Hamza Ali Abbasi gives us shalwar kameez #goals

It’s not every day that Hamza Ali Abbasi  talks about his personal style. But he has one. And there’s no reason why we shouldn’t talk about it.

We’d have to agree that fashion isn’t Abbasi’s brand but at the same time we have to say that he has a distinct sense of style and combined with his active nationalism he has become a great ambassador for the shalwar kameez. Like Imran Khan, Hamza Ali Abbasi has been seen in a shalwar kameez at almost every occasion, whether at the Lux Style Awards – for which he also won Best Dressed in 2016 – or even in the USA when (recently) touring to raise funds for the Namal Education Foundation. We’re sure he has donned the Air Force uniform for Parwaaz Hai Junoon but then he’ll be seen in a shallu and possible laacha in Maula Jutt as well.

We also noticed that other than turning to his trusted Master in Islamabad, Hamza also shops a lot at the Amir Adnan store in the Capital city.

“Well, I am into simple black or white shalwar kameez and he has a lot of them,” he gave a simple reason. “And his ready to wear stuff fits me really well,” he added. “It will also last me years, (which is great) since I don’t go shopping for clothes often.”

“And of course, he (Amir Adnan) is a really nice, polite and a genuine guy.”

Spotted: Hamza is a regular at Amir Adnan.

Is there something to be said for dressing culturally and promoting our own sartorial identity, I asked him.

“Yes, I would love to see our artists promote our own culture,” Hamza replied, “We are not just entertainers but representatives of Pakistan. I wear a lot of western stuff like tee shirts and jeans in my private life but I make sure I wear desi Pakistani outfits in public appearances.”

It may be difficult for everyone to take that stance and honestly, not every man will look as good in a shalwar kameez as an Imran Khan or Hamza Ali Abbasi do (plus it isn’t the most practical outfit) however, there is something to be said for waving your country’s flag and nothing says you belong to a place as well as it’s national dress.

• Watch this space for men who give us shalwar kameez style goals.