In a special shoot with HT City Showstoppers, Genelia Deshmukh recalls her Christmas memories and the evolution of her festive fashion sense
For Genelia Deshmukh, Christmas is one of the most cherished times of the year. “It’s always about being Santa to a family member, a friend or to someone else. Prepping for the day, with the family getting together, eating and praying together, made a load of memories for me while growing up,” the actor shares.
Recalling her cherished memories of the festival, the actor shares that her mother would make her and her brother write letters to Santa every year about what they weren’t good at during the year and would aim to improve. “We would write a letter and post it in the post box to Santa’s address mum would give us. It was a ritual till I realized that she was Santa. It was so innocent and sweet, waiting to see whether Santa got your letter and making that whole resolution to yourself to get better,” she reveals.
Christmas is not just about celebration for Genelia Deshmukh, but also about putting the best foot forward in terms of fashion. She says, “Christmas is about fashion as you’d get your pretty dresses out in the red, whites and greens that generally are the Christmas colors. But with time, it’s changed for me to something more formal. The weather is cooler than the rest of the year, so a little bit of layering happens along with high heels, pretty colors and even stockings once in a while. Christmas style is more formal, more elegant and sometimes vintage.”
Addressing her own fashion sense, Genelia insists that she isn’t someone who thinks that “fashion is be-all and end-all of everything”. “But being presentable, different and individual is important to me. I don’t feel that the trends are determined anymore, it’s what you bring to the table with your personality that’s the determining factor. Fashion has evolved to a lot of comfort, with quirkiness. I personally prefer comfort, but I also like being trendy when I feel like it. Having your own quirk and individual personality matters more than just fitting with the ‘in’ thing,” she says, adding that she depends on her husband, actor-filmmaker Riteish Deshmukh for his fashion advise too: “It contributes to a large part of what I eventually will walk out with from home, because I trust his aesthetics.”
Giving her two cents on the current fashion scene, Genelia states, “The whole era of wearing just what’s in or the highest luxury brands has kind of taken a backfoot. Today people are doing some great work in India. Riteish and I find it tough to shop abroad as we love shopping here as we love the whole fashion game that’s coming and evolving every day at home.”
