Looking Back at 2016

2026 has started on a nostalgic note, thanks to the latest social media trend. Everyone is looking back at their 2016 pictures; there seems to be a collective sense of loss of simpler times. 

As I begin to think about 2016, I see myself as someone who, for the most part, is still sleepwalking through life. My flatmates and I often go to shopping malls. We roam around, and as the day ends, I come up with an excuse not to eat out. Was broke AF. My siblings visit me frequently, and for a few days, my life revolves around them. This is a picture we took after getting discounted haircuts at a local salon. My haircut isn't that visible here, but I guess this is the only picture I have from that day.

2016 is when Goa happens. Leaving that heaven of a place—after weeks of waking up to the sound of waves, running on sand, eating noodles almost every day, and watching the sun go down every evening—I feel homesick for the first time in my life. Here is a picture of me sitting at a sweet little spot, without a care in the world. 

I take a lot of pictures in 2016 using my DSLR. Proud of this one. This kid must be a young adult now. 

And while we are at it, how can I not share a picture of me in ripped jeans to commemorate the fashion of 2016?

Living in Reflections

I rarely post in real-time. It's almost as if I can't live a moment and talk about it as well. Till it's late. Weeks, months, sometimes a year late. A conversation with a friend, a good meal, a poignant book, a nervy movie. I rarely am able to talk about it, with all my heart, till I get a chance to sit alone, look back, marinate in the flashbacks just enough to feel something.

I have never really wondered before today why this happens. Why is it so hard to find beauty and meaning in things as they happen? Could it be because of the mobile phone-induced limited attention span? Or the constant distraction of the hundreds of things that happen all at once when I go out? Or is it simply because I am slow to realise everything? 

This outfit is a small example of my inability to appreciate things in real-time. Beige shirt, beige shorts with a white undershirt. A simple outfit that can be worn on repeat. A three-piece set that will never seem out of fashion. The one that screams the opposite of try-hard. 

That's all for this month. Will come back with another post next month.

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The year that was

This year was a mixed bag for me. I went from having a stable routine - morning rush to work, metro, office, back to my place - to an uncertain everything. I stayed at six places in total with no fixed income. My physical health got worse, and my mental health, well, let's not even go there.

But what I truly want to rant about in this blog post is the trips of this year that simply sucked. I was lost when I was in Bir; the place looked uninspiring in June. Dharmshala was even worse - all brown and dry. And then there was Varkala in December - beautiful but so, so hot.

Now that I am done with my first-world cribbing, I am uploading these beautiful pictures from last year's Goa trip with a promise to bring more such pictures next year. 

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No Set Agenda

For the longest time, I held this belief that I could not get bored. That my brain would always find something exciting to catch fancy, and there would always be something to mull over. And that has been the case for the most part. And lately, after more than a decade of putting my brain to work 24/7, all I yearn for is boredom.

I want to wake up without any job list for the day; no pending articles, no fixing things around the house, and no set agenda. And I want this boredom to last for weeks, if not months. Sitting around and doing nothing but having coffee, reading random articles and books, and staring at trees for hours sounds delightful.

And while I do all this, I don't want to dress boring at all. The clothes could be monochrome, free of accessories, even repetitive, but far from boring. For example, this combination of black and denim, recreated in different ways for each day of the week, could just be perfect. Black t-shirt, short denim skirt, black embroidered blouse with black midi skirt, black bralette with a pair of relaxed jeans.

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Almost Like a Magazine Cover

While writing about fashion, it's easy for me to feel like an imposter. After all, I have no fashion degree. Nor have I grown up around fashionable people. I have never owned a designer piece, and I don't remember buying anything that was not on sale. 

In the last few years, like a canvas that has been sitting blank and untouched, my wardrobe has been vegetating. And yet, I see one glimmer and am ready to put together an outfit or write an article on fashion. These glimmers could be anything - a well-dressed woman walking down a street, a new print in the market or a Netflix series with protagonists in clothes to die for. 

And before that glimmer gets a chance to fade, I try not to feel like an outsider. So, I write. I feel like a model - off-duty, yet stylish. And then I am photographed and put on a magazine cover. 

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Winter Coats, But Make Them Cheap

In my world, money has always spoken the loudest. It has been the driving factor behind most things - where to study, what to eat, where to rent, when to start working, how to travel and so on. 

Naturally, money or the lack thereof, has also dictated my sartorial buys. This rings particularly true for all the winter coats I own. The day I decided to buy my first winter coat, it took me very little time to realise that I didn't have the budget for it. Disappointed, I decided to make do with the sweaters I had. And then, my colleague introduced me to the place that had answers to every broke fashion question I had - Sarojini Nagar. We went early in the morning to avoid the crowd, and she took me to the exact lane where they sell the trendiest coats starting at 300 INR! Before I knew it, I had three coats (if memory serves me right). Two of these coats still hang proudly in my closet, including the one in these pictures. 

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Being Sad in a Sadder World

In times when everyone posts their best pictures and videos showcasing their perfect lives on social media, it's easy to feel lost. It's easy to believe our life is nothing but a big bag of meh (sorry, I couldn't find a better word). According to some, posting about sad things can bring a much-needed sense of reality. But I often wonder, if we talk about the problems and challenges of our lives on digital media, will there be any takers? Will anyone care to go through paragraphs of pouring hearts and streaming tears? At this point, I am not even looking for answers. It's all just a big blob of ramble.

And then I wonder if I even have the right to ramble in a world where children are being killed. In a world where islands are drowning, people are losing homes because of natural disasters, in a world where half of the population still struggles to live a decent life.

If you have managed to read so far, you must have guessed that all is not well and that the smiling pictures in these blogs do not tell the complete story. I am going through one of the most challenging phases of my life, in terms of health (both physical and mental) and my parents' health. Throw in some money issues to this, and I have a mix I don't know what to do with. But as I said, all these problems are nothing compared to what people in the world are going through. 

So at this very moment, I take a deep breath, feel guilty for having better problems, pause only to realise I still have no clue of what lies ahead, take another deep breath and publish this post. 

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Things I Loved in Sweden

This year, I got this great opportunity to visit Sweden. And it was an incredible experience, of course. From cleaner air to the beautiful architecture, there is a lot to like. But here are the top things that I will never forget.

Bicycles everywhere!

Leaving aside smaller environmental footprints, bicycles for me are the best way to commute short distances. And this country is so bicycle-friendly!

Evening lights!

Maybe one gets to see these lights only during winter, but whatever it is, evening lights are magnificent in Sweden. It's as if white and yellow meet midway to illuminate the streets in a magical way. Hope this picture explains it better.

Beautiful buildings everywhere

Imagine your everyday grocery-run view to be like this. Exactly.

Inclusivity

This one deserves a separate post altogether. But this message on a public washroom is everything. 

Pedestrian-friendly roads

I don't think I will ever be less sentimental enough to describe how it feels to be able to walk for hours without worrying about some vehicle owner trying to tell you how pedestrians do not belong on the roads.

Cute houses

Even during the blues of the cold weather, some Swedish houses emit warmth. An evening stroll watching brightly-coloured houses is among the best kinds of rest. 

Food

Frankly speaking, I wouldn't go gaga about the food in Sweden, especially after having been to Italy and living in India. But, if you do just enough research, you can get your hands on some really good pasta, desserts and coffee!

The weather and the public transport!

I know some people find Swedish winters too gloomy. I am not those people, I guess. And the public transport? Well, the entire Europe, I have heard, has done a good job there.

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The Less-Celebrated Timeless Fashion Piece

On a breezy Sunday evening in September, I switch on my laptop to write a blog post on timeless fashion pieces. I think of structures blazers, black and navy blouses, trench coats and tan belts. I mentally picture each item under a soft spotlight in a studio and decide to place my bet on one. But then, as I scroll through my image library, I see pictures of me in a striped white t-shirt. In a sartorial world replete with expensive-looking trends, the classic white t-shirt seems like an approachable and less-celebrated timeless piece.

Look for Jean Seberg in Breathless or Audrey Tautou in Coco Before Chanel or this picture of Audrey Hepburn from a magazine shoot. And in case you are wondering how to style a striped tee in today's time, I suggest you throw it over a denim skirt (the longer, the better). Or you can pair it with a pair of mom jeans and a silk scarf for that vintage feel. And if you have shorts in the same colour as I did, try the pair at home to see if it works.

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Not a Total Misfit

As I continue to stick to my almost-no-shopping rule in 2023, I face a big dilemma. How do I fit the new - I love neutrals and basics - me into my mostly old clothes? How do I not end up looking like a total misfit in my own, slightly changed world? Well, I guess I just have to try; use the existing pieces in a different way, maybe. The blogposts for at least the next two years will be the result of this effort of mine. 

Here I have paired a white superwoman t-shirt with beige chinos, tan sandals and belt and minimal accessories to achieve that super-basic look.   

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PS: I  do buy maybe 1-2 things every year, but in my head, I am not shopping.

What is it like to not shop for three years

I would start this blog post by first telling you what it didn't feel like. Not shopping for clothes didn't feel like a dread. At all. When you think of wearing the same clothes year after year, you imagine having to come to terms with looking the same, day after day. Of being judged by people for being cheap. Both might be true to an extent. But if you have more than ten different things in your wardrobe, you can create thirty outfits out of them. And unless you are paranoid about what people will say, you will, sooner or later, figure out ways to live with your new reality.

And what does it feel like? It feels the opposite of guilty for one. I knew I was doing something wrong by buying things and not wearing them, save for some rare occasions. From looking at a piece with impulsive eyes to thinking of a future get-together with imaginary friends, letting it marinate with other clothes, and then buying something new while the old one was quietly begging for attention, I felt like the creator of a vicious cycle. Wearing whatever I had, no matter how less crazy I was about it in the present day, broke that cycle while not breaking my bank balance.

The resolve to not shop for any clothes for a specific time period also introduced me to the realisation of what my real sense of fashion was. It gave me a pattern of things I wore to death and those I ignored like texts offering weight loss programs and personal loans. 

And lastly, it also feels exciting; the prospect of having a new wardrobe altogether in the future. To try being someone new. A mix of Olsen sisters and Natasha Goldenberg maybe (a girl can dream.). For whatever it’s worth, it is akin to getting out of the rate race to having everything the fashion season throws at us; a pause of sorts. 

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Whimsical, With A Touch of You

I learnt early that whimsical fashion is not for everyone. The cheerful colours, the mismatched sets, the big and small prints, the overdose of accessories, and everything eye-catchy can all be a little over the top if you lean towards a minimal style.

So what do you do when you see a movie character, wild and free, untamed, romantic like anything, and you feel like a wardrobe switch, just for a day? I suggest you keep one thing basic, it can be either the top or skirt/shorts. Then, you need a big accessory to add some more whim to your printed half. And last, but not least, wear your hair big and unapologetic, unless you have short hair like mine. I hope this helps.

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The Art of Fast Dressing

What do you do on days when your heart says you need to shop but your mind shushes you with logic and reasoning? What do you do on days you feel you have worn everything you have in your wardrobe and have absolutely no energy to mix and match and create something that looks like a new outfit?  

Well, I might have something for you. Yeah, today, I have decided to be a fashion tip giver, and help you put together an outfit in a jiffy. 

Open your wardrobe, and pick any top and bottoms in the same colour. The colour doesn't matter. It could be white, it could be black, grey or purple, yellow, Fuschia for all you care. Now pick any one accessory - maybe a pair of earrings or a pretty neckpiece. That's it! You can stop right there if you wish. Though if you are feeling fancy, pick up those old sunnies or a bucket hat if it goes with your outfit.

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Conversations with an old pair of shorts

Dear pink shorts

I decided to talk to you today. You, an object in the perfect shade of light pink, flaunting old-world crochet, reminding me of the years that went by in almost a blur. 

You were so tiny, that I almost didn't pick you for fear of being judged for wearing next to nothing. But then, somehow, good sense prevailed and I got you. You have been with me for 15 years now. You have seen me through so much - from finding flats and flatmates to switching jobs, moving cities, heartbreaks, losing friends, growing out of hobbies, and whatnot. 

I wore you when I saw the ocean for the first time. It was an evening that served up the best sunset I had seen in my life, the kind you use to compare every next sunset you see, at least in your head.

You go well with shirts and tops of almost any colour - white, grey, black, pink, yellow, multicolored? You are underwear-like enough to be worn under a super short dress. And you look the best sandstained.

Dear shorts, thank you for not letting me grow out of you.

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