A couple of months ago, I chanced upon a young 20-something man at my gym walking out with a women’s sling bag. I have to say I was guilty of a double take; the few times I have seen men carry women’s handbags, it has usually been celebrities on Instagram—never in real life.
I really have to give Karan Johar due credit for advocating the idea of the man-purse. He has been carrying designer bags from Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Supreme for decades. But his newfound love for the ultimate ladies bag—the Hermes Birkin—has been a style switch. Johar’s envelope-pushing fashion game sees him wear heels on stage and carry women’s handbags at airports. When the young of India see such a major and successful celebrity normalise playful, androgynous styles, it allows them to have fun, too.
To drive the point home, Johar carried a gold sculptural installation piece by artist Sanju Birla to the Mumbai Art Fair last week. The piece was a melting gold Birkin, a recent purchase made by the filmmaker at designer Maheka Mirpuri’s charity auction at the Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai in October.
Pranay Baidya and his sling bag | Instagram@Pranay_Baidya
I ran into designer Manish Malhotra recently. His penchant for designer shawls, especially Hermes and Vuitton, is well known, and he is often spotted with a Vuitton duffle bag or a backpack. This time he held a tan Birkin 50, the largest size in the range. “Karan made me get it,” he laughed, half embarrassed, but absolutely in love with his new acquisition.
Hermes has ensured the popularity of its Birkin crosses gender purchases. There are enough men, heterosexual men, too, who carry the large Birkin bag as a status symbol. Its roominess allows for it to be a comfortable utility bag, too. And men who love fashion are happy to upchuck their man purses for this female-coveted must-have. There are even a few Instagram accounts (@birkinmen and @birkinclub4boys) that showcase the trend. Auction houses such as Sotheby’s and Christie’s state there are several male bidders for their rare handbag sales. But it isn’t just the Birkin that’s encouraging men to carry purses. Traditional houses like Fendi and Ferragamo are sending male models down the runway with female purses.
Textile savant Pranay Baidya—who lives and works out of Kolkata and has recently moved to Delhi—was recently photographed carrying an expensive Chanel Quilted Flap purse in silver. “When I was a young boy, there’s nothing I loved more than purses,” he tells me. When he moved abroad for further studies, he began to buy his own handbags.
Australian actor Jacob Elordi has a great collection of Vuitton, Bottega Veneta and Fendi bags. Harry Styles, Pharrell Williams and A$AP Rocky have many designer purses, too. Even athletes like David Beckham and LeBron James carry female tote bags.
Men and bags have had such an evolving relationship. Historically, men would carry pouches to hold spices or money for trade. This gave rise to the pocket in trousers. Office work during the Industrial Revolution allowed for the ‘briefcase’, a leather folder with a handle really. Crossbody bags and their practicality have played a huge role in the evolution of the handbag. The man’s crossbody laptop bag got smaller as did his gadgets. Eventually the crossbody man-purse gave rise to more feminine styles and surface textures.
I’m still not sure how I would react to a cis, heterosexual man carrying a woman’s sling bag. I think I would first admire the purse and then his gumption. Regardless, the man purse seems to be a style whose time has come.
X@namratazakaria