‘Pinned Shawl, Tucked-In Shirts': Indian Company's Dress Code Screams Back To School

News18

6 hours ago

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The post also included the screengrab of the offer letter rolled out by the company for the position of a developer with a monthly salary of Rs 12,000.
A company has found itself in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons after enforcing a dress code that feels straight out of a school rulebook. According to a now-viral social media post, the organisation asked its employees to follow a rigid attire policy, including 'chudidhar suits with pinned shawls", 'tucked-in shirts", and 'neatly tied hair with ribbons." The detailed guidelines have drawn criticism online.
Titled 'What even is this," the post was shared on Reddit with the caption, 'My friend got an offer letter, and we were going through it, and just wow. What does tucking in shirts or pinning a shawl even have to do with the work people do???"
The post also included a screengrab of the offer letter rolled out by the company for the position of a developer with a monthly salary of Rs 12,000. The offer letter came with a section titled 'Dress Code and Grooming" that highlighted strict attire rules for men and women in the company.
For men, formal wear and tucked-in shirts are mandated, with a ban on T-shirts. Jeans are permitted, but on a condition. They should be paired with a tucked-in shirt. 'Beard must be well-trimmed and groomed, 'it read.
The company has stricter rules when it comes to women. They are only allowed to wear kurtas and churidars with shawls, which should be 'properly pinned."
'Strictly required to wear chudidar with properly pinned shawl. Loose/open hair is not allowed. Hair should be tied with a ribbon and maintained neatly. Attire must always be neat, modest, and appropriate," the policy for women read.
As the post gained traction, social media users began comparing the rules to a strict dress code in schools. One user joked, 'Welcome back to school, guys. Also, they forgot to mention no running in the corridor and pin-drop silence."
Another wrote, 'Why the h*ll don't they just ask women to wear formals if it's about 'professional' clothing? This isn't about professionalism, this is straight up misogyny."
'Which school is this? Are they taking mid-year admissions?" quipped another, stunned by the 'decorum' the company maintains.
Earlier this year, an employee at a Pune-based company was fined Rs 100 for not wearing traditional attire during a Gudi Padwa celebration organised at the office. The incident came to light after the employee shared her experience on Reddit. She explained that, having just moved to a new city, she didn't own any traditional clothes and couldn't afford to buy any due to month-end financial constraints. Instead, she wore a white formal shirt and jeans. Despite her explanation, the HR department fined her for violating the dress code. The post went viral.