International Yoga Day 2021: Yoga Outfits Beyond Yoga Mats!

Rita Ora, Rihanna, and Kanye West are among the celebrities, who have popularised athleisure and yoga wears. With their fashion labels, they have mainstreamed activewear. From Adidas to Baba Ramdev's apparel brand, these labels have beckoned us to think of yoga-wears beyond yoga mats. Today, the yoga pants can be even donned to a few formal meetings. Yoga outfits are the new cool- these ensembles have found acceptance even in tight social settings.

It is surprising to note that how in a short period of time, activewear transitioned from being unfashionable to fashionable. The athleisure segment of the apparel industry is quite evidently booming. According to an Euromonitor research, the Indian sportswear market is expected to grow by 11.6 per cent between 2016 to 2020. What caused this boom has been linked to a number of factors, particularly the changing market structure and shifting perceptions.

About a decade ago, there was this sort of revolution that took place in the health and wellness industry. This was the time when social media came into the limelight and exposed people to the health and wellness industry. With social media, the Millenials also got influenced by celebs and their fitness regime. As such the Internet made impressionable youngsters more conscious about their bodies. Also, gaining more awareness about mental health and other lifestyle issues inspired the youngsters to hit the gym and take yoga classes. The rising income also contributed in making the urban population switch to a healthy lifestyle. Consequently, the fashion brands capitalised on such a shift and introduced us to sassy activewear.

Adding to that, the comfort, durability, and fuss-free nature of these outfits have further made most of us wear yoga wears to our workplaces, casual outings, and even light-hearted parties. Gradually, the synthetic yoga wears also took a backseat and came to the indie brands such as Satva and Deivee by Milind Soman, which gave us organic yoga wears. Now the yoga outfits are crafted out of cotton and other breathable fabrics. Apart from the fabric, a number of leading brands have collaborated with celebs in order to popularise athleisure among youth and push their sales. For instance, the collaboration between Gigi Hadid and Reebok resulted in yoga outfits becoming more young, peppy, and colourful. In fact, the sports shoes like the 'Masala Mindblower', which was a result of creative collaboration between Fila India and VegNonVeg has a lot of appeal among millennials. The shoes are fiery red and yellow-hued and Sonam Kapoor Ahuja flaunted them at the event. She teamed it with a dress. So, yes sports shoes are not just limited to sports and gym and yoga classes today. In other words, the yoga fashion industry is non-boring today. So, on International Yoga Day, tell us how often do you wear yoga outfits beyond the yoga mats?