New Delhi, July 10 -- Did anyone else think of a Japanese samurai in a 2026 setting when they watched Naomi Osaka in all her glory? Well, I did. In her walk, in her tennis stance, in every demeanour, the Japanese-Haitian tennis player was nothing short of an elite warrior who dismantled centuries-old rigid traditions, forcing it instead to accommodate her. I shy away from using words such as "quietly" and "shifted" - both well-known AI (artificial intelligence) tropes - but I make an exception here because that's exactly what happened. Naomi quietly, in her now well-known quirky way, shifted our perceptions of tradition, deliciously weaving in her style, culture, and heritage. If there was shock, it didn't matter. If there was awe, it felt warranted.
Within a week, the 149-year-old Wimbledon game was improved by this marriage of worlds. While it held onto its preferred practice of all-whites, Naomi balanced the strictness of the Wimbledon attire policy with her floor-touching dramatic kimono, pairing a conventional 'obi' sash with a contemporary Nike bomber jacket, and three matches in her free-robe style jacket. The embroidered sakura (cherry blossoms) were magnificent but what was equally powerful was also the message of sustainability with her outfit made using upcycled vintage kimonos and shiromuku (bridal dress). Naomi is known for her fashion statements and love of couture but this was much bigger than just fashion. Naomi exemplified what all of us today grapple with - there is space for all to exist and tradition can be tempered with modernity and open thought.
Younger generations feel ill-equipped in a world that's constantly upended by wars, viruses, and technology. The older generation feels at sea with today's tech tools. Those of us who are in-between and have straddled both the non-tech and the high-tech eras, feel outmoded and surreal every day. Today's path-breaking innovation can be a passing fad within a year. The world is moving at breakneck speed, and the notion or fear of being left behind is the latest existential crisis. The reality is that moving forward is necessary and change is the only constant. Therefore, while we certainly have no control over the pace of things moving, there is comfort in knowing that some things will always still remain the same - in some way or the other. It's that childhood chocolate cake from your hometown confectioner or a reliable appliance from a legacy brand or a much-needed resolution from a government body. The updated versions exist along with the familiar.
It's a kind of acceptance and not resignation to new-age trends that makes the final product even more sublime. You can see it effectively used in architecture and modern design where age-old materials and cooling techniques have been successfully incorporated into urban structures. We see that in food and cooking techniques where there is a movement to preserve tastes and recipes while creating their molecular renditions. Medicine, recovery, and wellness have assimilated science with ancient wisdom. Textiles, music, art, and handicraft have all been finding their roots and serve it with a current twist. Therefore, for institutions to endure; even they must evolve. And even though they must keep pace with passing time, the trust must sustain. While I laud Naomi's aplomb, Wimbledon as the stage for her act also made space, and in a way became more inclusive. It showed that heritage can withstand in this fast-changing world, and perhaps the only way to outlive disruptions is through amalgamation; not a metamorphosis but a union.
Institutions have been built over decades, some even through centuries. They have tolerated regimes, despots, and strife, and still stand tall. Some institutions must prevail over the machinations of time as they offer crucial grounding in this age of uncertainty. Religion, banking, government, judiciary, medicine, and education have incorporated technology for survival and efficiency. They must also retain people's confidence and credence, and yield to make room for ideas and cultures. Courts, international peace bodies, humanitarian organisations, health and aid groups, central banks, human rights agencies, sport confederations, climate action coalitions - all these must stay relevant and unprejudiced, in order to continue carrying the faith that we repose in them. And to do so, they must remain open - open to imbibing technology, open to suggestions that emanate from the newer generations, open to changing just the right amount. Only then can these institutions prevent their imminent crumbling because the more things around us change, the more we will crave, and maybe even need, for some fixtures of the older world to remain.
Views expressed are personal
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.