If you were planning on buying a thong to wear inside your jeans, you don’t need to anymore. At the Amazon Fashion Week in Tokyo, designer Thibaut showcased barely-there jeans called the “thong jeans”. Soon, several people criticised the design online. One person tweeted, “Designer: Give me a pair of scissors and a pair of old jeans. The next big fashion trend #thongjeans. (sic)” While fashion experts worldwide are slamming the design and questioning the purpose of the jeans, some say it is the designer’s freedom of expression.
Well-known fashion designer Nachiket Barve says, “It’s definitely just an attention-seeking gimmick. Thong jeans are bizarre and there is no creativity at all. A lot of designers worldwide love to experiment, but there is genuine creativity and then there is nonsense. Designers should start creating clothes that real people can wear or make art instead. Thong jeans don’t fit into any of the categories. In the name of creativity, just about anything is being done.”
Experts also say that while there is a panel that decides what clothes can be showcased during fashion weeks, sometimes exceptions are made. While the model who showcased the thong jeans isn’t a global name, would other well-known models sport something so bizarre? Model Deborah Doris Fell, a former Femina Miss India Bangalore runner up and Kingfisher Super-models 3 participant, replies in the negative.
“This is bizarre. I respect designers and their choices, but there are limits. As a model or even as just a normal person, I would never sport something like that. Yes, you can experiment in fashion. Lady Gaga is known for wearing very bizarre things too, but it is her choice and she carries it well. Thong jeans just look very weird. In the past eight years as a model, I haven’t been asked to wear anything as weird as that!” she says.
Meanwhile, several stylists and designers are saying that it’s a freedom of expression. Stylist Rick Roy says that while models often wear weird clothes on the ramp, regular people can wear it in different ways and style it. “It’s bizarre, but if you team it up with something like a sequined legging on the inside and wear the thong jeans as an accessory, it will look really cool. This is for people who like to be quirky and cool. It’s not completely wearable, but it can be experimented with. With so many designers experimenting throughout the world, why should this be criticised?” asks Rick.
Agreeing with Rick is stylist 
Archa Mehta, who says this could become the next fad in the fashion industry. “Thong jeans need not be criticised. This is a way of expression. Some may say it’s ugly, while some find it beautiful. I wouldn’t personally wear it or style someone in it though, as that’s not my aesthetic. But it could work out for others! Tokyo is known for experimental and dramatic fashion. A lot of things that they design may not be worn by people in many other parts of the world. That’s a country’s take on fashion,” she says.
