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Jean-etic Disorder

Dupattas tied aggressively around slim waists, bindis plastered firmly on their foreheads, the female students of Bangalore are at war. At the moment, though, the main battle is restricted to one particular educational institution -- Christ College.

They take inspiration from the fact that a similar war was fought some years ago in Bombay - at the St Xavier's College, to be more specific. Then, it was the students who had won -- forcing the college to revoke its draconian dress code.

Now, Christ College, Bangalore, had taken up the gauntlet -- and banned jeans, short and/or tight blouses/shirts/tee shirts and mini skirts on its campus. The rule, which was passed in August, has become the talk of the town as both the media and the student community speculated on this strange restriction.

It was not the tight top or the short skirt that fired the imagination; it was the bizarre, inexplicable restriction on jeans. Says Julia, a final year student at Christ, "I can understand minis and short tops. But why jeans? If my parents don't object, why should the college?"

Others point out that wearing jeans is part and parcel of the freedom that goes with being a young collegian. "After college, we'll either be working or we'll get married. Then, when will we get to the opportunity to wear jeans?" asks a third year student.

Says Mallika Krishnaswamy, head of the French department, "We are not allergic to jeans in particular. What we wish to do is restrict any mode of dressing which may appear indecent in a co-educational college."

In keeping with that desire, a committee, comprising of all the lady members, unanimously passed the rule that would limit the female students of their college to wearing only certain kinds of clothes. "We felt," says Krishnaswamy, "that the girls were getting highly influenced by the electronic media, especially where their clothes were concerned. It is our duty to check such unhealthy trends. This is an educational institution - the attitude, and dress, of its students should reflect discipline, diligence and dignity."

Of course, none of the above seem to apply to the male students who are unaffected by the ban. When asked how they would react if the ban on jeans covered them too, their answer was unanimous: "No way, it's unthinkable. And we don't have an alternative in salwars." Some of them even went on to add that girls can be restricted, but boys should be allowed to do what they want. "After all," says one student, "double standards are part of our culture." But Vineet, a third year student, begs to differ, "I think girls should be allowed to dress they way they want to. Besides, none of the girls in our college dress in a way that could be termed as indecent."

Female students, according to the new decree, will only be allowed to wear trousers, parallels, long skirts (that should reach below the knee), salwar-kameezes and saris.

What of the offenders, if any? There haven't been any. Some students have been ticked off once and even fewer have had to meet the principal. The students point out that, since the college is very strict about attendance and exam performance, no one would dare violate the rules.

As a result, some of the girls, who "live only in jeans", are finding it very difficult to forcibly abandon their favourite mode of dressing. Besides, many will have to come up with new wardrobes. "I have to buy salwars now," mourns a degree college student, "and it will not be as economical as jeans. With jeans, one can live with a couple of them and play around with the tops. But how many salwars can one have?"

Also, saris and long skirts are considered unfashionable - and not too many people wear them unless it's a Sari Day or a Traditional Day or something. Which leaves the students with very little choice. "Besides," points out a student who has her own scooter, "it's very awkward to ride a two-wheeler wearing a skirt."

And parallels, say the students, cannot compete with jeans where convenience is concerned. "We have to wear slacks underneath, which gets pretty warm."

The college, on the other hand, feels the task of classifying jeans and tops into appropriate and inappropriate categories would have been an impossible task. "How do you say that the top should be so many inches long, or that a pair of jeans should be this loose?" asks Krishnaswamy. It would create too much chaos, too much confusion. "That's why we decided to ban jeans uniformly."

The students, however, feel the ban is farcical. Reema, a first year junior college says, "I don't wear jeans. But, even before the ban, I don't remember seeing any of the girls in clinging jeans, minis or short tops. Even if it happens, it must be a rare occurrence."

Vishal, a degree college student, agrees with her. "I have been in this college for two years, but I don't remember seeing any of the girls dressing indecently. If anyone experimented with their clothes, it was a senior - and that too on a rare occasion." Which also reflects the opinion of the Christ College student body - their college definitely did not have daring dressers.

What irks the students is the fact that all of them are being persecuted for the sins of a rare offender. "Girls in other colleges who are found to be indecently are asked to go home and change. Besides, we do have our own unwritten rule about how one should dress to college."

The professors, however, are convinced that the students are being exposed to incorrect role models. Says Krishnaswamy, "They are at an impressionable age and tend to get influenced by the way others, including their seniors at college, dress. Hence, we wish to nip this problem at the bud itself." The authorities feel that such checks will promote an academic outlook and retain the Indian tradition which can then be passed on to future generations.

The male professors at Christ College found about the ban only through the newspapers. "As long as it's decent," says Nanjuldappa, professor of English, "I don't think it matters what the students wear. There seems to be a generation gap between the professors and students that does not allow the former to see that jeans are a way of life with these kids." An outlook that is firmly supported by Professor James.

Not that the students are against decent dressing. "But, please," says Neha, a final year student, "can we decide what is decent? Do you think our parents would let us step out of the house if they felt we were vulgarly dressed?" A sentiment strongly echoed by many of the other students.

"Under what logic can we wear fitted trousers but not jeans?" asks one student.

"Tell me, what is so indecent about jeans paired with a long, loose top?" asks another.

"It's not what you wear, but how you wear it," says a third. "For that matter, even a sari can look suggestive depending on how you go about it."

The rest of the student body, though clearly sympathetic, feel "the issue has been blown up by the media."

"Not that we don't feel sorry for them. After all, their freedom has been affected. I come from MES college where we have separate staircases for girls and boys -- it's that orthodox. But, even there, girls are not banned from wearing jeans," says Nirman, a B Sc student.

Rekha, a student at Mount Carmel College, points out that they adhere to an unwritten dress code. "If the girls are found inappropriately dressed, they are pulled up. If we are old enough to vote, we are old enough to decide what to wear."

PES Institution is the only other college with a dress code that bans jeans. It is also a coed college. Christ College does not have a student union which can put forth their grievances to the management.

Which, feels Father Josekutty, head of department, commerce and management, is taking things a little too far. "A dress code," he says, "is not a new phenomenon. Professional courses like hotel management and business management, which were introduced in 1991, already have a formal dress code. B Com students are expected to wear ties on three days of the week. While the post graduate students wear ties every day, except for Saturdays. We believe that a formal dress code instills discipline and a professional atmosphere."

But was it necessary to impose a dress code on the entire college? "Every industry has its own dress code and we, as an educational institution, wished to have our own. This will inculcate better values," says Father Josekutty who points out that smoking has been banned on the campus since 1991, a move enthusiastically welcomed.

"We don't want to encourage social differences between the students," says the priest. "To a certain extent, a dress code reduces social differences and those who wish to study here will have to adhere to it. It is up to them to decide whether they want to join this college."

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