Noteworthy Aspects of Traditional Indian Clothing for Men and Women

Indian attires are very different from the western outfits. Many of us have completely neglected our ageold traditions and the typical INDIAN clothing. Some have even gone to the extent of referring to them as primitive. What we often forget when we make such comments is that the traditional INDIAN outfits were designed to suit the Indian living conditions.

Wrapped Attires for Men and Women

The traditional INDIAN attires for both men and women were wrapped attires. That is why it seems astounding that there are countless variations even in these. Each region has its own unique wrapped attire. Here we have listed out the most common ones.

Saris

This is the most common wrapped attire for women of India. It was Rabindranath Tagore’s sister in law who came up with the unique style of wearing saree by wearing a petticoat and a blouse within. She came up with this unique style during her brief visit to Bombay.

Dhotis

Men in North India usually wear dhotis in different styles and forms. A typical example of the dhoti can now only be seen in history books and modern men find this attire primitive.

Lungis

Lungis are wrapped attires common among the poorer folk or among South Indian men. In some regions of South India, even women wear lungis.

Mundu

Mundu is a wrapped Kerala attire for both men and women. Women wear it with an appropriate blouse while men wear a shirt over it.

Advent of the Stitched Attires

The Mughal era marked the advent of stitched attires in India. These sure are more common today due to the convenience they offer.

Salwar Kameez

This is a common attire worn by women to work as well as to colleges. These have a stitched kurta or kameez on the top and a pyjama or salwar at the bottom. A matching chunri or dupatta completes this beautiful attire.

A variation of this known as kurta pyjama is often worn by men during traditional occasions.

Lehenga Choli

The Lehenga Cholis are most often worn for occasions. They come heavily embellished and worked so that they make the women look stunning. The price range can vary greatly. It all depends on the material used, the stitching cost and the demand for the attire.

Pavada Blouse

Pavada blouse is a common attire worn by young girls of South India. These maybe stitched from silk or other materials. These were traditionally strictly worn by little girls and were converted to half saris as the girls grew mature.

Most of the Indian ethnic attires come in flashy colours and attractive embellishments. In a nation where mechanisation happened pretty late, the palette of options we offer in attires is truly astounding. It is time we appreciate the efforts of a nation that has gifted the world a lot. It is time we proudly wear our traditional attires and admire the beauty and comfort they offer. It is easy to flow with the tide but once erased, we can never recover what is lost.