INDIAN Traditional Fashion

Indian Traditional Fashion

India is known for its diversity the all over the globe. Ethnic clothing is just one of the things that distinguish one part of India from the other. The traditional Indian attire has earned admirers from people from all over to organizations like UNESCO. The craftsmanship with which artisans create traditional dresses is really incredible. All forms of clothing are quite labor intensive and require a lot of attention to detail. Many of these art forms are dying because the cost of production is higher and few people can afford to pay the high cost of the dress. This has forced the textile ministry to come up with ways to sustain these artisans and preserve their talent and art. As every state in India is geographically different from the other, this has given rise to varied kinds of dresses and styles.

Foreign Influences on Indian Clothing

The traditional Salwar-Kurta or the Salwar-Kameez was the result of the practice followed by Muslim women to wear divided garments during the Mughal period. This dress has survived to this day and has a variant called ‘Chooridar’ in which the salwar is replaced by the ‘Chooridar’ a tapering pant with folds at the bottom.

The ‘Lehenga’ is another dress that had its origins during Mughal times. It was believed to be a dress that defined Indian values completely, which is probably why it has survived to this day. Even now, it makes use of Mughal era patterns and designs though it has been given many contemporary designs as well. In Gujarat and Rajasthan the variant of the Lehenga- the ‘Ghagra Choli’ with an ‘Odhni’ or dupatta still preserves its ethnicity with mirror work and embroidery. Some Rajasthani women wear black ‘Ghagra Cholis’ with Cowrie shells and mirror work too. During the reign of the Nawabs in Lucknow the ‘Sharara’ or ‘Gharara’ was born which was influenced by the ‘Ghagra Choli’.