Ripped Jeans and the Fashion Clash: A 1998 Family Trip to Remember

It was 1998, and I had had traveled to the United States along with my grandpa to meet family. We had stayed over at our family friend’s house and the next day we were off to Sea World in Cleveland. The excitement was palpable as we piled into my uncle’s car. Among the group was Aditya, our family friend’s son who was 5 years old, born and living in the US.

As we were all getting comfortable in the car I remember noticing Aditya’s outfit. He was rocking a pair of jeans with noticeable rips, not by accident but designed to look that way. He looked cool and casual nothing out of the ordinary for him, but for my dear thaata (grandpa), who has never seen these styles couldn’t quite comprehend.

He looked at Aditya, his brow furrowed in genuine concern and said “Aditya, go change these jeans right now. They’re torn! Did you not notice? Tell your mom to get another one, this must be stitched.” The moment was hilarious. Aditya, wide-eyed with surprise at my grandpa's confusion replied in his best calm tone, “Oh my god, Thaata, you don’t know anything about fashion!” He then patiently explained, “These aren’t torn; they are ripped and it’s called ‘ripped jeans’ and it's how jeans are supposed to be worn now.”

I could see Thaata struggling to grasp this new concept. “Is it? So, this is what fashion is now? Torn clothes?” He shook his head, muttering, “Whatever you kids are into these days...” His tone was a mix of disbelief and bewilderment but also a little resignation, as if he had resigned himself to the fact that trends were changing in ways that no longer made sense to him. The whole situation had us laughing, the car filled with our amusement at the generational gap between Thaata and Aditya’s approach to fashion. But as Aditya leaned back in his seat, he said with a grin, “Thaata doesn’t know much of the trend!” At that moment, none of us knew just how prophetic those words would turn out to be.

Fast forward to today, and I can’t help but smile whenever I think about that trip. Ripped jeans—once the subject of Thaata’s confusion is now back in full force in the fashion world. They’ve come a long way from the torn clothes debate to being a staple in street style, embraced by everyone from teenagers to high-end designers. The trend has evolved and what was once an oddity is now ironically, considered mainstream fashion. Irony this is something worn in the corporate world and always us questioning on how this one clothing fall under the professional attire window.

The other day, as I was scrolling through social media, I came across a post showcasing a new line of ripped jeans. I couldn’t help but laugh recalling that memory from 1998. Thaata with his perplexed face probably would’ve never guessed that ripped jeans would one day be a global trend, embraced by millions. He would likely still shake his head and mutter, “Whatever with fashion,” but I know deep down he’d be amused to see how things have come full circle. It’s funny how fashion works. One moment something is considered “unacceptable” and the next moment it’s the thing everyone wants to wear. So, yes, Thaata, maybe you didn’t quite get the trend at the time, but guess what? Ripped jeans are back and they are  here to stay!