Let’s Talk Unconventional

We tend to show a certain level of hesitance when it’s about accepting the unusual. We think that things should only take their natural course and any divergence from the natural, takes us time to understand and accept. That’s generally because we take time to adapt to changes, and if changes are not what we want them to be, we chose not to absorb them.

There lies an innate beauty in the unconventional.

The beauty is that a break from conventions should come to us as a breath of fresh air and we should appreciate and be welcoming of such divergences.

Lately, awareness has been a great tool in getting people to accept the unconventional aspects of Art, fashion, society norms and even people. Normal is the new boring, and now people want to see more examples of things, which are unusual. For instance, Lady Gaga has been a great role model displaying her unusual self in her quirky outfits and the ever unconventional way of dressing up which is mind boggling and sometimes obnoxious. But, she is doing pretty well for self and her songs are always up in the charts. So, people who criticize her, for her unconventional ways, now look up to her for her actual talents.

People take up unconventional roles to display solidarity and strength in their character. This helps them put up an image which is hard to emulate. Even in Bollywood, there are actors like Irfan Khan, Nazrudin Sidiqqui, Kalki Koechin, Nazruddin Shah just to name a few who have always been praised for their unconventional roles and their choice of cinema. Their work displays something more than what we accept out of our conventional actors. They take risks, but these risks have paid them off and today, audience wants to see more and more of them. Hence, the accolades they receive are more in form of genuine audience appreciation and adoration.

Kalki Koechin, took up a movie named, “Margarita, with a straw”, in which she has played the role of a teenager suffering from cerebral Palsy and is in the process of discovering her own sexuality. It’s not a commercial movie and the movie has not cleared the sensors yet. But, her craving for thought provoking and meaningful cinema results in making her an unconventional actress.

Unconventional fashion is also quite widespread and buzzing. It’s like artwork, which looks different yet fashionable. Some international designers experiment with their raw materials and concepts to an extent that their collection looks more like art pieces than outfits. But, they create the inspiration from where their counterparts or the newbies will get a platform to begin from. They don’t believe in playing it safe and it shows because playing it safe wont help them achieve their goals. An international brand named, “BigBenKilani”, launched their summer 2015 menswear collection for men who posses a sense of style out of the ordinary. They chose the name, “Urban Independence”. The collection looks like an ensemble of outfits reflecting an impenitent sense of style.

There are social activists, who protest for causes for which very few people will stand up for. These people have unconventional mindsets and they take up issues, which are really important for the society but have not been acted upon. But, the rewards are bigger and the impact is huge.

Risk taking and acting with fearless mindsets are their core beliefs.

For instance, Sensitive women related issues and even religious topics which need more attention and awareness are sometimes criticized and over debated but, the world today is in dire need of such activists who are boldly spoken about issues which maximum people are scared to even face or to talk about.

Recently, Elton John revolted against a comment by the owners of the international brand, Dolce and Gabanna, said that traditional family, “is not a passing fashion. It contains a sense of belonging to the supernatural.” This caused havoc in the entertainment industry as this comment hurt the sentiments of the whole of LGBT community, which is an ever growing community.

Elton john, the legend himself stood up for this cause because he, himself is a supporter of IVF procedure and has conceived his two children through the same. He posted the hash tag, #boycottDolceGabanna and soon everyone who believed in this cause, stood up and supported this in a big way. It is only with such fearless and unconventional mindsets, that we can help make considerable changes in our society today. Elton John is one of the most recent examples of standing up for such a cause.