How sustainable are sustainability initiatives?

When the normal becomes news, there must be something wrong with our perception of the ‘normal’.

Such is the case of Alia Bhatt.

We live in times of constant chatter of celebrities and influencers (the new name for cocktail/armchair activists?) championing sustainable fashion, but no one dares to ask the simple question of these stars translating words into actions.?

The only shining example that has emerged from Bollywood, turning this narrative into a reality, is of Alia Bhatt and her choice of attire for the grand occasion of the 69th National Film Awards. Instead of opting for a new, lavish outfit as is customary in such events, she graced the event wearing the very same elegant white saree that she had worn on her wedding day, making a statement in favour of sustainable fashion.?

And that has got the media talking! What was supposed to be totally normal has become news!

It reminds me of another discussion we were having a couple of days back with a few experts on fashion and sustainability.

All of us would have witnessed the craze of cold shoulder blouses/tops for women till a year back. It will be safe to say that 85% of the women were wearing them. We must also have seen a few give speeches on sustainability wearing their cold shoulder tops/blouses.?

I have been looking around since the thought came to mind. I do not find more than 5% wearing cold shoulder tops nowadays.?

I took this example as personally I always found it funny that a piece of cloth seemed ripped off the tops, leaving a hole behind (just an observation, no judgment here). Another aspect that is important here is that ripped/torn clothing does not normally get patched up in fashion cycles.

What, then, happened to the cold shoulders of the sustainability champions?

What I am trying to put across through these examples is the fact that all of us are talking a lot about sustainability, but only a negligible number are following what they preach. I am not saying that all activists or experts are fake or hypocrites.

There are a few reasons why we see this trend:

1) Most of us are not aware of what sustainability means. As it is common in all cases, we casually push it towards corporates as if it is only them who need to follow the sustainability goals. After all the numbers are limited, education level is relatively high, and the government can penalize them for deviations, hence they are easy to control. Unless we bring aspects of sustainability into our daily lives, the impact of corporate initiatives will be trivial.

2) As I always say, we all are naturally selfish, not looking much beyond our personal needs. I also mention that there is nothing wrong with it, but that is only till the selfish action of one is not harming the other. Unfortunately on the issue of sustainability, this is the case. Even if YOU are the one changing apparel based on the trends, ultimately MY world is getting impacted. WE need a better world to live in. OUR CHILDREN need a better environment to grow in.

3) Lastly, while not all, a big chunk of sustainability activists are definitely confused. At the podium, they deliver prepared speeches, while in their personal life, they practice just the opposite, because they do not know how to implement their own advice.

It might be worthwhile to mention that the examples of fallacies of fashion trends taken here may be of women, but that is only because of the coincidence with Alia Bhatt.?

Our big talk and callous behaviour are gender-neutral!!!