I remember catching the pilot episode of The Mindy Project by accident when it first aired. It played right after New Girl, with which my high school-aged self was obsessed. I vividly recall watching a drunk Mindy drive a stolen bike into a swimming pool, all while wearing the most fabulous teal sequin minidress. I was hooked immediately. Mindy was not only an absolute gem to watch onscreen with her clever quips and all-around ridiculousness. But, it was probably the first time I’d seen a show focused around a woman of color who wasn’t the traditional sample size.
I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to include Mindy Lahiri in this segment. Mindy Lahiri has been a style icon, and so much more to me, from the very beginning.
I first saw Mindy Lahiri at a time that felt like I was constantly at war with my body and self-image. There wasn’t a body positivity movement flooding my Instagram feed to tell me my stretch marks, stomach rolls, and Latinx complexion were okay. As someone who wanted to hide their body, I was floored to see a woman who— while still much smaller than I, but again, not the traditional sample size we see so much of on television— dressed in such a way that called attention. Bright colors. Bold, mixed patterns. Something neon or glittery usually featured. Loud. Feminine. And undeniably fun. And I wasn’t the only one. Plenty of others took to the internet to express their opinions, too. Almost all of them noted her “bravery” for dressing in such a way.
But as I returned to the television week after week, episode after episode, I wasn’t sitting there thinking, “Wow, she’s so brave for wearing that!”
All I could think about was how gorgeous and perfectly put together she looked, with every outfit even more unapologetically Mindy than the last.
I’d always had an interest in fashion. But watching Mindy’s outfits tell their very own story onscreen reminded me that I, too, could wear whatever the hell I wanted. Mindy inspired me in so many ways. Experimenting with my own personal style was just one of them.
Of course, Mindy looked so damn good all the time because a lot of her wardrobe was custom-made and tailored by the show’s costume designer, Salvador Perez. Yes, she did rock her fair share of designer pieces. (You know, just casually strolling into the office in Oscar de la Renta. Can you say #goals?!) But, we owe it to him for bringing Mindy’s incredible wardrobe to life. Perez’s costumes for the show even got their own exhibit at the Paley Center in Los Angeles to celebrate the final season last year.
There’s a lot to love about this zany, brilliant woman and The Mindy Project as a whole. Her wardrobe is definitely one of them. I could argue the show is as much a love letter to fashion in its purest form as it is a binge-able romcom. Either way, Mindy has held her title as a style icon for quite some time now. And one that I miss dearly every day.
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