A Guide to Desi Hipsters

Being hipster is no longer hipster. Nainika Agrawal tells you more about mainstream hipsterdom in India

Spunkily styled facial hair which you are unlikely to have seen before. Their hair is likely to be untidy

One piece of their outfit looks like it was stolen from a parent or a grandparent’s closet

A cool hat is likely to be part of their look

Large, nerdy spectacle frames (without the lenses, if they don’t actually need glasses) are almost a given

Hatke frock made from an old cut-up sari. With skinny jeans. Yes, to them it is okay to wear frock AND jeans

DEFINITON OF A HIPSTER
hip-sturn:

Someone who thinks their cool because they aren’t “mainstream” but in reality have become mainstream by trying not to be mainstream.  A paradox in and of itself. – Urban Dictionary

Hipsterdom – the origins

The modern context of the term ‘hipster’ started off as a label for people with peculiar dressing and living habits in gentrified New York City suburbs, and became a more global term as these trends spread across the world.
‘Hipster’ describes someone whose way of living and thinking is different from that of the majority. In other words, it is supposed to mean the opposite of ‘mainstream’.  However, ironically, being hipster has now become mainstream itself. But not to worry – irony is very greatly appreciated among hipsters!
Originally, hipsterdom was more of an international phenomenon, but hipsters are becoming easier and easier to spot in our very own Bharat. One can spot these people at one of the coffee shops in Hauz Khas Village in Delhi, or at Mumbai live music scenes like Blue Frog and Hard Rock Café, or in miscellaneous thrift shops or indie bookstores.

THINGS HIPSTERS SAY
“Did you say HIPSTER? Don’t label me!”
“I liked that before it got popular.” 
“This? I made it myself!”
“I got sick of Facebook so I deleted my account. Twitter all the way!”

“Hipsters are great! But today there are two kinds of hipsters – ones who are actually that unique person we come across just a few times in our lives, and the others who have dedicated their lives to being different. If you have to try to be a hipster, you’re not a hipster.”
-Payal Shah, arts student, Mumbai

“What’s not to like about hipsters? They have a unique sense of dressing, have a mind of their own, aren’t obsessed with social norms, great taste in music and a great intellect. They’re living life on their own terms and I feel that is highly courageous and appreciable.”
-Gulnaz Sabharwal, political science student, New Delhi

HOW TO SPOT A HIPSTER IN INDIA

They possess two or more of the following:

•  A Macbook and/or an iPhone
• A Moleskine journal (yes, they’re available on Flipkart!)
• A vintage camera
• A pair of vintage footware (preferably boots)
• A Blogspot or Tumblr blog
• An Instagram account that could be a photographic food journal – food that is not mainstream, of course
• A Twitter page where they religiously express their opinions on everything around them. (What? Did you say “What about Facebook”? Facebook is too mainstream, duh)

By Diet

• They are vegan. Of their own free will. Not because mummy-daddy don’t like non-veg or because milk gives them acidity.
• They insist on eating only organic food, not caring that this costs three times more than the common man’s pesticide-ridden version of the same food.

By Attitude

• They give off a distinct ‘I don’t care vibe’. This is integral to their hipster aura.
• They recoil at the idea of actually being referred to as a ‘hipster’ because that would mean fitting into a predefined label.
• They claim to be one or more of the following (usually without any or much knowledge of the actual term): liberalist, libertarian, nihilist etc.
• They like only music, cinema and literature that 97% of the world hasn’t heard of. For the primary reason that 97% of the world hasn’t heard of them. Obscurity beats quality.
• They are opposed to shopping at malls, buying retail brands and spending money on beautifying themselves beyond basic hygiene because they believe these things ‘feed the monster that is consumerism’.

Volume 2 Issue 12