Let other people play at other things, the king of games is still the game of kings.
Carved on a stone in mountainous Gilgit, these words have, for centuries, defined the game of polo. The former Olympic sport has its origins in Central Asia — Genghis Khan even played with the decapitated heads of his opponents — and was revived in the 19th Century when a young British subaltern learnt the game in Manipur and popularised it in the Army. Indian royals found that polo allowed for heroism and horsemanship, both of which they had in plenty, and soon the sunburnt plains of Rajputana echoed to the sounds of hoofbeats, the whack of mallet on ball, and a refined culture that grew around the game. When it travelled abroad via the Raj, polo became the royalty-patronised, champagne-drinking, divot-stamping, style-conscious sport that it is today.
At this time of year, North India stands at the cusp of autumn and winter, and while there are few things that define your social class in India than your relationship with horses, polo has increasingly drawn the curious onlooker to the sun-drenched grounds. Taut white breeches, sturdy gloves, riding hats that are a union of baseball cap and cloche, the ubiquitous polo shirt, quilted jackets, knee-length riding shoes, straw hats, kitten heels, chiffons, pearls, sunglasses and a unique watch — Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Reverso that was born in the polo fields of India in 1931 — symbolise polo fashion. Before the polo shirt transcended class and was mass-adopted, it had as its forerunner a fitted, wide-necked half-sleeved jersey often monogrammed with the symbol of the royal house or club the player represented.
Fashion designer Raghavendra Rathore, celebrated for the iconic Jodhpuri bandhgala, says, “Polo fashion can be divided into that which applies to the player, the fashion addict who does not play or attend a game, and someone who goes to the event, but doesn’t play or wear the fashion. The sport’s culture is very limiting, but the idea of polo lends flexibility in product design. It’s a great platform for women’s wear and designing events around it. We’ve managed to revive the idea of polo in fashion and that helps build a new story.”
Rathore refers to the fashion shows that follow British Polo Day in Jodhpur every year, and to his own show two years ago that had players model polo fashion. “We use a lot of symbolism in our collection. The style has always been influenced by the time rather than the region — in the pre-War years, American pilots stationed in Jodhpur lent their global sensibilities to polo wear design. The colours are now changing dramatically to more daring shades and individual silhouettes with surface ornamentation in the men’s line. Generally, the season is nippy with lots of sunlight, so I suggest saris or knee-length dresses with straw hats, a pair of sunglasses and Western attire if you are looking up the ponies. My journey has been to make the breeches acceptable to all, with tweaks for every season. It is the most prominent product to have come into the wardrobe over the last couple of years.”
Looking back at 1994, when he put model Mehr Bhasin on the runway in Jodhpur, “wearing the first breeches that I think anybody saw in India with a bandhgala jacket and riding shoes”, he says it’s taken a while for the breeches to make it to people’s closets. “But now that we have all the elements of polo in the collection, designers will experiment less with clothes and enhance the direction of polo connect to accessories such as bags, scarves, belts, shoes and pens. The idea is not to overdo it, because then it looks like it’s made for the player and not practical enough for the market. Polo is a luxury sport and brands are increasingly keen to be associated with it”.
Accentuating the fact that accessories are at the top of the line is Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Reverso watch that marks 85 years of presence on the polo field. “The Reverso, with an engraved case that swivels on itself and protects the dial from shocks during the game was made in response to English polo players’ desire for an unbreakable watch. Considered the watch of polo players, the timepiece is widely recognised as a symbol of elegance both for men and women,” says Marc de Panafieu, brand director, Middle-East.
Of the watches sported by international and Indian players and actors across Hollywood and Bollywood, Panafieu says, “Our museum in Switzerland has a 1946 Reverso engraved with the insignia of the Rajputana Rifles, the oldest rifle regiment in the Indian Army. The 1931 version had an Art Deco rectangular shape. In 2006, the square Reverso Squadra was launched. To mark the 85th anniversary, there are the Reverso Classic, Reverso Tribute and Reverso One.”
What designers have managed to do is create lines that celebrate a sport, but yet stand alone when it comes to fashion sensibility. A shirt with a starched, colonial gentleman’s air to it, or a pocket square from a nouveau polo lifestyle company might be celebrated but are no longer de rigueur. For, polo’s fashion forte lies in its ability to crossover from activity to lifestyle at the speed of a gallop.
