KATSEYE singer Lara Raj has responded to the online debate around her Paris Fashion Week look, explaining that the red kumkum she wore with her outfit is a "sacred blessing" she has received since childhood, not a fashion gimmick.
The look that divided the internet
On October 2, Lara made her Paris Fashion Week debut at the Loewe show, alongside KATSEYE bandmate Megan Skiendiel. She wore a canary-yellow dress paired with Indian jewellery, including a jewelled bindi, a gold maang tikka, jhumkas, a nose pin and stacks of payals.
It was the prominent red kumkum along her hair parting that became the centre of the conversation. Several social media users described the mark as sindoor and questioned wearing it outside its traditional marital context in Hindu communities, while others praised her for bringing Indian elements to an international fashion stage.
'A sacred blessing'
Lara took to Instagram to explain the personal meaning behind her choice. "I loved my dress so much, and wearing it with Indian jewellery and kumkum made me feel so confident and beautiful," she wrote. "Kumkum has been part of my life since childhood, a sacred blessing I've grown up receiving from my family during puja and aarti."
She described kumkum as a symbol of "intuition, strength and the divine feminine energy" with which she feels connected, adding that she had styled the look in her own way while paying homage to her "forever style icon, the legendary Rekha" and to her mother.
The debate also touched on wider questions about wearing culturally significant symbols in fashion contexts, with reactions playing out largely across social media rather than reaching any single consensus.
Sources: Times Now: KATSEYE Lara Raj explains kumkum look, calls it 'sacred blessing' amid ongoing 'sindoor' controversy, The Times of India: KATSEYE's Lara Raj calls her kumkum look a tribute to Rekha and her mother
The look that divided the internet
On October 2, Lara made her Paris Fashion Week debut at the Loewe show, alongside KATSEYE bandmate Megan Skiendiel. She wore a canary-yellow dress paired with Indian jewellery, including a jewelled bindi, a gold maang tikka, jhumkas, a nose pin and stacks of payals.
It was the prominent red kumkum along her hair parting that became the centre of the conversation. Several social media users described the mark as sindoor and questioned wearing it outside its traditional marital context in Hindu communities, while others praised her for bringing Indian elements to an international fashion stage.
'A sacred blessing'
Lara took to Instagram to explain the personal meaning behind her choice. "I loved my dress so much, and wearing it with Indian jewellery and kumkum made me feel so confident and beautiful," she wrote. "Kumkum has been part of my life since childhood, a sacred blessing I've grown up receiving from my family during puja and aarti."
She described kumkum as a symbol of "intuition, strength and the divine feminine energy" with which she feels connected, adding that she had styled the look in her own way while paying homage to her "forever style icon, the legendary Rekha" and to her mother.
The debate also touched on wider questions about wearing culturally significant symbols in fashion contexts, with reactions playing out largely across social media rather than reaching any single consensus.
Sources: Times Now: KATSEYE Lara Raj explains kumkum look, calls it 'sacred blessing' amid ongoing 'sindoor' controversy, The Times of India: KATSEYE's Lara Raj calls her kumkum look a tribute to Rekha and her mother