Ancient Indian Fashion

8/12/2019 Ancient Indian Fashion

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A little history

India's recorded history of clothing goes back to the 5thmillennium BC in the Indus Valley civilization where cotton wa

spun, woven and dyed. Chanakya’ s treatise on public

administration, the Arthashastra written around 3rd century BCbriefly describes the norms followed in silk weaving.

Most of the present knowledge of ancient Indian clothing comes from rock sculptures and paintings in cave monuments



1st century AD shows some cultural exchwith the Greeks. The Buddhists were portas wearing the Greek himation, which is t

forerunner of the modern saṃ ghāti that fo part of the Kasaya of Buddhist monks.



During the Maurya andGupta period, the people

continued to wear the three piece unstitched clothing as inVedic times. The main itemsof clothing were the Antariyamade of white cotton ormuslin, tied to the waist by asash called Kayabandh and ascarf called the Uttariya usedto drape the top half of thebody



A variety of weaving techniques were employed inancient India, many of which survive to the presentday. Silk and cotton were woven into various

designs and motifs, each region developing itsdistinct style and technique.

Famous among these weaving styles were the Jamdani, The earliest mention of jamdani and itsdevelopment as an industry is found in Dacca. The

Jamdani weaving tradition is of Bengali origin. It isone of the most time and labour-intensive forms ofweaving hand loom weaving.

Jamdani is a woven fabric in cotton, and it isundoubtedly one of the varieties of the finest

muslin.



Kasika vastra of Varanasi

The butidar saree is a rich kind of the Banaras Saree which has traditiona patterns and motiffs done with the use of real gold and silver Jari and Ka

silk.



Ilkal saree takes its name from the town of Ilkal in the Bagalkot district of Karnataka state, India.

Ilkal sarees are woven using cotton warp on the body and art silk warp for

border and art silk warp for pallav portion of the saree.

The distinctive feature of Ilkal sarees is the use of a form of embroidery callas Kasuti.



Brocades of silk were woven with gold and silver threads and were deeplyinfluenced by Persian designs. The Mughals played a vital role in theenhancement of the art, and the paisley and Latifa Buti are fine examples o Mughal influence



Dyeing of clothes in ancient India was practised as an art form.

The commonly used dies were indigo(Nila),madder red and safflower.

The technique of mordant dyeing was prevalent in India since the 2nd millenniumBC.

Resist dyeing and Kalamkari techniqueswere hugely popular and such textiles werethe chief exports.

Resist dyeing is a term for a number of

traditional methods of dyeing textiles with patterns.



Kalamkari is a type of hand-painted or block-printed cotton textile.

There are two distinctive styles of kalamkari art in India - one, theSrikalahasti style and the other, the Machilipatnam style of art.

The Srikalahasti style of Kalamkari, wherein the "kalam" or pen is used for free hand drawing of the subject and filling in the colours, is entirely handworked.

Machilipatnam Kalamkari is a vegetable dyed block paintings, of Kalamkavariety, over a cloth made in Machilipatnam, Andhra Pradesh.



Integral to the history of Indian clothing is the Kashmiri shawl. Kashmirishawl varieties include the Shahtoosh, popularly known as the 'ring shawland the pashmina wool shawls, historically called pashm.

Textiles of wool finds mention as long back as the Vedic times in associatiowith Kashmir.



Traditional Indian clothing for women in the north andeast are saris or ghagra cholis while many south Indianwomen traditionally wear sari and children wear pattu

langa. Bindi is a part of women's make-up.



For men, traditional clothes are the Sherwani, Lungi, Kurta and Dhoti or Pajama. Also, most recently Pant and shirt have also been accepted astraditional Indian dress by the Government of India.



Headgear

The Indian turban or the pagri is worn in many regions in the country,

incorporating various styles and designs depending on the place. Other typeof headgear such as the Taqiyah and Gandhi cap are worn by differentcommunities within the country to signify a common ideology or interest.



The Dastar, also known as pagri, is a turban worn by the Sikh community o India.

Pheta is the Marathi name for turbans worn in the state of Maharashtra. It

usually worn during traditional ceremonies and occasions.

Mysore Peta originally worn by the kings of Mysore during formal meetingdurbar and in ceremonial processions during festivals, and meeting with fordignitaries, the Mysore peta has come to signify the cultural tradition of th Mysore and Kodagu district.

Turbans in Rajasthan are called pagari. They are distinctive in style and coand indicate the caste, social class and region of the wearer.



Embroidery Embroidery of India includes dozens of regionalembroidery styles that vary by region. Designs in Indianembroidery are formed on the basis of the texture and thedesign of the fabric and the stitch. The dot and thealternate dot, the circle, the square, the triangle and permutations and combinations of these constitute the

design.The most ornate and tedious form of Indian embroidery isthe Zardosi workmanship. This form uses metallic threadinstead of the usual silk or rayon. Many rich women fromthe late 16th century had embroidered dresses. Another form of embroidery from Tamil Nadu is the Ari

work, which is done by stretching the fabric on a frame andstitching with a long needle, which also holds sequins,beads, and other embellishments.



Kashida embroidery often drawinspiration from nature. Birds,blossoms and flowers, creepers,chinar leaves, ghobi, mangoes, lotus,and trees are the most commonthemes. The entire pattern uses oneor two embroidery stitches.

Sozni embroidery (dorukha) is often so skillfully that the motif appears oboth sides of the shawl with each sidhaving a different color. Consequent

there is no wrong side. This is done b fine needle and generally a single or most double thread is used.



Another type of needle embroidery is popularly known as 'papier mache'embroidery because flowers and leaves areworked in the satin stitch and employ the

bright colors that are found in papiermache. Each motif is then outlined inblack. This design is employed either inbroad panels on both sides of a shawl oron the entire surface of a stole.

“ Kashir-Jaal” implies fine network of embroidery, particularly on the neckland sleeves of a dress material.

“ Naala Jaal” implies embroidery particularly on the neckline and chest/yokwhere “ Naala” means neck in Koshur of Kashmiri language.



“ Jaama” form of embroidery implies a dense and thick spread of f vine/cree& flowers, badaam and heart shapes, where the cloth is not visible. Such isdensity of embriodery, that no fabric is seen. Variation of this form is

“ Neem-Jaama” , where neem means demi or half. This cuts down the densitythe embroidery, making it sparse and the fabric shows.

“ Jaal” form of embroidery implies “ bel-buti “ means a fine and sparse net of / creepers & flowers. Variation of this form is “ Neem-Jaal” , where again thdensity of the embroidery is severed.



Chikan is a traditional embroidery style from Lucknow. Literally translatedthe word means embroidery.

The technique of creation of a chikan work is known as chikankari. Chikank

is a delicate and artfully done hand embroidery on a variety of textile fabric muslin, silk, chiffon, organza, net etc. White thread is embroidered on cool, pastel shades of light muslin and cotton garments.

Nowadays chikan embroidery is also done with coloured and silk threads indifferent colours to meet the recent fashion trends and keep chikankari trendy

with fashion. Lucknow is the heart of the Chikankari industry today and thevariety is known as Lucknawi chikan.



Embroidery of Gujarat Aari Embroidery with silk threads using a hook is a popularcraft of Kutch, Gujrat. The motifs found commonly are,

dancing peacocks, human figures in dancing postures andother delicate and definitive forms.

Embroidery of West Bengal Kantha embroidery is a popular type of craft created in theBengal region of India. It has always been popular amongstrural women who keep the tradition of this special craftalive.



Embroidery of Manipur This area has a unique type of embroidery that uses onestitch, in deference to the weavers in the area. This is

done in dark matching shade with untwisted silk threadon the border of the phanek (a lungi or lower body wrapworn by women).

Embroidery of Andhra The Mathurias of Andhra Pradesh, a tribe found onlyin Adilabad, inhabit the forest area and, beingnomadic, move from place to place looking foragricultural work on land.



Embroidery of Haryana In Haryana embroidered fabrics retain their age-old social

values, for they are among the treasures given to a bride onher marriage.

Phulkari embroidery technique from the Punjab regionliterally means flower working, which was at one time usedas the word for embroidery, but in time the word “ Phulkari” became restricted to embroidered shawls and head scarfs.

Simple and sparsely embroidered odini (head scarfs),dupatta and shawls, made for everyday use, are called Phulkaris, whereas garments that cover the entire body,made for special and ceremonial occasions like weddingsand birth of a son, fully covered fabric is called Baghs("garden") and scattered work on the fabric is called "adha

bagh" (half garden). this whole work is done with white oryellow silk floss on cotton khaddarh and starts from thecenter on the fabric called "chashm-e-bulbul" and spreads tothe whole fabric.



Resham

Embroidery

Mirror Work Embroidery

Sequins Embroidery

Kundan Embroider



Chamba Rumal of Himachal Rajasthani embroidery

Embroideryof Orissa

J l



Jewelry

Sarpech Traditional

Rajasthanhead jewellery

Kada Vanki Arm Ornament

LINGA PADAKKA MUTHU MALAI Necklace

Nath

ODDIYANAMWaist Ornament



Jhumka Ear Ornament Jadanagam Hair Ornament Shinka -Gujarat

Chandrahaar Hathphool Hand Ornament Paizeb Foot Ornament

http://www.utc.edu/faculty/sarla-murgai/images/indian-jewelry/hairpiec.jpg



The evolution of fashion in India have been triggered by various socioeconomovements during the twentieth century.“During the ‟20s, one of the greatest influences on dress code was themovement towards equal status for women. Hence, a new breed of busines

like women emerged and made corresponding demands on their dress, sayA.K.G Nair, Director, Pearl Academy of Fashion. “The obvious choice forsilhouette veered towards dropwaist or box and the choice of colour was bland grey and the fabrics preferred were silk and georgettes” he says.

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The ‟30s heralded the idea of socialism,communism and fascism and womenfashion became more and more feminine in keeping with conservative ideas“However this period also saw the emergence of the vamp and the culture ocabaret ” says Nair, noting that hence the dresses became more body huggin

and the colours deep and dark in tune with such themes. The establishmentthe Indian cinema also proved to be the strongest influence on the fashion in

decade. Due to the western influence, the use of angarkhas, choghas and jamdiminished considerably by this time, although the ceremonial pagri, safa antopi were widespread as ever. “They had been replaced by the chapkan, achand sherwani, which are still standard items of formal dress for Indian men

today” says Kumar.“The women even though were accepting change, continued to wear their

peshwaz, kurtas, ghaghras and dohnis at religious and ceremonial festivitiesometimes using imported fabrics but using mostly traditional handwovenfabrics” says Asha Baxi, Director Fashion Design. National Institute of FashiTechnology(NIFT).



In the ‟40s,it was Christian Dior who turned fashion upside down with a neshape, with the bosom pushed up and out, a pinched waist and hips emphawith short fluted jackets. “It was also a decade marked by the second Worldand the ensuing independence of India with the result that women‟s clothin

was simple and functional”

says Nair.

The ‟50s saw the dawn of art colleges and schools, which became places ofrebels, and hence in silhouette, narrow waist and balloon skirts with bouncipatterns were in vogue. Also due to the freedom struggle and the espousal okhadi by Gandhiji, khadi garments became a rage giving a boost to the sagg

handloom industry, according to Asha Baxi.

The ‟60s one of the most shock-filled decades of the century, saw sweepingfashion and lifestyle changes that reflected the mercurial passions of the tim“This decade was full of defiance and celebration in arts and music and cinemarked by a liberation from constraints and new types of materials such as

plastic film and coated polyester fabric got popular” says Nair.



Besides, adds Bax “Tight kurtas and churidars and high coiffers competedwith the mini-skirts abroad and at the same time, designers understood thneed of the moment to launch cheaper, ready-to-wear lines” “One of the most “revisited” and “retro” periods in the fashion, the ‟70s is

often called the „me decade‟. “It saw the beginning of “anything goes” cultwith the result that fashion became another form of self-expression and bocolours with flower prints were adapted in tunics, with shirts and bell-bottoms” says designer Manav Gangwani. As drug culture became a massphenomenon, psychedelic colours were garish, the shoes were tall andhazardous and silhouettes were extreme and the dressing of the ‟50s wasdefinitely out.

“The 70s also saw the export of traditional material with the result that expsurplus was sold within the country itself and hence, international fashioncame to India much before the MTV culture,” says Baxi. Synthetics becamepopular and the disco culture had a profound influence on fashion and theclothes became as flashy as the mirrored ball that spins over the dancers.



In the ‟80s the big money ruled. It was the era of self consciousness andAmerican designers like Calvin Klein became household names. In Indiatoo,silhouettes became more masculine and the salwar kameez was made wshoulder pads” says Baxi, “Power dressing and corporate look became

dominant dress code.“The influence of cable TV became more prominent athe teenage market boomed with youngsters going in for the trendy look,

which in turn influenced the elders”.

The ‟90s the last decade of the millenium, was one of the extremes. The exceof the early decade gave way to the drastic pairing down and stripping awa

in the hands of German designers like Helmut Lang and Jil Sander.“Perhap

the biggest fashion news of the ‟90s has been the ascendancy of the youngergeneration of designers into the mainstream. The decade also looked forindependent women with comforts, poise and confidence as key features,” says Nair. But the decade also saw the revival of ethnicity with films toobecoming more discreet and launching a “back to ethnic” look.



While on the one hand the new drive for information technology popularizecorporate look, an ethno-cultural revival made people again go back to thetraditional forms of art and crafts” states Baxi “As it is Indian fashion isextremely alive and whatever the decade or the century, it is here to stay. Fo

only it is comfortable, practical and aesthetically beautiful but has changed time with the result that it has, in the past century, and will in the coming oremain contemporary” she sums up. Although sari is a fast disappearinggarment for everyday wear, it will survive as special occasion wear. More amore Indian women today prefer stitched garments and Western wear of eato – maintain and wash – and – wear fabrics. And yet there was a time whe

ladies rode horses wearing saris and even swan in rivers with their saris tucbetween the legs, much like an unstitched pair of shorts. Saris were even drlonger in pantaloon – like fashion. If the principles of these wearing styles wput into practice, many more could possibly be evolved for contemporary nInterestingly, the sari is asserting a growing presence in the boardrooms ofmultinational corporate organizations, in law chambers, courts and among

new power professionals who are conscious of their identity and draw strenfrom it.

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Ancient Indian Fashion