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Trouser trends
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`Divided pants' have taken Pondicherry by storm this summer
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COMFY AND COOL Divided pants are the in-thing PHOTO: T. Singaravelou
Just imagine how wonderful it would be if your clothes were air-conditioned! It would be difficult to design such a small compressor, fan and other parts of an air-conditioning unit to fit into your daily wear, but do not lose hope. There are some fashionable clothes that have been designed to keep you cool. With long slits on the sides, `divided pants' (so called locally) have become a craze this summer in Pondicherry. Since they can be tied at the waist and kind of resemble wraparounds, they are also called wraparound pants. These pants suit the fashion freaks as well as those who want to wear comfy, cotton clothes in summer.
Kripa, who hails from Coimbatore but works in Pondicherry, says she got them because they looked different. "I bought a pair from a pavement shop in the Sunday market. The shop was situated opposite Casablanca and I got a good bargain," she adds. She wears her divided pants with a deep-necked top that suits her well. But since she was wearing the pants on the beach, she had to keep pulling the flap to close the pants and thereby her legs!
Brothers Janakiraman and Venkatesan run the shop that Kripa mentioned, on Mission Street on Sundays. "We also sell three-fourth length pants designed differently for men and women, spaghetti tops and divided pants. Women tend to prefer the divided pants," they say.
Fisherman's pants
If you can't wait till Sunday to acquire a pair, then you could go over to Phoenix Traders, also situated bang opposite Casablanca on Mission Street. This shop run by Tibetans has a lovely collection of divided pants and an amazing piece of apparel called fisherman's pants. While the divided pants for women are printed, there are plain colours for men. "Earlier, only foreigners used to buy these pants but now a lot of college students are buying them for casual wear, especially in summer," says Mala, salesperson at the shop.
The shop mostly sells cotton garments such as skirts, including the wraparound variety, tops and kurtas. "I normally cater for the Indian taste and also stock Tibetan styles... they are priced reasonably, the quality is good and my customers like them. I always select natural fabrics and colours," says Pema Chozon, who runs the shop.
The fisherman's pants are really crazy. They are a mix between pants and the Indian lungi (the Indian answer to jeans). Though they have trouser legs, they are folded down in lungi fashion around the waist. And for an additional hold, a thick band of cloth has been provided, which you can tie around the waist. These pants go well with any kind of top, shirt or T-shirt and make ideal summer wear. They are a hit with foreign tourists.
DEEPA H. RAMAKRISHNAN
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Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Mangalore
Pondicherry
Tiruchirapalli
Thiruvananthapuram
Vijayawada
Visakhapatnam
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