Gender Neutral Fashion

The freedom to express oneself through clothing is one of our most vital rights. There was a time when the fashion industry was barely experimenting with producing garments that were beyond the construct of gender. The times have changed and so has the industry, wherein younger designers are taking charge and the movement of fluid garments is gaining momentum. Fashion is becoming a more inclusive space, and while the queer community has always been at the forefront of promoting such creative change, these changes in the mainstream are giving a push to their voices even more. Platform has always advocated promoting labels that have subverted norms. In celebration of Pride Month we are shining a spotlight once again on some of the labels we’ve featured before, that support gender neutrality.

BISKIT
So I think the only way to begin talking about how we approach our design philosophy is by taking the word ‘gender’ completely out of the conversation. Using this word here creates a lot of misconceptions about what it means to design a piece of clothing that can be worn by anyone. The word that we prefer to use is ‘unisex’, in which the prefix ‘uni’ describes a singular nature and emphasises the word shared. Therefore, unisex means shared by the sexes. This implies a shift in perspective from looking at clothes from a purely gender perspective, to approaching it from a point of view of design and what it stands for. There are two ideas that shape everything we do at BISKIT. The first is that we want to give the choice back to the people to decide if they are comfortable wearing a piece of clothing instead of it being pre-determined by the industry. 

Antar Agni
This is something that comes naturally to us. We do not create a certain type of clothing to fit in the brackets of responsible, et cetera. We create because that is what we connect to. Once there is a strong connection, creation comes easily. With a fascination for architecture and strong belief in naturalism, the design philosophy builds its own breed of urban wear and updated classics that balance the contradictions of structure versus flow, natural forms versus tailored asymmetry and gender.

Two Point Two Studio
Everyone has the right to live how they want and choose their path of existence, without being ridiculed by society just because it doesn’t fit the pre-existing traditional definitions. We at Two Point Two want to normalize this conversation and spread awareness for the same by this project. We want to break the correlation between femininity, masculinity and sexual preferences that are so conveniently used as a point to discriminate in our society. We want to showcase the individual and not which culture, race, gender or category they fall into. We, at Two Point Two, want to create a world full of comfort and love for all.

Ayurganic
Most garments in Ayurganic are gender fluid garments and have been since the start of the brand a decade ago. We do not want to restrict the consumer into wearing a said style because it’s for his/ her gender. Though it is rooted in ancient practices, Ayurganic truly echoes the modern philosophy that a soul is a soul no matter how it chooses to identify itself. 

Jaywalking
I know what we lack, which was an original culture of our own — it was more inclusive, more scattered. Fashion has always been an easier and more commercial way to share a message across. Jaywalking is forever evolving, it stands for change. We do things differently. We don’t rely on typical mainstream validation. We wish to produce gender fluid clothing. We just focus on having crystal clear communication with our audience. I personally love to motivate talented young artists and tell them how informal this market is, and it’s okay to not be like a robot for once.

The Pot Plant
For as long as humans have existed, we have questioned our existence, toiling to find the meaning of life and making sense of who we are. In this world, now thronged with millions, we are often boxed into labels, personalities and parameters. Boxes that we don't fit in, labels that we don't identify with, and personalities that are fluid. THE POT PLANT explores fashion beyond labels. Both Sanya and I have grown up wearing hand-me-downs. Sanya wore a lot of her brother’s clothes and that’s where the gender fluid aspect of our label comes in from. I keep borrowing clothes from my father. Growing up, I observed my grandmother would always wear my grandfather’s kurtas. In our formative years, we had been exposed to a culture wherein clothing was free of any gender boundaries and wasn’t marked by any labels, which formed the backbone of the label. 

Date 19-06-2021