"Consumerism has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don't need." - Tyler Durden

As bitter as it sounds, what Tyler Durden says here is the reality of the world we are living in today.

Here's what ChatGpt has to say about Consumerism -

"Consumerism plays a significant role in shaping the minds of modern society. It has deeply affected the way we think, behave and interact with the world around us. It has led us to buy and spend uncontrollably on things we don’t even need. Social media has amplified consumerism by showcasing idealized lifestyles and fashion choices which has pressured many of us to keep up with the latest trends and showcase our outfits online, contributing to the cycle of consumption.

Consumerism itself is not negative, as it can drive economic growth and provide access to products that enhance quality of life. However, when taken to extremes, it can have detrimental effects on individuals, society, and the environment."

I too, like any other person nowadays, have been part of this vicious cycle of consumption.

I am a 5 ft 10 inch girl. That means I am too tall compared to the average Indian female. While I am proud of my height, the confidence has not come easily. I had to teach myself to be confident.

People would die for a height like mine but why was this a cause of trouble for me?

Well firstly, like any other expectation that society has of “a perfect woman” , society made me believe that I was too tall and that I had to place a brick on the top of my head or I wouldn’t be able to find a “man”. I have been told this innumerable times. Well the good news is, that “finding a man” never bothered me as much as finding clothes.

This brings me to the second problem - Finding pants and shoes that fit me well. I have tried everything, getting pants stitched, shopping at expensive stores in malls, asking friends and relatives to bring back a pant or two when they go abroad for a holiday, wasting hours online trying to find an Indian store that sells pants my height. I mean, how hard can it be to find a pair of pants? And which pants?- there’s skinny, flared, high waist, bootcut, wide leg, baggy, straight cut and the list goes on. And that is not it. While I am tall , I am broad shouldered as well. So, the search doesn’t end there. Finding tops that go well with those particular pants is another ballgame. You need to find the right kind of top to wear over it. For tops you have – t-shirts , shirts ,sweatshirts, crop tops, oversized shirts ,tank tops, v-neck , round-neck etc.

 2 months back, I bought 3 t-shirts and 2 leggings (that I somehow found) because I thought that they might make a good outfit. Turns out, it isn’t in trend anymore . So I bought 2 other shirts that went on top of those leggings. But what would I do with those old t-shirts? After days of hunting for another pair of pants pants, I ended up spending Rs 10,000 on 2 wide leg pants that were exactly my height ,which is rare. The fact that they are so rare to find , compelled me and my mom to buy those pants. But the problem was that they didn’t go well with the old t-shirts. So I had to buy another pair of tops -crop tops this time, to go well with the new pants. You think this ends here? If yes, you are wrong my friend. This new outfit was too fancy for college and in my sisters words, looked “wannabe cool”.

There we were again, me and my mom, on the streets of Pune on a Saturday morning, shopping not for western pants or tops, but just plain simple Indian kurtis.

I was caught in the vicious circle of consumerism, not satisfied with the hundreds of clothes I already had in my closet .

The internet has made everything nowadays very easy and accessible and while there are thousands of options to choose from, the society and the trends that we follow has also made it increasingly difficult, confusing, expensive and time consuming to buy even something as simple as a pair of good (enough) clothes.

p.s. I still haven’t found the right pants for the 3 old t-shirts that I bought 2 months back and I don’t intend to. Coming out of the vicious circle is difficult given all the appealing advertisements and fashion trends on social media but I think this would be a good start.