India cut sorry figure at ceremony

A slipshod India cut a sorry figure in the Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremony with the female members of the contingent making it a veritable go-as-you-like with their contrasting outfits that made them look completely misfit for the occasion.With Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore carrying the tri-colour, the contingent looked good from far, as the male members decked out in off-white sherwanis. But as they came closer, things looked hardly impressive.The tennis duo of Sania Mirza and Sunitha Rao, attired in black trousers and practice jackets, looked completely out of sorts and the contrast was even more jarring to the eyes as going side by side was Delhi paddler Neha Aggarwal who chose a greenish saree for the occasion.Though the generous crowd at the Bird's Nest stadium roared to greet the Indians, it was a shoddy fashion statement by the Indians.The moment they entered the Congress President Sonia Gandhi was on her feet and waved at them and the athletes also reciprocated.

I think the Indian contingent looked very relaxed and the men looked very graceful in their attire. While the women were not very visible on TV, Sunitha Rao could well have been the best dressed for how delightful she looked when she laughed with her head tossed back. Asking fashion designers to comment on the whole effect of the team was simply to get a tailor's view and typically they saw only skin deep.