Suits, swagger and style: Male fashion bloggers reveal secrets of their skills

Dispel your notions if you thought the world of male fashion bloggers was a rarity. These men make for equally savvy clotheshorses and fashion influencers for India's male populace as do their female counterparts. Running a successful fashion blog is all about having a unique voice, with gorgeous visuals, kickass styling and oodles of swag in posts and captions. Except Allen Claudius, Riaan George, Usaamah Siddique and Tejeshwar Sandhoo pursue fashion blogging as a part-time activity. This is because, they say, menswear brands in India don't yet take blogger associations seriously and are rather laidback about payments. Given the blogs' increasing follower base, this might soon change.

Riaan George, Mumbai
Hits: 50,000 views per month

If you're curious about what is the world's most luxurious cognac, which is Mumbai's most luxurious wine library, what is Paris' plushest hotel and trends like how more Indian men are buying diamonds for themselves, this blog gives you all such experiential dope. Having studied luxury in Paris, and with a 15-year career in print journalism, 35-year-old Riaan George, who now freelances for 15 publications, also runs one of the oldest ultra-luxury blog for men in India. “As a print journalist, I get all the press releases on the latest watches, clothes, and accessories. Also, I offer double value because I give brands a print article plus digital viewership on my blog, which at times is higher than the magazine I’m contributing for,” says George, whose blogging staff has two editorial, one admin, and couple of freelance photographers and videographers.

Blogging, George says, is about upping the engagement levels by interacting with people. “You can’t be this ice queen and not respond to comments. If I can’t, then my team ensures the interactions are carried on.”

George's style is understated and classic with a focus on quality, cut and accessorising with just an expensive watch or bracelet or a ring for that pop of colour. "You won't find the baseball cap, skaterboy look on my blog." He also adds that Indian men are thankfully spending money to groom well. "They are and not apologetic about obsessing over a pair of shoes or doing up their hair with an expensive product.”

George also proudly wears the 'Make in India' fashion on his sleeve. He loves shirts by the Bombay Shirt Company, Bengaluru's Tailorman blazers, outfits by Chennai tailor Osman Abdul Razak, suits by SS Homme, shoes by Monk Ford and grooming products from Kama, Forest Essentials and Himalaya. His favourite international brands are Celio, United Colors of Benetton, Selected Homme and Uniqlo. Amidst the debonair workings, you'd find Instagram videos of George working out "..to set an example that work life balance is important."

Allen Claudius, Bengaluru
Hits: 10,000 per month

When Allen Claudius was writing for a UK portal called Menswear Style in 2014, his article on 'Dressing your age in your 30s' ranked among the Top 5 of the Year; when BBC wanted to interview him, they realised that he was from India and dropped the idea. That miffed the 34-year-old enough to start a fashion blog. Claudius wants to be known as 'the father of street wear and sneaker culture in India'. He's definitely heading in that direction. Everything about this Bengaluru blogger screams badass: from his perpetual 'don't mess with me' face, stocky built, and multiple tattoos to his latest posts glorifying the 'bum bag' (multi-pocket waist bag), baby pink tees and a never-ending bevy of sneakers that'd put television's sneaker hog, Jerry Seinfeld to shame. "I want people to realise that they need not go to a club in a shiny, buttoned-down shirt tucked-in in denims paired with formal shoes," says Claudius, who just quit his job with a fashion discovery app, to concentrate on his blog, YouTube channel and related interests. It's his off-the-conventional posts, such as 'bloggers not living the life they project on social media' or 'an interview with a Truefitt & Hill barber' that get more shares than likes. 

And he'll keep the sneakers coming, of which he once owned 80 pairs and even now shops not less than three pairs a month, Nike, the 'Jordan' line, being his favourite. "And I love Supreme's tees for the fit and the fact that it's not easily accessible."

Tejeshwar Sandhoo, Delhi
Hits: 15,000 unique visitors a month

Donning a sleek kurta and jacket over a floral printed salwar on his 5'9" frame, Tejeshwar Sandhoo is one of the few bloggers to promotes Indian wear. The 26-year-old's posts have him carrying printed backpacks with western formals, wedging a BB cream into the male grooming kit, doling recipes for oats-and-fruits breakfast and dunking himself in a tub of salt as the latest spa experience. Everything on this three-year-old quirky blog is budget-friendly because "affordable fashion will get more viewership than a Tom Ford 80 per cent of the time".

The trained pilot, who's managed digital content for DLF Emporio and Ritu Kumar, now does the same for a company that handles fashion brands. He also has a YouTube channel and regular tie-ups with Marks & Spencers and GQ.

Indian men, Sandhoo says, take on what they've seen their parents shop for them. "My post on an unusual banana print tee didn't get as much traction as an orange Manyavar kurta, which got 1000 hits on day one," he rues.

Usaamah Siddique, Mumbai
Hits: About 1,300 hits per day

The 24-year-old is literally cut out for fashion. He owns a fashion label, Bandra-based studio, and a blog for highend menswear by the same name, The Dapper Label. This lad, with a lanky frame and stubble sideburns, rocks a crisp Celio suit or a Tommy Hilfiger tee and pants with equal panache. Siddique perfectly synchronizes his outfits in blues, browns and whites and poses with diverse architecture, sidewalks, messy hotel beds, breakfast trays floating on water and melting ice cream cones, on his recent travels to London, Abu Dhabi and Kashmir.

It was while styling for Dharma films that the 24-year-old referred to international blogs for menswear and later delved into creating his own, posting whatever he shopped for. Siddique's style is minimal and formal. "I'm not a loud, outgoing person. I wear well-fitted clothes. No oversized tees or baggy pants," says Siddique, who aims to get eyeballs from those in the 23-40 age bracket. He's not gung-ho about accessories, and mostly goes for watches, eyewear and perfumes.

Indian men, he says, no longer pick up ill-fitted, of-the-rack clothes. Instead, they ask him for ploys to style the same outfit differently because they fear repeating. They also prefer him wearing the look to product shots, reveals Siddique who wants to go the travel fashion blogger way.