Traditional wear, draped on world leaders, makes for summit fashion

Summit fashion may not have much by way of creativity to please the mavens of New York, Paris or Milan, but it certainly manages to get a power-packed runway line-up and audience to match. Consider the Apec 2014 summit in Beijing with the leaders of US, Russia, China, Japan and more in attendance.

The near-zero November temperatures outside evidently did not stand in the way of presidents and prime ministers walking out in mandarin-collared long Chinese silk shirts in shades of teal and aubergine that they may never pick, if left to themselves. The Beijing line, in fact, echoes the tones of the Indonesian ikat shirts many of the 'models' got from the Bali meet just last year. Indeed, thanks to Apec summits, world leaders' wardrobes have become commendably diverse, including, among other things, Korean hanboks, Mexican guayabera and Filipino barong shirts.

Asean also offers a rich seam of ethnic fashion, and has the distinction of getting even former PM Manmohan Singh to doff his sober bandhgala jackets for several colourful tribal and ikat shirts. Prime Minister Narendra Modi — now in Myanmar for the Asean summit — has already displayed a keen eye for sartorial diplomacy, and even got the Chinese president to wear a Nehru jacket in India. He will surely appreciate more than just the symbolism of summit fashion.