gings are the top priority. Most of thesepants are in a light, neutral tone andpaired with smart sports bras. A long-sleeved T-shirt enhances the look.Add to this a smart pair offootwear to complete the coollook. You can hit the gym andsaunter out to meet your friendsfor lunch or coffee, withoutneeding to change. To give aslight fashionably ‘lunchy’ look,add a slight touch of lipstick orkajal and you are set for a styl-ishly comfortable look.

You should invest in a good run-ning jacket. You can just never gowrong with a sporty running jacket.Add a cool touch to your casual lookwith a pair of vibrant sunnies andan eye-popping tone for your ear-phones. Quirky sneakers add theperfect finishing touches to this look.And with this attire you can go shop-ping, catch a matinee show withfriends or have a cool drink at yourfavourite restaurant.

Floral attraction

»Zynna, famous for its wide-ranging collection in fabrics,

has recently introduced asoothing and blooming range ofcurtains and cushions. Tobeautify one’s home decor withfloral prints and patterns hasbeen a widely preferred trend inIndia and abroad. This new rangeof curtains and cushions is verypleasing and comforting, giving asoft and elegant touch to one’sabode. The collection has anadorable range of gracefulprinted florals replicating natureinspired by the countryside andEnglish gardens. The fabric usedis 100 per cent cotton, which isoptimal for soft furnishing.

In varied range of calming andsoft tones of pink, lavender, berry,beige, red, pastel and green, thecollection involves relaxing tonesand patterns, which are perfect forcurtains and cushions. This newrange of soothing and bloomingcurtains and cushions are rich infloral prints – an apt choice forthose who want to redefine theirhome’s interiors in style and grace.

Saturday, August 8, 2015 DECCAN HERALD 3

Living Fashion, food, ‘n’ fun

SHOWCASE

Sound of music

»boAt unveils its new productRockerz On Ear, a bluetooth

stereo headset with super bass,which will be exclusivelyavailable on Snapdeal through astrategic partnership withImagine Marketing. Through theonline platform,the brand offerscustomers acrossIndia the ease,convenience andjoy ofexperiencingmusic with stylishand trendyheadsets. boAt,one of the latestentrants into theaudio and tech industry, hassuccessfully launched bluetoothspeakers and power banks.

Rockerz on Ear is a bluetoothstereo headset with a stunningdesign and lightweight body. Itsergonomic base creates a customfit for any head shape so one cankeep music all to oneself.

The sturdy headset with a 3.5mm jack connects with a range ofdevices as well as plays music wire-lessly via mobile/tablet and otherdevices, with crystal clear soundand extra bass, keeping the audiodelivery intact. The headset comeswith softer ear cups for an extend-ed usage. With its super flexiblestructure, one can fold it andtravel light.

Royal feast

»To celebrate the spirit ofpatriotism and explore the

rich heritage and design patternof India this Independence Day,Alchemy De Luxe has introducedtwo new limited edition pieces totheir Royal Fiesta collection. Thistime the brand extends theproduct category and has added agold flat round dish and a similarserving bowl with a removablegold lid. These additions willsurely heighten one’s diningexperience and include a sense ofroyalty and sophistication to yourdining table.

Designed exclusively by PoonamGupta, the chief designer and CEOof the brand, this collectionrepresents the royal flavour ofIndia in the 16th century and isdeeply inspired by the designs ofMughal era. This limited editionhandcrafted collection is crafted in92.5 sterling silver and polishedwith 24 carat gold plating. Mughalpattern and design has beenintricately chased to make thispiece splendid and add opulenceand style to your dinner table.

TWO IN ONE Ditch those boring jeans, embrace athleisure. A funky conceptfor uber-stylish gym and sportswear, it doubles up as stylish lounge wear.Surekha Kadapa-Bose tells you how to rock this style

Or else, how about a dual-toned tank-top over a pair of well-fitted

capris along with a cool wrist-band and cycling shoes? It

will totally set the tone foryour day. Simply throw ona black-striped jacket andsling on a leather dufflebag to arrive at work instyle! However, if your of-fice insists on formal wear,

then of course this style is abig no.

Nagpur-based women’s wear design-er Shruti Sancheti admits that the new

trend isn’t all encompassing. “Althoughthey are comfortable and stylish, they arecertainly no substitutes for formal or par-ty wear. They tend to look a bit too casual.But since fitness and active lifestyles arethe order of the day, it is a subgenre offashion which has gained a lot of popu-larity and is here to stay,” she says.

Revisiting fashionAlthough it is now that this trend has aname, many of the Hollywood celebritieshave been flaunting this trend over years.In fact, as collegians in the 80s, we toounknowingly flaunted this elegance whenwe borrowed our brother’s or father’slarge T-shirts to sport that casual, grungy,laid-back look. Way back in 1996, SharonStone must have been the first celebrityto wear a GAP black outsized T-shirt witha Valentino skirt for the Oscars awardceremony.

Nakul Bajaj, CEO of Darveys.com, ad-mits that there is an increasing numberof new customers who are opting forthese clothes. “We do have clientele wholike to splurge on luxury sportswear evenon weekdays. And since the trend is pick-ing up at great speed, we are definitelytrying to get maximum essentials onlinefrom our partner boutiques – embracingall types, variety, brands and fabrics forboth men and women,” he says.

But one needs to be cautious whileopting for these attires. Not everybodycan sport it for all do’s. Designer JannatMehra of J by Jannat, explains, “This newtrend isn’t for everyone. Besides beingapt for certain sizes, it also just suitspeople of certain age groups. It’s a trendthat offers comfort for sure; but to beable to carry it off, it’s important to havean athletic and fit body.’’Do we see dudesand divas make a beeline for the gymalready?

Athletic, at leisure

FOOD ETYMOLOGYIt is said Anzac biscuits, popular inAustralia and New Zealand, got theirname because they were shipped toAnzac soldiers during the World War.

When you watch one of the videosshe has created on child sexualabuse and puberty, you watch in

amazement. Not because the content isshocking or makes you feel uneasy, butbecause of the simplicity with which issuesare deconstructed. In a matter of a fewminutes, she is able to do what many can’t– convey what puberty is in a very simpleand direct way.

Launched in September last year,howtotellyourchild.com is the brainchildof Deepa Kumar. When you meet her, youcome to realise that she is as straight-forward as her videos and workbooks. It’sonly logical – her need to be direct comeswith the territory she’s dealing with,puberty.

Delving into the nitty-gritty of childsexual abuse and puberty through herinteractive online portal, Deepa empha-sises on the importance of talking to yourchild about such sensitive issues, rightfrom a young age. “I think the whole thing

Forall those ‘awkward’ conversations

started with the fact that we don’t want totalk about sex, which is why we don’t wantto talk about puberty and the potentialabuse. If they don’t know what is going tohappen, how will they differentiate theright from the wrong? As there is no realknowledge, they don’t understand what iswrong. More than it being wrong, theywon’t realise that someone is takingadvantage of their innocence,” she says.

Being the mother of two young daugh-ters, Deepa related to the difficulty ofexplaining such sensitive topics tochildren. And when she found out thatthere were other hapless parents like her,theprojectbecamemuchmoreimportant.Wanting to tackle this problem of making‘tough conversations easy’, she started thisplatform so that parents like her couldexplainsuch processes in a fun, interactiveand positive manner.

Commenting on the already availablecontent on puberty and sexual abuse, shequips that the language being used was

rudimentary, as it did not go beyond ‘goodtouch’ and ‘bad touch’. She argues aperpetrator does a lot of the things beforetouching, such as being alone with thechild. As a result, the child should beforewarned about the act and be madeaware about how to identify it before ithappens.

Deepa’s interactive content, both in theform of books and videos, are aimed atyoung boys and girls (as early as threeyears), and parents. ‘Awkward topics’ like‘how do boys’or girls’bodies develop?’arecovered and her videos and workbooksare extremely well executed, making youwonder if it was really difficult to talk toyour children about it. And the icing onthe cake is that they are neither preachynor loaded with jargon. It is simple, to thepoint, and pretty much self-explanatory.

Red flagsInappropriate acts, such as exhibitionism,fondling and intercourse are seen as child

sexual abuse. According to a surveyconducted by the Ministry of Women andChild Development, 53.22 per centchildren reported having faced one ormore forms of sexual abuse.

Deepa has created five alerts by whichthe child can know when something iswrong and communicate it to his/herparents or close caretakers. She identifiesthe five alerts as:n See alert: No one apart from thechild’s primary caretakers can see theirprivate parts and they should not seeanyone else’s.n Talk alert: Children must not talkabout their private parts with peoplewho are not their caretakers.n Alone alert: Children should ensurethat they travel in groups and not wanderalone, except with their caretakers.n Hold alert: Children should not allowpeople they don’t know to hold, hug orkiss them. If they feel uncomfortable,they should say no.n Touch alert: No one other than thechild’s parents and caretakers can touchtheir private parts.

By providing the children with propervocabulary and language, it becomeseasier for them to talk about a wrong-doing. “I was experimenting the alerts

with my then four-and-half-year-olddaughter,whenshesaidthatsomeonehaddone the ‘touch alert’ with her,” recallsDeepa. “As she had the language to comeand tell me, she could see to it that herparent would do something about it. Thiswill deter many abusers from repeatingtheir acts,” she adds.

If parents are able to talk about suchthings more openly, children will becomeless curious and experimental, believesthe entrepreneur. Deepa started her owncompany called Yashram Lifestyle, whichdeals in creating comfortable maternitywear and innerwear for women. Drivenand focused, she now aspires to eliminatethe cloud that surrounds ‘difficult’conversations and provide a reliableplatform for parents and children todiscuss puberty and sexual abuse.

The platform has been extremelysuccessful andhas receivedalot of involve-ment from other countries, too, revealsDeepa. Inthefuture,shehopesto diversifythe programme to other ‘awkward’topicssuch as safe sex to help dissuade theunease.

“Our fear of these things are imaginary.If we really deal with it head on, it canbecome a friend like our mascot, Ms andMr P the dragon,” she maintains.

BEING PREPARED Talking about puberty and sexual abuse with your kidsis never easy. But it has to be done. Deepa Kumar’s online portal attemptsto make the task less uncomfortable, writes Pooja Mahesh

MAKING IT EASY Deepa Kumar

Piece of art

»Gulmoharlane.com hasintroduced an impeccable

Chesterfield Leather SofaCollection.Hand-made byfourthgenerationsofaartisans inJaipur, thisnewcollection is designed inburgundy, representing sheerroyalty and luxury with its choiceof colour and design aesthetics.

A three-seater Chesterfieldsofa, a wing-back arm chair and anottoman complete the range. Thenew collection has the hallmarksof the form – deep button-tuftedupholstery, rich leather, rolledarms, nail-head trim and works forjust about any room. Acquiring adistinct Chesterfield sofa, thus, islike investing in a piece of art.

The extensive curves andopulent, button-tufted padding ofclassic Chesterfield designing lendthese sofas a dramatic style andenticing comfort. There’ssomething inherently lavish abouta Chesterfield sofa – there’s just somuch to love. Probably that’s whythe Chesterfield sofa has remaineda classic style over the years. Thisis like reminiscing the old andcelebrating the new.

IT’S ATREND

THAT OFFERSCOMFORT FORSURE; BUT TO BEABLE TO CARRYIT OFF, IT’SIMPORTANT TOHAVE ANATHLETIC ANDFIT BODY...

Abillion-dollar industry is beingcreated on a new attire trend.And according to marketanalysts, this market is expect-ed to grow worldwide by at

least 50 per cent by the year 2020. Thekey players are the likes of Nike, Gap,Lululemon Athletica Inc, Under Ar-mour, Adidas, Reebok, Hackett, RalphLauren, Hugo Boss and Dolce & Gab-bana, among many others following suit.The trend we’re talking about is ‘ath-leisure wear.’

This is a new funky word for comfortwear for both men and women.Athleisure is a vague but new conceptfor high-end or uber-stylish gym orsportswear, which doubles up as leisurewear or lounge wear. It is a new phe-nomenon and subscribes to a more re-laxed form of fashion, which is luxuriousbut also comfortable – like yoga pants,velour tracksuits, cashmere sweatshirts,trendy sneakers and the like. But theycome with a subtle hint of luxury andstyle. They are worn for various casualand semi-formal outings and designersare creating looks and collectionsaround this trend.

If at any point in time you happen tobe passing through the airports ofMumbai, New Delhi or Kolkata, you maycome across the likes of Shah RukhKhan, the father and son duo ofBachchans, Hrithik Roshan, RanbirKapoor, John Abraham, Shahid Kapoor,Kareena Kapoor, Deepika Padukone,Malaika Arora Khan and many others at-tired in athleisure wear, as they walk non-chalantly in and out of airports. Many atime, even for press meets and semi-formal meetings, the preferred attire isthe new athleisure wear making thesecelebrities look comfortable and relaxedeven in the hot, humid and sultry weatherof the metros. Jeans and denims, whichhave been ruling the casual stylequotients for decades, are taking abackseat.

“This trend grabs a lot of attention. Ican carry this athletic wear to my worldbeyond the gym. I go in favour ofathleisure for a casual coffee or themovies. I feel comfortable and theseclothes don’t make one look too casualas they retain the chic factor,” says Del-hi-based stylist Sonal Jindal ofMedusa.

AdaptabilityThere are many attireswhich can make forthe athleisure wear,but the mostpopular onesare the yogapants and run-ning jackets.The soft com-fort of the yogapants or leg-

Living She