Societies,
from time immemorial, have had dress regulations, from the time early man
started covering himself with leaves and barks of trees.
Emperors of yore had Royal attire while commoners had their dress code.
Lunches and dinners had dress codes while people visiting churches, temples
and mosques had to conform to the rules in force, about what they could wear
or not wear; there were non - conformists, of course.
All these thoughts ran through one's mind on reading the following :
Chinese told not to wear pyjamas in public.
It is reported that Community
leaders in Shanghai have set out to tackle the 'menace' of people wearing pyjamas in public.
The neighbourhood committee in the city's district of Rixin has decided
that wearing pyjamas in the public should be discouraged. One of the local
officials called pyjamas "visual pollution". According to this official they
are telling people not to wear pyjamas in the streets because it looks very
uncivilized (sic).
Not everyone agrees, though. One elderly resident is quoted as saying,: "Pyjamas
are also a type of clothes. It''s comfortable, and it''s no big deal." That
is the problem - pyjamas are big and loose!
Shangai may
be trying to
take a leaf out
of Beijing. At
the time of
Olympics,
Beijing's
Spiritual
Civilisation
Committee issued
numerous edicts
in advance
governing
citizens'
behaviour,
ranging from
instructions on
how to queue,
apply make-up
and comb your
hair, to
detailed advice
on clothing.
Lets now turn
to our beloved
country where
populations of
different States
have different
dress styles,
different
practices and
every community
has dresses made
to be worn
during prayers,
dress for
weddings, dress
for work and so
on, but the
current trend
seems to be 'one
size fits all'
or rather one
(dress) for all
(occasions).
Tamilnadu in
particular seems
to have lost all
its dress sense,
in addition to a
few other. Boys
and girls, men
and women wander
around in the
most ridiculous
(for want of a
better term)
types of attire;
women - grown up
women - mothers-
go shopping,
visit temples,
take their
children to
schools, visit
the neighbor, go
most anywhere in
what in local
lingo is known
as 'nightie'.
This is a one
piece dress -
most styles
-slipped over
the head -
covering from
neck downwards
all the way done
to the ankle. In
most cases it is
a n eye sore,
but certainly
smacks of lack
of decency and
decorum.
I wish we had
a 'nightie ban'
in public places
in Tamilnadu.
L.Ravichandran
ravi@chennaionline.com