Dizelaši

1990s Serbian subculture

Dizelaši (Cyrillic: дизелаши; singular dizelaš, Cyrillic: дизелаш) was an urban street youth sub-culture popular in the 1990s in Serbia. It has been described as a mainstream fashion and social subculture,[1] that of a working class, similar to the British chav, French racaille [fr] and Russian gopnik.[2] The French movie La Haine (1995) is often mentioned in relation to these subcultures.[3] It was characterized by turbo-folk,[1] hip-hop and dance music (such as Đogani),[1] mass-appeal designer clothes (such as Diesel), embroidered sweatshirts[1] and sportswear[2] (such as Nike Air Max[4] and Reebok Pump[2] shoes and Kappa[2] sweatsuits) and large link chains.[1] Track jackets were tucked into the bottom pants which in turn were tucked into socks, as to conceal goods; it is said that legendary gangster Knele (1971–1992) popularised it, having used it as a tactic ensuring his gun would slide into his socks rather on the pavement when running from the police.[2]

It emerged in Belgrade in the late 1980s and became popular by 1992,[2] in a period of embargo on FR Yugoslavia following the outbreak of the Yugoslav Wars. The youths were stereotyped as gangsters (also called mangupi), involved in illegal activities[1] such as fuel smuggling. The Russian counterpart is the Gopnik sub-culture, with which it is grouped together into "Post-Soviet fashion" that has become popular in recent years.[5][6] In contrast to the dizelaši, the opposing sub-culture was called padavičari, including hippies, rockers, headbangers, metalheads and ravers. A typical dizelaš was seen as:

A youngster, short-cut [hair], in a track suit, with a gold chain around his neck, a mobile phone (possibly a good car), often tied to criminal activities.[7]

The resurge of the fashion has been dubbed Neodizelaši.[8] The 1995 documentary about Belgrade gangsters, Crime that Changed Serbia, is an icon of the culture.

Modern-day subculture closely related to old dizelaši is called gaseri (Serbo-Croatian) / gaserji (Slovene).[9][10]

In movies

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (February 2018)
  • Dva sata kvalitetnog TV programa, 1994 film
  • Crime that Changed Serbia, 1995 documentary about Belgrade criminals
  • The Wounds, 1998 film about a violent teen duo in Belgrade
  • Skinning, 2010 film
  • Welcome to Dizeldorf, meaning Welcome to Düsseldorf, Mashan Lekitch - Mašan Lekić 1994 documentary about Belgrade nineties culture

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f NOIZZ 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Vice 2016.
  3. ^ Vice 2016, Highsnobiety 2017
  4. ^ Vice 2016, NOIZZ 2017, "On To It Subcultures That Rep Nike Air Max". Oyster.
  5. ^ Highsnobiety 2017.
  6. ^ "KAD TE INSPIRIŠU RUSKI "DIZELAŠI" Želeli su da ih ismeju, ali stvorili nešto MNOGO VEĆE (VIDEO)". Blic.
  7. ^ Софија Милорадовић (2012). Музички жаргон младих и молодежный музыкальный сленг : компаративни поглед. Etnografski institut SANU. pp. 80–. ISBN 978-86-7587-066-1. младић кратко подшишан, у тренерци, са златним ланцем око врата, има мобилни телефон (евентуално и добар ауто), често повезан са криминалним радњама"
  8. ^ Popboks.
  9. ^ Pohorec, Matija (26 September 2022). "Dizla je zmanjkalo, ide gas!" [The diesel has run out, ide gas!] (in Slovenian). Radio Študent.
  10. ^ "Kdo se boji gaserjev" [Who is Afraid of Gaserji]. MMC RTV Slovenija (in Slovenian). 3 April 2023.

Sources

  • Eric D. Gordy (1 November 2010). Culture of Power in Serbia: Nationalism and the Destruction of Alternatives. Penn State Press. pp. 133–. ISBN 978-0-271-04368-5.
  • Ivana Kronja. "Urbani životni stilovi..." Komunikacija. Archived from the original on 2012-06-18. Retrieved 2015-08-08.
  • Rečnik savremenog beogradskog žargona: preko 4500 žargonskih reči i izraza. Istar. 2002. ISBN 9788690231164.
  • Milosz Miszczynski and Adriana Helbig, ed. (27 March 2017). Hip Hop at Europe's Edge: Music, Agency, and Social Change. Indiana University Press. pp. 95–. ISBN 978-0-253-02321-6.
  • Papović J., Pejović A. (2016) Revival without Nostalgia: The ‘Dizel’ Movement, Serbian 1990s Cultural Trauma and Globalised Youth Cultures. In: Schwartz M., Winkel H. (eds) Eastern European Youth Cultures in a Global Context. Palgrave Macmillan, London
  • "Kupio sam Gucci cvike, a i Air max dvojke". Popboks.
  • "Za diplomski o dizelašima Milica dobila 10 u Rimu". Mondo.
  • Aleks Eror (13 February 2016). "the international ubiquity of the tracksuit". i-D; Vice.
  • Aleks Eror (1 February 2017). "Is Post-Soviet Fashion Ethically Problematic?". Highsnobiety.
  • Aleks Eror. "Dizelaš: the 'Serbian gopnik' style that defined the 90s is making a comeback". Calvert Journal.
  • Milorad Milovanović (31 March 2017). "Slike devedesetih zbog kojih nas podilazi jeza". NOIZZ.