Is white a shade of everlasting appeal Many colour-exponents feel that it is a time-honoured hue which can never fade into oblivion. Even fashion pundits swear by its classic charm, regal grandeur and graceful purity on high-octane runways. Don’t misjudge it by its soft, placid surface, they all say in unison. Better delve deeper into its layered sensuality and the halo of uncanny aura around it. No wonder whoever wears it, exudes a dash of smart attitude on his way.
Ask elegance personified Simi Garewal, the astute-austere Gulzar or the very gorgeous Deepika Padukone, who have flawlessly carried the white as part of their formal wardrobe. Even “Jumping Jack” Jitendra back in his heydays with white shoes on would be a much-revered screen-stylebhai in his own avatar. Currently, the director-duo brothers Abbas-Mustan (besides their just-released film Kis Kisko Pyaar Karu) are yet again grabbing all eyeballs for their spotlessly starched and laundry-washed white outfits. Call it their trademark tone or the second suitable skin, white is inescapably synonymous with their names since one can possibly remember.
But has it been able to conveniently carve a niche for itself on the fashion palette Several designers think that “white is an all-weather colour. It’s season-neutral and is a vital ingredient of a la mode clothing”. Irrespective of sweltering summers, chilly winters or bright springs, its dominance is visibly increasing. In other words, it is eternally in vogue and accentuates a dark backdrop only to generously enhance a comparatively brighter tint. It is a loving and giving colour.
From politics to virtuous nobility; pedantic discussions to scholarly wisdom plus social Samaritanism, white is donned with effortless élan and paraded as a befitting metaphor in every camp. Even nationalist sentiments are attached to this demure dye. For instance, the Gandhian charkha-spun khaddar in muted whites and off-white tinges is a clothing of great honour and privilege. On the flip side, white as a garb of widowhood denotes a deep void, which is not easy to fill in with the ‘robbed of’ chromes from one’s life. However, the blank white creative canvas of a painter indicates a cauldron of enormous possibilities lying ahead. “To each his own. You have to change directions with a view to understand its underlying relevance. What is a half-empty glass to you, may be half-filled with water for another. In the same vein, every colour connotes a different meaning to different people. When it comes to fashion, white certainly stands for sobriety, sophistication and endurance,” endorses Mumbai-based designer Ritu Seksaria.
The magic realism of cinema is yet another attractive quality which bewilders its captive audiences. Movies from the black-n-white era score a brownie point on this front as they still allure a large number of viewers to their television sets or when re-released on the 70 mm silver-screens. “The charm of yesteryear matinee idols never ceases to exist. Slides in black and white or blown up silvery-grey motion pictures on large, giant screens at cinemaghars are unfailingly fascinating to one’s sight. Even if celluloid classics like Mughal-e-Azam, Mother India or Hum Dono got refurbished in colour, their erstwhile versions still reign countless memories and hearts,” shares 20-year-old film-school student Prajakta Kesari of Kolkata. “In recent times I remember watching Goutam Ghose’s sequel Abar Aranye wherein glimpses of Satyajit Ray’s masterpiece prequel Aranyer Dinratri were shown and that made all the difference to my viewing experience. Those select few scenes shone brilliantly amidst a riot of colourful images in the film,” she gladly recalls.
Don’t we know that white pearls and dazzling diamonds are ladies’ best pals Or the white snowflakes in ice-capped hill-stations are a lifetime opportunity to play with. The feathery, floating white clouds in the sky is a perfect inspiration for an artist or a poet or a lensman. The sepia-bordered old snapshots from a long lost photo-album are a plea to reopen a basket of fond memories too! The marvellous white Makrana marble of the monumental Taj Mahal at Agra, one of the seven wonders of the world and an exquisite epitome of love, is a magnetic haunt for tourists of all ages, seasons and reasons to pay a visit. The pristine white beauty stands tall with its four minarets and the lovely Mughal gardens along the banks of river Yamuna.
When probed if white can certainly brighten up the “glamsham” circuit, pat comes menswear maker Medhavini Khaitan’s reply: “Of course, why not We have earlier seen it being used in layering, draping and surface ornamentation.” The silk white organza fabric, the thick white yarn spun into a textured crochet material, the soft tissue-like wispy white brasso used in lehengas, saris and salwar-kurtas, white Lucknowi chikan suits, the thin and light-weight translucent white gauze with a loose open weave employed in manufacturing flowy blouses, dresses, sequinned white cotton outfits or the richly decorative shuttle-woven brocade fabric with or without gold or silver threads are some of the finest fabrics.”
