Multiplicity of Britishness

The British-Indian views by Manish Bansal

The Indian fashion designer Manish Bansal is located with his studio in New Delhi. As teenager he spent some times in London. His new menswear collection, Winter 2015-2016, continues to examine British culture and explore the multiplicity of British-ness. This season Manish returns to the late 1970’s/ early 1980s and the subcultural style of Ska and Two-Tone; a period where British Youth and multiculturalism, according to DJ and filmmaker Don Letts „…had a magic combination of danceable music, style and attitude”

This attitude is reflected in masculine silhouettes that mix the relaxed cut of the adopted ‘Harrington’ jacket and the soft structure of a ‘Crombie’ style coat with trousers that are lean, ankle grazing or cut to just below the knee. Delving into the darker side of the symbolism, Manish uses the British Bulldog, an image associated at the time with right-wing propaganda, set against a backdrop of social and economic unrest.

The Bull dog, once seen as a sinister and aggressive ‘fighting’ and bull-baiting dog, is woven into the collection’s narrative by using lyrically crafted, delicate hand- felting techniques, emboldened by sequins worked into intense and intricately stitched embroidered outlines to form motifs. This ‘mascot’ is emblazoned on jackets and also referenced through paw-print and stud-collar detailed appliques.

The color palette returns to another emblem, the Union Jack, yet this season the colors are of darker hues of reds and blues in lightweight worsted and felted wools, cottons and fluid jerseys. In turn, this richness is combined with a series of signature checks, which include duo-tones reminiscent of the two-tonics worn by Ska hipsters. Living and working for several years in London, Manish has experienced this style diversity at first hand and uses these symbols to signify cultural exchange and integration in a contemporary global paradigm. The winter collection 2015-2016 celebrates dressing-up in a quintessentially British style that simultaneously metamorphosises into the unexpected, precious and distinctly modern.