Iranian Women's Fashion; A Report from Reuters - 2003-12-16

A reporter from Reuters' Tehran office has recently published a piece addressing the issue of fashion and trendiness among Iranian women. The reporter writes: "The attention of Iranian women to fashion and clothing design in recent years is noteworthy. This attention to fashion and clothing design has, of course, faced frowns from society, institutions, and officials. Fashion shows are usually held in private homes and secretly. However, recently Iranian officials allowed Mahla Zamani, a fashion designer, to hold a fashion show for the public. This fashion show was seen as a sign of gradual leniency towards women's clothing. Conservatives condemned it as a conspiracy to undermine Islamic values. One newspaper wrote: 'This fashion show is a hypocritical act to achieve the evil goals of foreigners to strip the hijab from the Muslim Iranian woman.'" The Reuters reporter adds: "The special covering known as chador, which means 'tent' in Persian, is considered necessary by many clerics to maintain women's modesty. However, in recent years, strictness regarding women's clothing has lessened. Many young women wear long trousers and jackets that reach the knee, allowing the maximum amount of their hair to show from under their colorful headscarves. However, when they reach enclosed environments and remove their jackets and headscarves, they usually wear clothes that are from the latest European fashion designers." According to the newspaper Shargh, the reporter further states: "The fashion shows of intelligent women in Tehran have surpassed those of men in this regard. Although handsome men in Western clothing are seen on billboards in Tehran, male fashion shows are generally not held in Iran. However, the first men's magazine in Iran published its third issue this October. This magazine, titled 'Man and Life,' states that Iranian men are willing to pay for what makes them better and more successful in their personal and social lives, work, and relationships with the opposite sex."