IAM - Folklorama Magazine 2008 - Indian Association of Manitoba

Indian Fashion
Indian fashion varies from one state to another state, from one city to another city. India’s
fashion heritage is rich in tradition, vibrant in colors, stylish and centuries old. It is a land of
color and diverse cultures. Indian dressing styles are marked by many variations, both religious
and regional with a wide choice of textures and styles. Each region displays a different style of
draping it. Indian fashion is also influenced by the lifestyle, the climatic conditions and religious
inclination.
Bold colors created by the inventive drapes of these textiles catches the imagination like no
other contemporary clothing.
The SARI, simple, understated yet supremely elegant is increasingly becoming a fashion
statement in urban India. One of the most commonly worn traditional dresses, it is essentially a
rectangular cloth measuring about 6 yards, though in Maharashtra, women wear the nine yard
sari which is passed through the legs and tucked in at the back. The sari comes in a profusion
of colours, textures and designs, determined largely by the region. There are several ways of
draping a sari, which is first wound around the waist, before being pleated seven or eight times
at the centre and tucked into the waistband. Underneath the sari one wears a Petticoat: - a
waist-to-floor length skirt, tied tightly at the waist by a drawstring and a Choli : a blouse that
ends just below the bust. These pleats are called the patli. The remaining sari, called the pallu
is then pleated again and draped across the left shoulder to fall gracefully behind. This pattern
of wearing sari is popular in Northern India. There are regional variations, like in Gujarat, the
pallu comes from the back, and drapes across the front over the right shoulder. The sari is worn
with a tight-fitting choli or blouse. The style and length of the choli varies according to fashion
trends and from region to region.
The traditional dress for women in Rajasthan and Gujarat is the lehenga choli or ghagra choli.
These cholis are brightly embroidered, waist-length bare-backed blouses. Ghagras or lehengas
are gathered ankle-length skirts secured around the waist. The attire is completed by a veilcloth
called odhni or dupatta draped across the neck or over the head. The lehenga-choli or
ghagra choli is extremely colourful, adding verve and colour to the surrounding landscapes.
Tribal women in theses area bedeck themselves from head to toe with chunky silver jewellery.
Young girls in South India wear a half saree, somewhat similar to a lehenga choli. The only
difference is that the dupatta is wound across the waist and draped across the left shoulder like
the saree pallu.
A popular, comfortable and convenient dress is the salwar kameez or churidar kurta. This
was traditonally the dress worn in Punjab and Kashmir, but is now worn almost everywhere,
particularly among the younger generations. The kameez or the kurta is a knee-length flowing
tunic worn over a salwar or churidar. A salwar is a pyjama-like trouser which tapers slightly
towards the ankles, while the churidar is a tight-fitting trouser which gathers at the ankles.
These gathers at the ankles look like bangles (churis) and hence the name. A dupatta generally
completes the ensemble.
In India, as elsewhere, accessories are an integral part of the ritual of dressing. The world over,
Indian women are associated with the ‘dot’ in the middle of their forehead, called Kum Kum