Most Indians enjoy wearing traditional folk costumes in everyday life, believing that they express their inner world through clothing, and it is an extension of the owner's personality. Color and style, as well as ornaments and patterns decorating clothes, can tell about the character of the owner of the costume, his social status and even the area where he comes from. Despite the growing influence of Western culture every year, modern Indian clothing retains its originality and ethnic uniqueness.
A bit of history and legends
In poetic Indian legends, the creation of fabric is likened to the creation of the world. The Creator - Sutradhara - weaves the universe with a thread of sutra, which is the basis of the emerging Universe.
Studies have shown that Indian national clothing began to form back in the days of Indian civilization, which existed in 2800-1800 BC. Until the fourteenth century, Dhoti, which is today men's clothing, had no gender, and it was worn by both men and women. This is confirmed by such ancient literary sources as the epic Mahabharata and Ramayana. What the female version of dhoti looked like can be seen in the sculptures of the goddesses created by the artists of the Gandhara School of Art. Somewhat later, a one-piece sari appeared.
Rules and regulations for wearing sari and dhoti, details and elements indicating the gender and regional affiliation of the owner began to appear in the XIV century, and today Indian clothing is clearly divided into male and female.
Men's wardrobe
In modern India, men wear these types of traditional clothing:
- dhoti;
- lungs;
- churidars;
- padjami;
- kurta;
- Shervan.
Consider in more detail the most common items of men's wardrobe.
The art of drapery dhoti
As already mentioned, dhoti is one of the oldest clothing items. This is a rather long, about five meters, rectangular strip of bleached or plain colored fabric, which Indian men skillfully drape on their hips. In various regions of India, there are various options for drapery, but there is a common one: they begin to tie dhotis from the middle of the fabric cut, wrapping its central part around the hips and tying it in front of the knot. The left end of the fabric is laid in folds and wrapped around the left leg, after which it is laid behind the belt. The right end of the cut is also draped and retracted from the front of the belt.
Dhoti is Indian clothing whose length shows which caste its owner is from. The shortest, specially adapted for the work of dhoti - among representatives of lower castes. Men wearing these traditional clothes can be found everywhere in India: in markets and universities, in temples and in stadiums. There are no restrictions on where and who can wear Dhoti. For everyday life, this item of men's wardrobe is made of jute or cotton. Holiday dhoti are made of silk fabric of white or beige color and decorated with a gold border around the edge, embroidered or painted. But the dhoti of saffron and red colors can be worn only by sannyasis and brahmachari - monks.
Men from South India wear dhoti with a special wrap on their shoulders - angawashtram, and representatives of the northern states with a long shirt - a kurta.
Lungs
In some parts of the country, Indian men's clothing, such as longs, is most common. This is a piece of fabric 2 meters long and 1.5 meters wide. There are two options for wearing it: just tie it at the waist, not passing between the legs, or sew it into a cylinder, like a skirt. Lungs can be both monophonic and color. They are made of cotton, silk, and synthetic fabrics. This is a necessary home clothing for both rural and urban residents.
Such a universal kurta
Traditionally, this is a wide and long shirt without a collar, but with a neckline at the front, which can be worn in both formal and informal settings, in winter and summer. Today, such Indian clothing exists in many different variations. For summer, a kurta made of silk or cotton is suitable, and for winter it is made of dense fabrics such as wool or mixed Khadi (made by hand from silk threads, cotton and wool). Her festive version is decorated with embroidery and jewelry.
They wear a kurta with narrow churidars - trousers specially cut longer than the legs so that the leg fabric forms on the lower legs a kind of bracelets, or with the padjas - wide trousers made of white cotton fabric.
Holiday Sherwan
Modern chervani is an elongated frock coat knee-length with a fastener to the collar. Sew it from satin or silk, as a rule, for any celebration or wedding and adorn it with sequins, mirrors or embroidery. Dress him with tight pants - churidars or with harem pants.
Women's outfits
Remembering what she is, the clothes of Indian women, the first thing that comes to mind is a sari. However, besides him, Indian women with pleasure also wear traditional salwar kamiz, lenga choli and anarkali. What is hidden behind these strange oriental names? Let's get it right.
“Strip of fabric”
That is how the word "sari" is translated from Sanskrit. Indeed, this canvas is 1.2-1.5 meters wide and 4 to 9 meters long, which is wrapped around the body. In India, there is a beautiful ancient legend about how sarees were first made. According to her, he was created by a wizard-weaver, who dreamed of a beautiful woman and represented the gleam of her eyes, gentle touches, smooth silk hair and her laughter. The resulting fabric was so amazing and like a woman that the master could not stop and wove it a lot. But fatigue still crippled him, but he was absolutely happy, as the dream was embodied in amazing clothes.
Scientists found the first information about the prototype of the sari in written sources dating back to 3000 BC. In modern India, this is the most common and popular Indian women’s clothing worn with a lower skirt (pavada) and a blouse called raviq or choli. There are a lot of ways and styles of wearing a sari, and in each region of this large country it is special. The most common is the nivi, when one of the ends (pall) of the sari is wrapped twice around the hips, and the second is fixed on the lower skirt and is thrown over the shoulder. Going out into the street, Indian women throw a free edge of a sari over their heads.
But the material from which Indian sari clothes are sewn, as in previous times, depends on the material security and social status of the woman.
Sarees can be of different colors, with a pattern or plain, for any, even the most finicky taste. But there are a number of colors that Indian women prefer only in special cases. So, getting married, an Indian woman will wear a red or green sari, decorated with gold embroidery. A young mother who has just given birth to a baby will choose a yellow sari and will walk in it for seven days. Traditionally, widows wear white clothes without any decorations or patterns.
Punjabi or Salvar Kamiz
Another type of traditional clothing for Indian women is the salvar kamiz, or, as it is also called because of its great popularity in Punjab, punjabi. This costume originally appeared several centuries ago on the territory of modern Afghanistan, and came to India thanks to the Kabul Pathans.
It consists of two parts: salvar (salvar) - wide thanks to the many folds on top and the trousers narrowed around the ankle - and a long tunic with side cuts - kamiz. But such tunics can be combined not only with salvars, they are also worn with pants flared from the hip - scarves, tight churidars and patial-style salvars, which have many folds on the trousers and yoke. Both salvars and fireplaces are decorated with embroidery, sparkles, mirrors or ornament. All these outfits are complemented with chunni or dupatta - with a long and wide scarf. And if earlier Indian clothing in Moscow, and in other Russian cities, was found only in theatrical productions, concert performances of dance groups and museums, today you can buy saris or kamiz in shops of ethnic and exotic goods, which are quite numerous.
Lenga choli, anarkali and pattu pawawai
There are a great many types and variants of lenga choli, but all of them consist of a skirt - lenga and blouse - choli, which can be either short or long, and a cape. But Anarkali most of all resembles a very flared sundress, but they only wear it with narrower trousers.
For little Indian fashionistas, there is a special traditional outfit - langa dawani or pattu pawawai. This dress is made of silk in the shape of a cone with a gold stripe stitched at the level of the feet.
