Break-up in style: What Diana, Katrina, Kardashian have in common

You've bawled your eyes out, and look swollen enough to audition for an emotionally high-strung soap opera. Yes, we understand that you broke up just when you had figured out the names of your imaginary kids with him, but there comes a time in every girl's single life when she decides to lift herself from the despair and get a move on.

While BFFs and sisters will always be the support system of such trying times, a saviour for many desi and international celebs has been the quiet - but very potent - power of the sexy dress, aka the Revenge Dress.

The term was first coined in 1994 for a black dress that Lady Diana wore on a warm evening in June to attend a summer party at the Serpentine Gallery at Hyde Park in London. Earlier in the day, her estranged husband Prince Charles of Wales's controversial and very public documentary was aired where he confessed to his affair with Camilla Parker Bowles (who is now the Duchess of Cornwall).

Naturally, all eyes were to be on the beautiful, gaunt figure, whose pretty face would have been the very image of vulnerability in the wake of a very public heartbreak and worldwide embarrassment.

Not quite so. In a move that Beyoncé would most certainly approve of, Lady Diana swapped her pre-decided Valentino dress for the outing, and opted instead for a sexy off-shoulder, above-the-knee LBD by Greek designer Christina Stambolian. The dress that she had deemed as "too daring" until then had been languishing in her closet for almost three years. On that warm June evening, it was to be her weapon-of-choice to turn the tide by slaying with sexiness.

Ah, the sweet, sweet "Revenge Dress" has served many a woman in relationship distress by lifting the attention from her past and letting the world know that she's enjoying every bit of her present.

A recent case in point is that of Bollywood beauty Katrina Kaif - after her estrangement from beau Ranbir Kapoor, she was swift in showing what he's missing out on with a flurry of fashionable outings.

Cut-out dresses, boho-chic dresses and sophisticated styles that flaunt her enviable abs have comprised her admirable wardrobe of late, and with the promotions of her recent flick Fitoor, Katrina has used every opportunity to be out and gloriously about.

In fact, the shake-up has done wonders for her erstwhile demure and rather staid Barbie-doll look. The new avatar has seen some fashionable hits like the white separates from label Cushnie Et Ochs, a black cut-out and thigh-high slit gown by Philipp Pleinor, and even her runway looks for Manish Malhotra and Tarun Tahiliani, all of which she has owned with confidence.

Another celeb to have used a new look to get back in action post a split is reality star Kourtney Kardashian, who went from weary-mum-of-three to I'm-sexy-come-get-me following her divorce from Scott Disick. The 34-year-old managed to say goodbye to utility-driven, predictable outfits and made a beeline for ensembles that show-off her maternal curves while adding youthful charm to her style. Lace details, mesh panels, ripped jeans, plunging necklines and a newly pilates-toned body have unleashed a part of her that was in hiding all these years.

Naturally, with all her energy focussed on bouncing back, Kourtney appears to be rediscovering her sensuality and by indulging in it, shedding her inhibitions along the way. In fact, the newly single mom posted an Instagram picture of herself in a lace ensemble with the caption, "Tell everybody I'm back in town". Talk about being single and ready!

Needless to say, singlehood doesn't equal in-your-face risquéness that screams for attention. The intention of the Revenge Dress isn't to get an ex-lover back in desperation, as much as it is about taking back claim on one's femininity and sexuality. A smart woman knows the power she holds in herself and her confidence; being happily out-and-about is just an outwardly expression of it.

The single ladies of nearly every generation have taken charge of their lives with hard work, determination and a dash of style, and that's what makes them all the more irresistible. As for those who couldn't see their beauty sooner, well, too bad.

(Courtesy of Mail Today.)