We live in a homeland of traditions- where they are valued way too high, above and over everything and why not? Our traditions and in particular our dresses influenced by unfathomably rich culture of India are the reason we stand distinguished from the rest of the globe.
Agree or not but irony is, that there is nothing more fashionable than age-old TRADITIONALS- you never are at the risk of running out of trend! We don’t know if there is a saying, but there has to be one, “when in doubt, wear traditional”; with an elegant piece of traditional clothing in your closet, you never have to think twice. Don’t worry, we have a right amount of justification to our claim- when was the last time you frowned at somebody wearing a vintage silk saree, because they looked too outdated? Answer is, Never! Yes, a Saree is a Classic example of, how palatable and flexile our traditional dresses could be, you can carry them to almost any event because they just refuse to budge out of vogue.
Vidya Balan at Cannes 2013, wearing Sabyasachi lehenga
Gharara is yet another exemplary and exquisite traditional attire that once represented the Elite “nawabs”, but has remained a staple wedding attire among muslim brides ever since. Just like a Kanchivaram or Banarasi Silk saree that are perfect in their raw form, the authentic Lucknowi Ghararas can be worn with equal grace today, as they used to be hundreds of years back, without having a need to modernize them and that’s perhaps the best way of doing it- maintaining its true royalty. Though you can always play around and add your own touch of drama.
A beautiful Gharara Set from The Loom
Gharara or sharara (less flared version) is also one of the most exploited traditional wear that has been reintroduced by designers over and over again to suit the ever changing tastes of fashion fanatics.
Latest launch of the Sabyasachi sharara is one spectacular amalgamation of modern and traditional.
Newly launched Sabyasachi Sharara Makes for a Drool-worthy Attire.
For that matter, our top-notch designers, stylists and of course celebrities are obsessed with traditionals. They never fail to exhibit their true Indian ethos through undeniably luscious Indian attires, which is why we keep seeing Sarees, Anarkalis, Shararas, Dhotis and the likes on and off the ramp with a calculated amount of glitter and glamour, to satiate the fashion appetite of Contemporary India. Be it the Internationally acclaimed Aishwarya Rai Bachchan or the most talked about style icon Sonam kapoor, not only are they proud but also look exceptionally captivating when they choose to take an Indian attire to the global red carpet events. Apart from Saree, even Lehenga and Anarkali have made it to the most extravagant film festival “Cannes”.
Ameesha Patel in Manish Malhotra Anarkali Lehenga at Cannes 2013
Aishwarya Rai at her ethnic best in a red Banarsi Saree by Swati and Sunaina.
The best thing is, we have realised the significance of our dying traditional arts and crafts just in time and the handloom industry which seemed to have gone dormant for a while is now thriving back to life. And these resplendent Indian arts when employed to be teamed up with traditional clothing styles are no less than a luxury.
Sharara Set from The Loom
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By Zainab Samar
