Inside Uncool, The Brand That Refuses To Dress For Validation
Founders Neel Dewan and Safal Aboobacker on the performance of cool and building an anti-fashion brand worn by the It people of the country
Neel Dewan and Safal Aboobacker first met in 2018 at a boy's hostel in Kashmir. The two got along quite well, staying in touch across cities, till a move to Mumbai saw them become flatmates in 2023.
From here, the journey to founding their streetwear label, Uncool, was a natural progression. "Uncool began on an ordinary night at home," reminisces Safal. "We were flatmates, sitting around in pyjamas, having one of those late conversations about life, work, and the world in general. It didn’t start as a fashion idea at all."
"We kept coming back to how obsessed our generation has become with being seen as 'cool'," adds Neel, "the pressure to dress a certain way, go to the right places, and constantly perform a version of yourself. It felt emotionally tiring, and we noticed how many brands were reinforcing that pressure by selling 'cool' as something to aspire to.
"That’s when we wondered: what if we offered the opposite narrative? One that says it’s okay to be uncool, to be comfortable, real, and unbothered. Fashion felt like the most natural medium to express that idea, because clothes are something you live in every day."
This push against performance became the central tenet of their clothing brand. The first question to address when making a design, the duo decided, had to be its purpose. Does it feel comfortable, and more importantly, honest to who their customer is? Or is the design trying too hard to impress its onlooker?
In due course of exploring what it meant to be uncool, the duo learnt, rather unexpectedly, the key to honest designs that transcend performance and impression: restraint.
With the growing popularity of aesthetics like Desi Maximalism in the subcontinent, the assumption that Indian consumers need loud colours or bold graphics seemed natural. But Uncool saw the opposite: a growing appreciation for subtlety, comfort, and clothes that don’t demand attention. And so, the Uncool Test was born.
Neel explains, "a piece passes the Uncool test if it lets someone be themselves without explanation. That’s why many of the designs carry ideas around mental pressure, small joys, or simply allowing yourself to feel things without justifying them."
And how does that restraint translate into clothing? "Visually," says Safal, "the cues come from global streetwear, but are translated through restraint into cleaner silhouettes, muted colours, and less visual noise." These are clothes that don't ask you to look at them, but to feel the comfort that they have to offer once you put them on.
The global influence might reflect in the designs, but it's the construction of the clothes that make it unmistakably Indian. Pushing away from trends and seasonal influences, Uncool makes clothes that feel comfortable in the vast multitudes of climates and lifestyles in the country. "The brand is designed for people who move between cities, climates, and routines, which naturally leads to a focus on breathable, everyday pieces that work across weather," says Safal.
However, for a brand that positions itself as anti-hype, and by extension, anti-fashion, Uncool's clientele includes the who's who of Bollywood. From Anaita Shroff Adjania, to Karan Johar and Rashmika Madanna, Uncool has made its place amidst the It crowd of the Hindi film industry.
Isn't it contradictory? The duo doesn't think so. "There’s a growing shift towards being less performative, even among people in the public eye," says Safal. "Constantly having to look 'cool' can feel exhausting."
"Uncool resonates," adds Neel, "because it doesn’t ask people to play a role. It offers ease, honesty, and comfort, a philosophy that makes sense whether someone is in front of a camera or behind a screen."
This philosophy lent itself to the brand's first pop-up last November. "Instead of turning it into a party or club event, we chose to keep it simple, a coffee meet-up, conversations, and no pressure," he says. "Friends were invited to show up wearing Uncool and spend time together in a way that felt easy and unforced.
"It reflected how we see Uncool at its core: relaxed, comfortable, and real."