After Che Guevara it’s Mahatma Gandhi who’s being seen on the high streets of fashion. Gandhi T-shirts, with the face of the Father of the Nation imprinted on them, are the latest must-haves in Hollywood wardrobes and have been seen on stars like Dev Patel, Kristen Bell and Emma Stone.
The brain behind the look is British-Indian Kiran Rai, who created the label Sir Alistair Rai in 2006. Rai’s range has imprints of leaders like Martin Luther King, messages of love and peace and Indian deities on scarves and tees. Though her shirt with the slogan ‘Adopt Me Angelina’ became a rage, the most popular design so far has been her $65 Gandhi portrait T-shirt.
Rai says [on her official site], an imprint like this could remind a person that their actions can change the world, “after all, beauty, truth and love never go out of style”. With US President Barack Obama and U2’s lead singer Bono championing the words of Gandhi, he seems to have become a youth icon.
Designer Nitin Bal Chauhan says, “Gandhi’s message of peace is very cool now. And with the whole world talking about peace, the Gandhi imprints may even overpower Che imprints now.” Young Delhiites too would love to own Gandhi merchandise. “I’d love to have a Gandhi bag. Carrying an imprint of the Father of the Nation will show that we still believe in his ideology and have not forgotten him.”
Designer Nitin Bal Chauhan says, “Gandhi’s message of peace is very cool now. And with the whole world talking about peace, the Gandhi imprints may even overpower Che imprints now.” Young Delhiites too would love to own Gandhi merchandise. “I’d love to have a Gandhi bag. Carrying an imprint of the Father of the Nation will show that we still believe in his ideology and have not forgotten him.”
Well, Gandhi-inspired merchandise will hopefully find its way to Janpath soon.