A TikTok video from 30-year-old fashion designer Anoushka Mehta went viral after she laid out a surprisingly pragmatic case for why she will not step out of the house without a pair of heels on, gathering more than 152,000 views and over 23,000 likes. Her reasoning is not rooted in vanity or a strict aesthetic code but in what she frames as a clear-eyed reckoning with time and physical ability. As she sees it, she is young and healthy right now, which means she can wear heels comfortably, and that window of opportunity will not stay open forever. One day, she reasons, age or a knee surgery might force her into flat shoes permanently, so she intends to wear heels for as long as her body will cooperate.
Mehta, who is based in the United Kingdom, acknowledges that heels are not always logistically possible, citing the gym and sporting events as the two real exceptions in her life. Outside of those contexts, however, she commits to them with impressive consistency. Even on walks, when conditions allow, she reaches for at least a low heel. “I’ll try to squeeze in at least a small heel whenever possible,” she said. The beach is not even exempt from her rule: she owns a pair of wedge flip-flops specifically for that purpose, so that she does not have to compromise even on sand. For Mehta, no venue is categorically off-limits for heels.
She was candid about the social stakes as well, noting that when heels are not an option at a given event, her preference is genuinely to skip the event rather than show up in flat shoes. She was careful to acknowledge upfront in the video that she did not want to sound shallow, but she made the position clear anyway. “For me no place is forbidden for heels, not even the beach,” she said. The combination of the philosophy and the beach wedges detail landed as a particularly committed commitment, and the comment section responded with a mix of admiration and affectionate disbelief.
Her video also touched on something larger than her own wardrobe habits, tapping into a generational shift in how women approach footwear that she finds genuinely striking. “I’m tired of everyone wearing casual shoes to places where women used to wear heels,” she said. “I notice that younger generations are choosing flat shoes and sneakers for going out to clubs, restaurants, and bars.” This observation sits at the center of a broader cultural conversation about dress norms, comfort, and whether the near-universal shift toward casual footwear represents a liberation from old expectations or the loss of something that women used to genuinely enjoy. Mehta’s position is firmly in the latter camp. “What happened to heels and the art of wearing them? For me, wearing heels is one of the best parts of femininity,” she said.
YouGov research from 2024 offers some context for the generational divide Mehta is describing. The data found that both millennials and Gen Z prioritize price, quality, and fit when making fashion purchases, but their attitudes diverge meaningfully when it comes to trends and formality. Millennials are notably less trend-driven than their younger counterparts and are more likely to describe themselves as buyers who prefer timeless, classic pieces rather than whatever is currently fashionable. That orientation toward durability and restraint over novelty aligns with Mehta’s philosophy, even as her specific choice to commit to heels every day represents a different kind of formalism than the casual, comfort-first direction that much of her generation has taken.
The response to her video illustrated just how divided people are on this topic. Those who share her love of heels were enthusiastic in the comments, with one person writing “Being a heels girl in a world of sneakers and Crocs is, without a doubt, the peak of femininity,” and another noting she had worn heels to a massage appointment because, as she put it, there are no rules. Those on the opposite end of the spectrum were just as firm in their own convictions. “Girl, how do your feet handle it! Mine are done after three hours!” wrote one commenter, while another declared flatly that if heels were required, they simply would not be attending.
The modern high heel as we know it actually has a somewhat unexpected origin: the style was first adopted in 17th-century Europe by men, particularly Persian cavalry soldiers and later European aristocrats and royals, for whom the elevated heel served both a practical function on horseback and a symbol of status. Women did not widely adopt heels until later in the same century, when the association with masculine power and wealth made them an appealing sartorial statement. The global high heel market is currently valued at several billion dollars and continues to grow, which suggests that for all the cultural momentum behind sneakers and flat shoes, the heel’s dedicated following remains substantial and loyal.
Are you a heels-always person or firmly in the flat shoes camp, and do you think the shift toward casual footwear is a positive change? Share your thoughts in the comments.
