Usually clad in casual dress, Nagendra Kumal, the newly elected president of the Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (Nefin), appeared in an entirely different outfit three months ago. He has not dropped his new outfit ever since even for a single day. Especially after winning the election held in Chitwan a week ago to choose Nefin’s new leadership, he seems to have been more careful about his new look.

The new sartorial outfit of Nefin’s youngest ever president is formal: a combination of cotton pants, leather shoes, coat and Nepali topi. The 37-year-old says he did not own even a single pair of leather shoes and cotton pants before considering contesting the elections. “I wore only jeans and sports shoes until then,” says he. “I had to abandon all that informal wear to look more mature – mature enough to lead Nefin.”