Indian Silk Sarees from Varanasi and Bangalore are very famous. Bandhej Sarees of Rajasthan and Gujarat are a new trend in the world of fashion. Embroidered Indian saree depicts the rich tradition of India. Printed Indian saris are a hot for casual and party wear. Indian dressing styles are marked by many variations, both religious and regional with a wide choice of textures and styles. The typical costume of the Indian women, are the Indian sari, Salwar Kameez and the Ghaghra Choli. The diverse cultures and traditions have greatly influenced the styles of these costumes.
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Wearing of traditional sarees at occasions is the latest trend. Traditional saris is worn during wedding, festivals like Navratri, Eid, Dussehra. It takes around one months to four months time weave a heavy material traditional sari. Indian traditional saree, the six-yard length of cloth is still draped beautifully in the most intriguing manner. It is worn with a stitched blouse. Usually six metre in length, the saree in its most accepted form is worn with a blouse and petticoat.
Ancient Indian garments generally used no stitching, even though Indians did have needles and knew about sewing. Most clothes were ready for wear as soon as they left the loom. The Dhoti, the Scarf or Uttariya, and the Turban, have never really disappeared from any part of India. Likewise, for women, the Dhoti or the Sari as the lower garments, combined with a Stanapatta or breast-band for covering the breasts, forms a basic ensemble, and once again consists of garments that do not have to be stitched, the breast-garment being simply fastened in a knot at the back. And the Dhoti or the Sari worn covering both legs at the same time or, in the alternative, with one end of it passed between the legs and tucked at the back in the fashion that is still prevalent in large area of India. Indian men and women for these garments in the usually hot Indian climate
A sari (also spelled saree) is a garment worn in special folds by a large number of women in the India. It is usually 5-6 yard of unstiched cloth worn over a blouse that comes a little below the breastbone, and a petticoat as a lower garment beneath the drape
The classic saree
The classic saree or ‘Nivi drape’ consists of a single strip of cloth, draped below the navel and around the hips to form the lower section of the clothing. More drapery is wrapped over this, with several folds of elegant pleats in the front, tucked over a petticoat. This gracefully accentuates the contours of the person wearing it. The word ‘nivi’ means or refers to, the flowering pleats of the saree that hangs below the navel held on by a knot in ancient saris. The Pallu or pallav is the portion of the saree which is draped diagonally in the front. It is worn across the right hip to over the left shoulder, along the navel and partially over the midriff, partly baring them. The long end of the pallu hanging from the back of the shoulder is heavily embroidered and intricately decorated. The term ‘nivi’ was brought into the mainstream by the researcher Kamla .S. Dongerkerry, in 1959, in her treatise on the Indian Sari. The saree is modestly sensuous and elegantly conservative. This balanced combination has led to its continuation for a very long time. .
Various types
There are various styles in making and wearing a sari. These are determined as much by geographical location in India as by tradition and taste. Different styles include, kanchivaram, patola, hakoba, zari, and others.
The French cultural Anthropologist and most extensive researcher of the saree, Chantal Boulanger, details several broad families of Sarees, in her seminal work, Saris: An Illustrated Guide to the Indian Art of Draping, (1997). These broad families of sarees are: the dhoti family (eg: Brahmin sarees from Tamil Nadu in South India), Dravidian saris (eg: Pinkosu saris from Tamil Nadu), nivi saris (sarees of Andhra Pradesh in South India), the tribal saris (eg: Coorg Saris of Madikeri), and the Gond related family of sarees (the saris worn by Maharashtrian women from Mul). The ‘Nivi style’ or the classic ‘Nivi saree,’ is today the most popular form of wearing the saree.
Styles
Madisaar - 9-yard sari worn by Brahmin community
Origins and history
The saree is probably the longest running and oldest apparel in the world. Its earliest depiction is perhaps the Indus valley figurine, showing a priest with saree with flower pattern, indicating the likely origins of the sari in the Indian subcontinent. The oldest South Indian Epic, the Silappadhikaram, describes the ethos of South Indian sari beauty. The Kadambari by Banabhatta, describes exquisite drapery of women in the region south of the vindhyas. The clothing of ancient Indian women in the age of the Mauryan dynasty and Gupta Empire did not cover their stomachs. The upper garment of women was a scarf like cloth called the Uttariya, along with a breast band called the Sthanapattam or stanapatta. This was a garment tied in a knot at the back, and the lower garment consisted of a dhoti like clothing. The word sari comes from the ancient Tamil term siri or seere. Several references indicate that during the sangam period in ancient South India, a single piece of clothing served as both lower garment and head covering, leaving the bosom and midriff completely uncovered. This ancient form of the pallu-less saree was almost completely preserved as traditional clothing in Kerala, in South India till the 1970’s. It was in the form of a two-piece mundum-neriyathum, with a gold-bordered shawl. The pallu was added much later to the saree.
The traditional philosophy
The saree is the finest expression of Hindu philosophy, which is essentially, the celebration of the eternal universe through the celebration of the beauty of the body and Femininity-motherhood (see Devi). In ancient Indian philosophy, as expressed in the Natya Shastra, the navel of the Supreme Being is considered as the source of life and creativity. Hence by tradition, the stomach and the navel is to be left unconcealed, though the philosophy behind the sari has largely been forgotten. This makes the realization of ‘sharira-mandala,’ where in ‘Angikam bhuvanam yasya’ (the body as the world) unites with the ‘sharira-mandala’ ( the whole universe). The Swiss psychoanalyst, Carl Gustav Jung, describing the sensuous beauty of the saree, said: "It would be a loss to the whole world if the Indian woman should cease to wear her native costume. India is practically the only civilized country where one can see on living models how woman can and should dress".
CustomsThere are a few important aspects of a sari. The pallu which is the free end of the sari can be worn over the head, as a mark of respect for elders, as a custom, or for style, or be left to hang free at the back. The other important, and much looked for, part of the sari is the border. It is usually adorned by prints and designs which are different from the overall pattern on the sari. This adornment can sometimes take the form of intricate patterns handcrafted using delicate gold thread known as zari. In this way, the border of a sari is often a status symbol
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