices often must be weighed against cultural expectations An outfit by Dubaibased Rabia Z right a sari by Anupama Dayal a designer in New Delhi Copyright 미주한국일보 koreatimes com 무단전재 및 재배포 금지 By SOMINI SENGUPTA WOMEN IN INDIA are opting for form fitting business suits In Sudan a woman who dares to wear trousers is sent to jail In the capitals of Europe a Muslim head scarf becomes a political lightning rod And across the Islamic world new designers are nudging women to step out of fashion purdah with clothes that meld global catwalk trends with Muslim mores In old societies facing a flurry of Western goods and ideas a woman often carries the competing demands of tradition and modernity on her back How she dresses conveys a great deal more than her individual sense of style She is evaluated by what she does or does not wear whether it is by her parents in laws co workers loutish men on the bus and even as with the debate over the Islamic head scarf by politicians Sometimes she conforms to tradition sometimes she challenges it Consider India today where a decade of roaring economic growth has been accompanied by new opportunities for the urban educated woman and in turn is offering her a vast menu of new looks Almost every day I feel this country changes said Anupama Dayal a designer in New Delhi whose autumn collection features short dresses and floppy tunics And who changes the fastest It s the woman As a woman earns more money power and freedom how she dresses often changes But more so than men women find that their wardrobe choices are often calibrated by cultural expectations modesty authority shifting ideals of femininity What may connote tradition to a Westerner could telegraph a higher status to an Asian or African woman In Nigeria for instance a college student may wear skinny jeans or slinky dresses but once she climbs the career ladder a woman would rarely be seen in anything but customary Nigerian clothes whose costliness and craft may be unclear to the Western eye Similarly in India a young office worker today almost always wears trousers or suits But a senior female manager would more likely choose a sari I actually do think the sari makes me feel a lot more authoritative said Ambika Nair who has worked as a journalist and a lawyer and now runs the legal publishing arm of Thomson Reuters in India And I don t look at the sari or churidar as traditional and I don t think wearing a suit particularly an illfitting one connotes modern The lives of Indian women are in a state of profound flux Today there are as many girls as boys enrolled in primary school Women s share in the workplace has risen Women increasingly live on their own travel widely adopt children as single mothers and even divorce All the while they have to deal with entrenched social and religious customs sexual harassment and sometimes outright violence As prosperity creates a class of nouveau obese a new consciousness about being fit has engendered a new female ideal lean taut and nothing like the curvaceous beauties of India s past with clothes to match Cocktail saris as they are known are usually made of gauzy chiffon sometimes studded with crystals perhaps paired with a bustier In some places globalization has exported Western ideas of female beauty and pushed women to bare their bodies Elsewhere the onslaught of Western images and ideas has hardened tradition but the clothes are by no means dowdy In Indonesia the world s most populous Muslim country the hijab or jilbab as it is known there is far more common than it was a generation ago But now it could be a designer scarf held in place with an eclectic brooch or paired with a trendy sun visor We look to the West for style and trends and we modify them to suit our modest needs said Liana Rosnita Redwan Beer a magazine editor in Jakarta The balance is particularly tricky for Muslim women living in the West Rabia Zagarpur was living in California when she began dressing according to Islamic code 10 years ago There s the dilemma that Oh my God that s a cute trend but I can t wear it she said of her own experience It s depressing to shop And then of course there s work Corporate wear What do you wear Ms Zagarpur now based in Dubai began designing clothes for women like herself track suits with longer torso covering tops bold printed silk caftans even a one piece hoodie hijab made of stretchable breathable fabric Fans write her to express their relief critics sometimes deride her clothes for being too attractive To me Ms Zagarpur insists being modest and chic is very compatible Chic seems not to have been the concern of Lubna Hussein in Sudan when she was arrested last year on charges of indecency for wearing trousers a crime punishable under Sudan s version of Sharia law by 40 lashes The court eventually spared the whip but imposed a fine of about $200 When Ms Hussein refused to pay it sent her to jail In India where society is churning rapidly women are required to make delicate choices all the time Suhasini Haidar a TV anchor wears a tailored blazer on air But she knows that for an official government dinner she must drape on a sari There are several places she says where it would be rude to show up in Western clothes For Ms Dayal the sari is reserved for moments of reckoning When I most need my self confidence I must wear a sari she says When I can take no risks I must wear the sari despite having Armanis and Guccis and hundreds of Anupamas in my wardrobe Clothing by Culture In a series of articles columns and multimedia reports we examine where women stand in the early 21st century Women s clothing choices often must be weighed against cultural expectations An outfit by Dubaibased Rabia Z right a sari by Anupama Dayal a designer in New Delhi Copyright 미주한국일보 koreatimes com 무단전재 및 재배포 금지

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