A saree is essentially a six to nine yards of cloth that is draped loosely around the body.
However, this garment, often worn with a blouse and petticoat, comes in many forms, from mass-produced polyester to hand-woven silk sarees. Many South Asian designers have influenced sarees, Cristobal his Balenciaga, Gianni Versace and the French couturier his Madame Gre.
In April, Zendaya took to the red carpet in Mumbai, India in a bright deep blue saree by Rahul Mishra. At the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, Indian actress Deepika Padukone wore a shimmering gold and black saree by Subyasachi Mukherjee. Called by French Vogue The festival’s “feature piece”. And at last year’s Met Gala, Indian biotech executive director Natasha Poonawala wore Mukherjee’s glittering gold sari under Schiaparelli’s sculptural metal corset.
Poonawala’s Met Gala sarees are part of the new exhibition “Quirky sareewill open on Friday at the Design Museum in London. The exhibition, which will run until September, will explore how sarees are being redefined, according to Priya Kanchandani, the museum’s curator.
The exhibition also includes sarees made from conventional materials, although many of the pieces are more unusual. Among them are a sequined sari made from discarded hospital X-ray images by the label Abraham & Thakore, a sculptural sari made of fine steel thread by the brand Rimzim Dadu, and a quilted sari. A pal (the end of a saree that can be worn over the shoulder) from the Huemn label.
Akaalo’s sarees showcase the brand’s creations with zari, a fabric made from silk or cotton thread wrapped with a thin layer of silver or gold. Amit Agarwal’s frilly sari in the exhibition uses aggregate made from industrial waste. Agarwal said Sally’s bodice looks like an underwater coral reef.
Certain garments show how the structure and style of the saree have evolved. These include Anamika Khanna’s half sarees paired with tailored trousers and capes, and Tarun Tahiliani’s silver jersey sari gowns with crystal-encrusted chains. What Lady Gaga wore. Widely credited as the creator of Mr. Tahiliani, the hybrid style sari gown is known for its fixed drapes and elements such as zippers.
Saree gowns began to emerge in the 1990s, but some purists argued that their fixed construction contradicted the way sarees were traditionally hand-wrapped around the body. There are over 100 of his regional styles of hand draping across India, some of which are featured in the video ‘The Offbeat Sari’, which showcases the different ways a saree can be worn.
Nivi, the most common drape style, originated in India in the mid-19th century. The sari is wrapped around the waist and across the torso and the pal is draped over the left shoulder. A saree worn in this way is often paired with a choli or cropped length blouse.
Sumathi Ramaswamy, a history professor at Duke University who specializes in South Asian cultures, described the Nivi style as “a product of the humility and respectability of the Victorian era under British rule.” He added that elements such as blouses and petticoats were employed to hide the female figure.
Sarees are often worn for special occasions but are an everyday wardrobe staple for many people across India. Among them are members of her gang, Gravi, a women’s rights group known for wearing bright pink sarees. (“Grabi” means pink in Hindi.) Kanchandani said the sari owned by the group’s founder Sampat Palu was used to highlight the sari’s role as “a symbol of women’s activism and resistance.” was included in the exhibit, she said.
Ms Kanchandani said that while India is modernizing, its culture remains patriarchal. And regardless of the occasion or style, sarees “seem to represent an emerging opposition movement and an important vehicle for female expression,” she said in an email.
