Brat green ties back to Charli XCX’s South Asian heritage
The singer-songwriter popularized the color this summer, but it has been part of Indian cultures for ages
The specific shade of green was intended to provoke people, but it's a familiar color for many Indians.
Photo illustration by Ryan Quan
Words by Kahini Calcuttawalla
The end of brat summer wasn’t marked by the return of the PSL, or even by this Instagram post by NATO. Instead, it was the hard pivot towards being very demure and very mindful. A trend started by TikToker Jools Lebron in mid-August, who suggests a more natural approach to makeup. As LeBron tells CBS, “I don't show up to the first day [of work] with a green cut crease.”
LeBron’s trend follows a season dominated by loud green and louder declarations of being anything but mindful or demure. When popstar Charli XCX dropped her album, Brat, over the summer, she chose a now-ubiquitous shade of green for the cover. Not quite neon and too grungy to be called lime, the singer deliberately courted a strong reaction. “I wanted to go with an offensive, off-trend shade of green...I want to provoke people," she tells Vogue Singapore. Charli XCX’s mission to sow outrage with brat green has been just as successful as the album.
But when I first saw the adjectives that emerged around brat green, I was confused. What was supposed to be offensive about a color that, to most Indians, is quite traditional? To me, brat green is a sister of parrot green—a yellow-based shade that makes a frequent appearance in South Asian cultural attire.
What was supposed to be offensive about a color that, to most Indians, is quite traditional?
On the other hand, the fashion industry outside India has deemed the shade ugly, sickly, and toxic—and has slathered it all over fall and winter runway collections. Prada is featuring its signature “Miuccia sludge,” while Burberry, Loewe, and Fendi have embraced yellowy greens. Brat green has joined the club of subversive anti-fashion trends like punk and anti-fit.
This wholesale characterization of brat green as fundamentally unfashionable isn’t the whole truth. In fact, Charli XCX’s grandmother has likely rocked brat green long before the popstar ever did. The singer is Gujarati Indian on her mother’s side, and this particular bright, loud green has long been a staple of South Asian sari closets. The origin story of brat green is as Indian as Kamala Harris.
Kavea R. Chavali, co-founder of Kalaneca House of Handloom, had the same reaction as I did when she first saw the brat green trend. “I thought it was referring to a very bright parrot green,” she says. “Somehow, I can’t associate it with being brash and ugly.” She and her twin sister Ramya created Kalaneca to design traditionally handwoven and dyed saris—and parrot green remains a popular pick.
Growing up in Mumbai, my apartment building had a flourishing mango tree outside that eventually rose past our fourth-floor balcony. Whenever the height of mango season came around, the tree would be laden with fat, green mangoes—along with fat, green parrots who were perfectly camouflaged among the fruit. The brilliance of the mangoes and parrots always stood out against the darker green of the leaves.
Whereas Western fashions often use color sparingly, favoring the pared-back aesthetic of quiet luxury, South Asians tend to go in for maximalism.
To the South Asian eye, these bright colors are a part of our landscape. Whereas Western fashions often use color sparingly, favoring the pared-back aesthetic of quiet luxury, South Asians tend to go in for maximalism. There isn’t a cultural concept of overshadowing a bride on her wedding day, or of neutral-forward capsule wardrobes. And it helps that vivid colors like parrot green bring out the glow in our brown skin tones.
But as colorful as South Asians’ wardrobes may be, the right combinations are also key. In her memoir, A Princess Remembers, Indian socialite and politician Maharani Gayatri Devi includes a piece of advice from her royal grandmother: “Never to wear emeralds with a green sari, as I had done, because they look much better with pink.” Even a global style icon, known for popularizing breezy French chiffon saris, benefitted from a sartorial tip rooted in tradition. The art of contrast and telling a story through color is essential to South Asian fashion.
The trend of flat, solid brat green diverges from how parrot green is usually worn. Charli XCX’s use of stark black lettering against the green background makes the color look grimier. As for the fashion designers who have picked up on brat green, most of them have paired it with neutral tones like black and white, as well as earthy beige shades that bring out the mossy notes of the color. Prada’s styling with a baby pink cardigan was described as “jarring” by Grazia—although Gayatri Devi might like a word here.
For saris, parrot green is most commonly paired with magenta for a striking contrast, or gold, to elevate its rich yellow undertones. As Chavali points out, it’s not an everyday color. “Customers order it for baby showers and housewarming ceremonies. In our rituals, it’s a color filled with freedom, newness, and playfulness.” In Maharashtra—a neighboring state to Charli XCX’s ancestral home state of Gujarat—parrot green Paithani silk is a favorite for brides. It symbolizes a rebirth, and the adoption of a new avatar.
One reason parrot green is considered so auspicious in certain Indian communities is the belief that black is associated with negativity. “We use yellow and white dyes, and slowly add blue for a bright green. Unlike henna green or bottle green, there’s no black required,” says Chavali.
However, even within India, customs and opinions aren’t monolithic. As Sanjay Garg, founder of handcrafted clothing brand Raw Mango, says, “Sophistication is simply an interpretation. I remember my teacher at the National Institute of Fashion Technology saying that parrot green is such an unsophisticated color.” Hailing from Rajasthan, where vibrant colors are entrenched in everyday culture, Garg doesn’t see it that way. He works with artisans to preserve generational techniques that are in danger of dying out, and that need to be reframed for a modern consumer.
Turns out, even the artificial-looking brat green can be made with natural dyes, and has been created this way for years. Brands like Raw Mango, Kalaneka, and Ekaya are updating traditional weaving practices with modern designs, like this neon-green silk sari. Historically, specific color stories, fabrics, and patterns have been prescribed for events and customs. Now, a new and globalized generation wants to fuse tradition with their personal aesthetic.
In a way, it’s no different from Charli XCX’s novel interpretation of a timeless color. “Brat” is just another descriptor that falls under the umbrella of parrot green, an update on its reputation as bold, joyful, and transformative. Make no mistake, it can be demure and mindful, too. For South Asians, brat continues to be a green for all seasons.
Published on September 18, 2024
Words by Kahini Calcuttawalla
Kahini Calcuttawalla (she/her) is an Indian-Canadian feature journalist and editor. A culture and lifestyle specialist, she covers all things fashion, beauty, art, travel, and food. Currently, she's based in Mumbai. Find her on Instagram @kahinii.
Art by Ryan Quan
Ryan Quan is the Social Media Editor for JoySauce. This queer, half-Chinese, half-Filipino writer and graphic designer loves everything related to music, creative nonfiction, and art. Based in Brooklyn, he spends most of his time dancing to hyperpop and accidentally falling asleep on the subway. Follow him on Instagram at @ryanquans.