Dads can be fashionable.
Disbelief?
Yes, Dads can be fashionable! At least some of the time. Even as they get older. And more stuck in their ways.
When they are implored, especially by their clothes-conscious daughters, to put away their shapeless tracks and embarassing ratty t-shirts they hang about in 24x7, especially post the COVID-19 apocalypse, they can often surprise you with a truly debonair look now and then.
And then there are the fathers who need no coaxing and who are into handsome dressing all of the time, every day, even Sunday, who come awake in their beds every morning not a hair out of place (some dads, we hear, go to sleep with combs on their night tables).
As Father's Day arrives, let us introduce you to the Cool Dude Daddy League.
Members of the CDDL are the asli fashion gods with a sense of old-world charm, whose every urbane outfit ought to rack up 100K likes, if only Instragram wasn't so darn ageist and such a bastion of philogyny.
These gentlemen are proud fathers, but also icons who can lick just about anybody in the style dept with their sartorial picks and wardrobe tips.
IMAGE: First off the block, on our list of suave dressers, had to be this matinee idol with his fierce twirling moustache and patriarchal side-chops.
When you are the Ulagnayagan (the universal hero), your clothes must reflect it and Kamal Haasan does it to the T always and here in his self-described 'Khadiyin Selvan meets Ponniyin Selvan' ensemble!
The Nammavar of cinema also own a clothing brand, KH House of Khaddar, which is focussed on 'uplifting the country's handloom weavers'.
Photograph: Kind courtesy Kamal Haasan/Instagram
IMAGE: Jhakaas! 'The colour of the day is RED' for the Laadla of BollyTown, Anil Kapoor.
The dad to three has a penchant for monochromatic suits. And why not when he looks this studly at 66.
He has a couple of great accessories he perpetually sports -- his enthusiasm, undying energy and a beloved smile that made Madhuri Dixit's heart go dhak dhak in Beta.
Photograph: Kind courtesy Anil Kapoor/Instagram
IMAGE: His son and chocolate boy Dulquer Salmaan is the reigning heartthrob of Malayalam cinema, but Mammootty's charisma will never ever fade.
The list of what he wears immaculately is looooong:
Dapper suit? 9/10.
Gym wear? 8/10.
Kurta and pyjama? 10/10
Casual denims-T-shirt? 10/10.
Nadan mundu and ujawala white shirt? 20/10.
'The Devil', who turns 72 in September, owns a zabardast class cupboard act that is quintessentially him, off and on screen.
Photograph: Kind courtesy Mammootty/Instagram
IMAGE: Bon appetit and bon couture: One of the reasons Sanjeev Kapoor's food looks so good is because the man whipping it up is equally smart.
Or didn't you realise that all the top chefs of the world are hunks, and/or dress sharply, hypnotising you as they masculinely, testosterone in free flow, whisk, chop, and braise.
It's not any different with Mr Khana Khazana.
If Sanjeev doesn't floor you with that smile, impress you with his skills in the rasoi, he'll woo you with his style.
He knows how to colour-coordinate, is not always on-brand but rarely lets the garments dictate the outcome.
Photograph: Kind courtesy Sanjeev Kapoor/Instagram
IMAGE: Men, take notes from the Master Blaster on functional, fun dolling up that's as fatfatiya as his game was.
Sachin Tendulkar has a collection of all-out funky shirts, and, when given a chance, would love to twin with wife Anjali and daughter Sara to pull off a fashion hat trick.
Photograph: Kind courtesy Sachin Tendulkar/Instagram
