I have been fascinated by Uorfi Javed for quite some time. How I feel about her has also evolved, and now oddly feels like an appropriate time to pen my thoughts.
She caught everyone’s attention for her sartorial choices while regularly appearing on paparazzi videos on Mumbai streets. Too soon too many people had radical opinions about her. But nothing seemed to bother her in any way. She continued with her appearances that never failed to grab eyeballs.
Once I began following her accounts on all social platforms, I read a couple of in-depth profile pieces/interviews of her.
And something changed. I began to see the person Uorfi beyond her fashion.
She is smart, unapologetic and awfully brave. She has a mind of her own. In an industry that has been criticised far too often for being silent in the face of socio-political oppression, Uorfi calls out every injustice, whether by the ruling political party or religious godmen. There are police complaints filed against her. There is a whole troll army unleashed upon her on the internet every day. She wakes up to innumerable rape and death threats. Yet, she persists. It’s almost as if she is afraid of no one. It is possibly this quality of hers that irks her haters so much.
Love To Hate Uorfi
28-year-old independent journalist Sumedha Pal attempted to help me understand why people love to hate Uorfi. She said, “Uorfi is unhinged, and has control over her bodily autonomy. That is something people don’t see in our society and hence, want to shut it down in women. The same has also happened with other celebrities who present themselves in a very unconventional way, like Rakhi Sawant. Rakhi has been labelled as erratic, crazy, drama queen. Uorfi, she is very sensible. She is so sure of her talent and she is revolutionising fashion. So, people haven’t been able to put her in one box and label her as lunatic.“
Sumedha further reiterates, “Uorfi is a bigger phenomenon beyond her bold fashion choices. She knows what she’s doing. She has ownership over her own body. She is a visionary when it comes to fashion and style. But mainly, the hate that she receives from both men and women is hidden under the garb of decency, morality, and control. The fact that she is unhinged towards that hate; that she categorically responds to that hate and emerges out of it makes people hate her even more.”
Talking about hate, I also spoke to several women, across professions and cities who love Uorfi just as much as I do. There’s one word that comes to my mind when I think of Uorfi, ‘guts’. A lot of the women I spoke to unequivocally agreed.
The Guts Of Uorfi Javed
Radhika Dhingra, who is a nonprofit founder from Pune, said, “I absolutely love her. I envy her confidence and guts and how she is so unapologetically herself.“
22-year-old marketing student Pranali Ajmeera says, “Uorfi has guts. That is literally the most apt quality to describe her. The guts to wear the clothes she wants to and be herself despite how the patriarchal society treats her. She has guts of iron. Hats off.“
Areez, who is a 21-year-old Growth marketer and Gender Studies student from Bangalore, says, “I love her confidence. She says she does it for attention. All of us want it but only a few confess.”
This reminded me of an excerpt from an interview of Uorfi I read where she said, “I didn’t get any attention when I was young, so now I want it from the whole world. Who doesn’t want attention? Look at this industry, which actor doesn’t want attention? In this industry, the more recognized or popular you are, the more work you get. And the truth is, everyone wants attention. At least I’m open about it.”
Many love her simply because she is a fashion icon, a styling goddess! Author Nona Uppal said, “Absolutely love her. If she were doing this in the United States, her style would be called camp and celebrated.”
Ankyeeta, who is a 23-year-old lawyer from Mumbai, says, “She is bold and has an out of the box, unique, Schiaparelli-esque sense of style. Simply iconic.”
Uorfi’s Authenticity is Political
Personally, I love Uorfi most for her politics. I remember once when she was slut shamed by author Chetan Bhagat who referred to Uorfi as a ‘distraction for young boys’. She did not hold back on bringing up the sexual harassment allegations against the author. Uorfi wrote, “His #MeToo WhatsApp texts had not distracted anyone, certainly not his marriage.”
Chitra Wagh from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) filed a police complaint against Uorfi for indulging in public nudity. Uorfi has moved the Maharashtra State Commission for Women against the politician, complaining that her comments are instigating attacks.
Uorfi has called out the very popular spiritual leader, Sadhguru, over his homophobic comments and faced the wrath of his blind army of followers.
Her unwavering courage to be authentic in today’s polarised, hateful world is a revolutionary act. I can only aspire to have a tad bit of that courage.
Uorfi grew up in a very conservative Muslim home in Lucknow, from where she ran away at 16. She was right out of school without a degree but with a hell lot of courage and crazy dreams, which she held on to. Today, she lives her life on her own terms. I am sure her teenage self would be pretty proud.
24-year-old Editor-in-Chief of Stumble, Ria Chopra has been a culture journalist for sometime. I chatted with her to unravel the ‘Uorfi phenomenon’ and secretly gushed over how much we both love her. Ria said, “I really like Uorfi because she is a breath of fresh air in what has become a very boring, cookie-cutter culture of celebrities. She is not media trained. She is unafraid to take risks with regard to not only fashion but also her personality.”
Ria reiterates that despite the hate, she thinks a large chunk of the population enjoys Uorfi and what she represents, which is that celebrities need not be born into rich, famous homes and adhere to standards of acceptability.
Ria does acknowledge that the same quality is also why Uorfi is hated upon. “A woman being herself is not accepted by many in India. If we look at her style, she is owning her body and sexuality and not submitting to the male gaze. Whatever outfit she wears, there is a story behind it. There is immense effort and hardwork. For her, fashion is truly a form of self-expression and art. She is not doing it for the male gaze but using her body as a blank canvas to play with.“
That is why people love to hate her; she is upturning the common belief that women’s bodies just exist to be objectified, especially in the public eye.
While discussing for how long Uorfi may manage to stay relevant, Ria said, “She is very adaptable. Initially, most people looked at her as a social media star. But now, we see her on magazine covers, wearing couture. Her interviews or paparazzi interactions are so enjoyable, fun yet sensible. Who is Uorfi? Is she a muse, or a designer, an influencer, or social media star, or socialite? It is this ability to be undefinable yet being a strong presence in all these spaces sets her apart from others. That is why I think she will stay relevant.“
I tend to agree with Ria. Though showbiz is extremely volatile, I hope Uorfi continues to be relevant for a very long time. It is incredibly inspiring to see a brave, unapologetic and ambitious woman be herself, take complete control of her body, sexuality and life without any shame or judgement. I only aspire to have a tad bit of her courage.
I am almost surprised at myself that I continue to write more than a thousand words and still don’t feel I have done adequate justice to my ode to Uorfi. I apologise for not having the space to quote every woman who wrote to me, describing why and how much they love Uorfi. There’s one thing I can certainly say.
Uorfi Javed’s guts inspire women everywhere to be themselves and take charge.
I cannot wait to watch this wave turn into a revolution.
To Uorfi and women like her,
May we know them,
May we be them,
May we raise them.
All pictures taken from Uorfi’s Twitter. Rights reserved to the rightful people.