FASHION
KARNIKA AWASTHI
May 20, 2025
It started in Stockholm. Now it’s suffocating Bandra. The Scandinavian scarf — that beige, overpriced, personality-deficient drape — has somehow made its way into Indian closets, and frankly, it’s the fashion equivalent of importing snow to Shimla.
Let’s not sugarcoat it: this trend is just a glorified muffler with a Scandi backstory and an influencer-approved price tag. And yet, every third person on your feed is swaddled in this soft yawn of a garment like they’re about to sip hot cocoa on a fjord — never mind the fact that they’re actually sweating through Delhi’s 24°C winter while pretending it’s -2 in Copenhagen.
We need to talk about the absurdity of Indian fashionistas embracing this trend like it’s the second coming of Sabyasachi. Listen, if you’re wearing a Scandinavian scarf in Mumbai — over a crop top and linen trousers — you’re not serving “global fashion fusion“. You’re serving “confused NRI energy“. It’s giving KJo on a winter shoot in Ladakh pretending it’s Milan.
And the irony? India INVENTED stylish drapes. The dupatta? A cultural icon. The pashmina? An heirloom. The gamcha? A working-class hero turned fashion symbol. But sure, let’s ignore centuries of textile artistry to tie a Swedish rag around our necks and call it “minimalist chic”. You’re wearing a two-meter swatch of corporate oatmeal. Sit down.
Fashion creators from Jaipur to Shillong are hand-weaving beauty in threads that carry stories, symbols, and skill. Meanwhile, the Scandinavian scarf comes in one color: depression. It’s always “stone,” “cloud,” or “birch fog.” Translation: sad beige. And yet, Indian influencers treat it like it’s sacred geometry.
After that Scandinavian scarf sh*t, I realised how important it is to preserve our culture. They mocked us for our culture, now it’s suddenly “aesthetic”? They hate us but love to copy us. Our traditions aren’t trends they’re identity. Own it. Dupatta is 2025 trending accessory https://t.co/BMeJDmHyD0
— 𝙷𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚢 𝚂𝚝𝚢𝚕𝚎𝚜 ✿◠‿◠) 🎀 (@VanshikaInStyle) April 21, 2025
Let’s not forget the ridiculousness of pairing this scarf with kurta sets. We’ve now reached peak aesthetic colonialism — draping wool made for polar winds over cotton made for Indian summers. It’s like putting snow chains on a rickshaw. Pointless. Cringe. And deeply sweaty.
The Scandinavian scarf is not Indian fashion evolution — it’s Stockholm Syndrome. A beige lie we’re telling ourselves in the name of “global style”. But darling, no matter how many times you say “hygge“, that scarf still makes you look like you’re hiding from both the cold and your culture.
Here’s a thought: instead of buying an imported blanket for your neck, maybe celebrate the richness already woven into our wardrobes. Let’s stop trading color for coldness. Let’s stop calling imported monotony “elevated style“.
Because in India, when it comes to drapes, we already did it better — centuries ago — with more soul, more color, and way more flair.
