One thing that cannot miss your attention while walking the streets of Lamka, Aizawl and Shillong, apart from the old dusty crumbling building and the narrow and pot-hole filled roads, is the big heaps of second-hand (used) apparels laying all along the roads. You get everything from shoes to cap, gloves to over-coats, and the prices ranges from very cheap to an exorbitant (for a used items, I mean) thousands.
It is true that used apparels (or second-hand, as we simply called it) is available everywhere. You can find them in Imphal, Shillong, Guwahati, Delhi, and in most cities and towns. But it doesn’t get any bit bigger than anywhere where we north-eastern are present in large numbers. For instance, in Delhi, if you visit the Sunday morning market at the entrance of IG Stadium, you can simply tell by the look of their face that most of the customers are North-Easterners. The first time I went there I was so shocked to see so many north-easterners especially since I’m pretty aware that we are very late riser, especially on the weekends, when we hardly see the morning!
It is not that I’m against such apparels –in fact I love shopping there though I certainly am not a regular. But my question is –why are we so obsessed about such market? Does it got something to do with our images, appearances or identities? Does it reflect our economic condition and/or our attitude?
My friend often says that it reflects our economic condition while I cannot totally agree. You can buy a new jeans pant at some other local market for the prices that you pay for a used one at such flee market. For instance you can get a new jeans pant for as low as Rs. 200 at Janpath while the minimum price for a jeans at such flee market is around Rs. 250. Likewise, the shoes usually come around at one thousand rupees and we still buy them ignoring the cheap but new shoes available at the local market.
Another friend says that it is the comfort factor that makes him wear such clothes. It is true that such clothes fit us better than the local made one -branded or not. I totally understand the comfort factor especially since I was never able to get a shirt that is a little smaller than size ‘40’ which is the smallest men’s cloths made locally but is big for me. On the other hand, the used clothes that we buy are imported from Korea and Taiwan, and since we are racially and physically similar, it fits us well.
So, the other question is –is it really the comfort factor or are we just image (brand) conscious as it appears? This is a very difficult question to answer especially when it concern we north-eastern living outside the north-east. If you are a north-eastern living outside the north-east, then you’ll most probably know what I’m talking about. For those of us people, image is not just about our appearance and the brand that we flashed, it is an IDENTITY. For us, it is difficult to separate image, attitude, and identity which are all linked to a concept called alienation.
It is true that we buy at such market because they are big branded-names and, since we cannot afford a new branded one which comes at a fortune. This way, it levels us with our rich friends at college. But the other underlying reason is that wearing such clothes –which are not easily available in the local market, makes us look different. Different from the usual suspect which they often mistaken us for -and which infuriate us always. In that sense, by wearing such clothes we are asserting our attitude (of being different) and identity (of being a north-eastern and not from the Himalayas).
Different –it helps you stand out in the crowd. It will cost you a fortune if you are going to buy a brand new dress which will make you stand out in the crowd but such clothes –which are imported and cheap, helps you look different and stand out in the crowd. This is also one reason why the cheap Chinese made ‘fake Converse’ shoes from Moreh are very popular with north-easterners across the country. In this way, it is also a statement –a statement that we belong to a different crowd and not to the crowd here.
Another reason is (I’m sorry to add this) it also shows our obsession with the West. We watched MTV and English movies and anything that comes from the Far West and Far East. And we wanted what they got but we cannot afford it. It is only through such market that we can lay our hand on something like theirs and start acting like them. And, it is no surprise that Mizoram has more westernized, fashion conscious, bling covered Rappers & Hip-Hop artists than the rest of India!
So the next time you stepped out of the house, if, by chance, you see a north-eastern chap with a loose pant hanging low –sweeping the street, a big t-shirt and a big white shoes with a rucksack and an unusual cap, don’t simply judge him as some unruly ruffian because there are more than enough reasons that he is making a statement and asserting his identities through his dressing senses.
Tags: mizo, zomi, zogam
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