Metrofeature

July 31, 2000

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Happy with a Stud

-Leher Kala

Rewind to the pre-Internet and pre-cable TV days of the 1980s. When the family frowned upon the son strumming a guitar in the college band and prophesied doom if he wore an earring, convinced he was on the path to hippiedom. Now it's the new century of flexi-timings, Friday dressing and the "let's hit the pub after work" culture. And, professional corporate men wearing earrings to work seems to have become less of an issue.

"My earrings are as important to me as my watch or pen," says Harish Thawani, 35, MD of television company Nimbus Communications. He describes his collection of lobe jewellery as "muted and elegant". One of the first men to have worn them 20 years ago, Thawani did so because he admired his grandfather who wore balis. Have perceptions on men wearing earrings changed in recent years? "Absolutely," says Thawani. "Now it's your work that matters, there's less pressure to conform." Agrees Arjun Sawhney, 34, an ex-banker who wears a silver bali on his left ear, "My clients call me Mr Stylish," he laughs. "I wear one because I can carry it off." Sawhney regularly makes presentations to conventional multinationals like Goldman Sachs and SmithKline Beecham. Men with earrings are no longer associated with drugs, rock 'n' roll and a frivolous attitude to life. "It's what you have between the ears, not on them that counts," says Vikram Bhalla, 26, who organises promotions for Colgate and Coke. And these determined earring junkies even put up with constant jokes and questions about their sexuality. "There's confusion about whether gay men wear earrings on their left or right ear," remarks Jaisal Singh, 21, who works for an adventure tours company. "You're safest wearing them on both ears to avoid that," he says. Thawani remembers being propositioned by a man on a local train in Mumbai and Bhalla recalls a family wedding where relatives diplomatically tried to find out if he were gay. "The joke was that I'd become the daughter of the house," says Bhalla wryly. The earring seems to have permeated even professions like medicine. Says Dr Amar Navaneetham, 34, a dentist in Bangalore, whose wife encouraged him to pierce his ear, "Occasionally my kid patients question me about my earring but most people don't."

Men in India have worn earrings through the ages -- Rajputs, Gujratis, kings and Hindu gods are always depicted with their danglers. It's part of Indian culture. But try telling some people that. Sameer Goswami, 29, business development manager of website hungama.com, relates how his father insisted he take off his gold stud before meeting his future in-laws. "His fears were unfounded because my in-laws were cool with it," says Goswami.

However, not everyone reacts the same way. Impeccably attired Admiral Vijay Malhotra comes from a disciplined armed forces background. He got a rude shock when he discovered his 24-year-old daughter wanted to marry "this cheeky boy with earrings". Says Malhotra: "In the Navy, we couldn't keep a pen in our pockets." However, he now grudgingly admits the earrings suit his son-in-law.

Men wear the adornments for different reasons but mostly it's just about trying something new. "I wanted to see how I looked," says Goswami, who pierced his ear on a whim. At first his colleagues thought he looked ridiculous. "Now they don't like me without it," he insists. The first question Sawhney's boss asked was if his diamond stud was real. "I said 'no way, not on the salary you pay me'," he quips.

It's interesting to hear how the fairer sex responds. "It turns women on," grins a mischievous Vikram Chanda, 26, an entrepreneur who sports a stud in his left ear. Agrees businessman Sumeet Nath, who wears diamond solitaires on both ears and deals with German women for his export business. "I tell them it's part of our tradition and they find it fascinating," he says. Some women, though, find earrings on men unattractive and feel it takes away from their masculinity. "There should be some difference between a man and a woman," says Sharika Sharma, 28, an advertising executive.

However, in banks, law firms and political organisations, where perceptions matter as much as merit, it will be a while before the earring culture sets in. In some law firms even facial hair is frowned upon. Thawani recalls a deal he was negotiating with TV channel HBO. A friend warned him about their conservative approach and advised him to take off his studs. "The deal never happened," says Thawani. Deep Kalra, 31, CEO of website makemytrip.com says he would think twice before hiring a man with an earring to represent the company. "Why start off with a disadvantage?" he asks. Well, boys will be boys, but at the workplace the boss' word is final.

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