“Please don’t put anything that would make me sound arrogant”, says Jay Ajay Jajal as we share a laugh. This 26-year-old is a lot of things – artist, fashion designer, rapper, painter and an overall creative; but definitely not arrogant. However, don’t mistake his humility for tameness, for he is unconditionally fierce and rebellious in his mediums of expression. Especially when it comes to his streetwear avatar- JAYWALKING.
An individualistic fashion brand barely two months old, Jaywalking is anything but conventional. From the silhouettes to the fabric choices and colour designs, each apparel showcased screams eccentricity. But the brand’s much more than just clothes, “Jaywalking is dangerous. It is for the people who aren’t scared to cross the line and prove a point. It is for the people who believe in art and culture. I started Jaywalking, the brand, in 2019 February but seems like I have been planning this all my life.”
Having come from a family of designers of Indian ethnic wear, Jay was as inspired to make clothes as he was to break the rules while doing so. Always tearing apart bags, cutting up t-shirts, experimenting with embroidery, Jay lays crucial emphasis on the visuals of things. Often painting, Jay is heavy on the aesthetics of his design. From vintage looks of contrasting earthy base colours with the likes of orange and green, to using neoprene, denim, reflective fabrics and velvet corduroy; Jay’s clothes definitely make a statement, even if he isn’t too keen on making them, “I like visually appealing stuff, but don’t want to force meaning behind my art. If it looks nice, why force it?”
Initially however, Jaywalking was just Jay making clothes for himself. Often disgruntled by what mainstream fast fashion labels had to offer, Jay made his own collection oversized to comfort his plus sized body type. The product shots on his Instagram profile contain a uniform format of faceless models, thereby pulling the focus more on the clothes than the wearer. Stylistically baggy and uniquely genderless, the Jaywalking collection appeals all, but especially the confident, “I want people to feel completely different and new when they wear my clothes. But they need to be confident to pull it off, otherwise it’ll show.”
Jay’s authenticity shows when he speaks of the perils of expensive streetwear culture in a country like India. He insists that people should stop running behind the hottest trends or the limited edition drops, he wants the consumer to see fashion as a mean of self-expression and look comfortably good every day. As for the designer community, he hopes that they won’t be too desperate for ‘success’ too soon, “Artists need to start knowing their value.”
What’s next for Jay? He’s throwing a pop-up this Saturday on the 20th of April at Flea Bazaar, Lower Parel, where influencers and creatives will bond over fashion, art and everything in between. Later in May, he will be dropping a t-shirt collection along with working on making music, jewellery, sneakers and more. And as for Jaywalking, the man himself says it the best – “I wanna be the biggest brand. Full stop.”
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