A Tryst with Saree- #100sareepact

“Sari my love you are the most beautiful attire

  A timeless fashion, which refuses to retire.”

India- a country known for its rich cultural diversity and heritage, forbye, is richer in terms of evolving fashion and an attire which has withstood windmills of time and effects of globalization is none other than ‘SARI’.

Sari, Saree or Shari  is a word derived from Sanskrit word ‘sati’ which means a strip of cloth. The word ‘sattika’ a sister concern of ‘sati’ finds special mention that describes dresses meant for woman in Buddhist literature called Jatakas. In ancient India, people famously followed a tradition of using an unstitched piece of cloth to cover their body. History even points that stitched clothes were considered to be impure by Hindus and it was only after entry of Muslim rulers that tailored clothes started getting prominence in India. Indian diversity which is a melange of variety of physical features and cultural patterns across the length and breadth of India very well represents the realm of fashion onset by Sari. It is one such dress that can make any other ensemble in world go weak on its knees and this has been proved by Sari power play, when international celebrities had an awe moment while adorning this attire likes of Paris Hilton, Oprah Winfrey, Helen Mirren, and Julia Roberts.

I am literally not aware, when I fell in love with six yards of clothing. But destiny offered me a tryst with saree, when I started teaching in an MBA institute. As per protocol, we were supposed to wear business suits but during conference and seminars, it was mandatory to wear saree and thereafter, I embarked upon my odyssey with six yards of clothing. It also dawned upon me that a saree is not just a saree in India, it’s a multifarious tradition. While North India marvels at Mughal inspired gold and silver thread work of Banarasi Sarees to light weight Kota Doria Sarees to famous tie and dye work of Bandhani sarees, South India exhales rich elegance of lustrous Silk sarees in myriad forms as handwoven Kanchipuram Silk sarees (Tamil Nadu) to Dharmavaram Silk Sarees to block prints of Pochampali sarees to Sealam Sarees. Western India has its own style of designing sarees mostly based on technique of block printing, ikat and tie-dye which can be seen in Chanderi Sarees, Gujarati Braocade Sarees, Paithani Sarees and Tussar Sarees. And then there is Eastern India known for its exquisite Dhakai jamdani, Sambalpuri Sari, Assam Silk, Tant sari and not to forget traditional dress of Assam, which is a second version of sari known as ‘Mekhla Chador’.

Saree is not just six or nine yards of clothing but a journey to discover the other you, the beautiful like, the goddess like, the nurturer like, the caretaker like. In short, it lets us redefine feminism. While it may seem to be an ordinary and simple piece of clothing, but once you drape it imparts an unparallel elegance and sophistication with a fashion statement second to none, covering almost all body parts and exposing just the right parts forming a perfect silhouette. In fact, you can hashtag it as world’s sexiest dress.

As part of Indian wedding shopping spree, I again got an opportunity to return to my love- Sari. I bought a lot many sarees for various occasions and when the entire wedding rituals came to halt, I was in possession of some 60+ sarees. Of course, I carried some of them  to various functions and family gatherings, but still many of these master clothings are lying low in my wardrobe. Because I am too busy with daily work and routine, I mostly adorn western dresses for their ease and accessibility or whenever I get an opportunity to rock an ethnic ensemble, I choose salwar kameez reason for being they are less time taking. Yeah, you got it right, for me wearing saree takes time but that does not mean my love for saree has lessened.

The other day, I stumbled on this article in Huffpost http://www.huffingtonpost.in/2015/03/26/100-saree-pact_n_6945050.html?.  It is an initiative by two lovely ladies in Bangalore by name of Anju Kadam (@MaudgalKadam) and Ally Mathan (@ahalayamatthan). Reading it, I knew it’s the time to re-invoke our lost love for sarees in our wardrobe that are shrieking of zari, chikankari, floral motifs, zardozi, mirror work and feel the magic touch of fabric clinging to your body that gives us an avatar of nothing less than a Diva. It’s time we give this dormant attire an active role in our lives and experiment with its versatility.

I call upon on my all girlfriends to ditch that cocktail dress, cropped pants, denims, tops at least once in a week and commit to #100sareepact  #sareedate till the end of 2015.

I also request my male friends, to join this pact by sharing experiences and pictures of beautiful ladies in their lives with the hashtag.

(For details visit http://100sareepact.com/)

P.S.-

Dear Saree,

It's a date. For sure.

Yours lost love

Woman in Saree