Indian Clothing
Two poor women in saris
People in India wore
mostly cotton clothing. India
was the first place where cotton was grown, even as early as 2500 BC
in the Harappan period.
By the Aryan period, women wore one very long piece of cloth called a sari, that they wrapped around themselves in different ways. The word “sari” comes from a Sanskrit word that just means cloth.Saris are first mentioned in the Vedas, about 600 BC. Wealthy women wore saris made of silk, but most women wore cotton ones.There were many different ways of draping saris – to dress up women wore them like skirts with a top part thrown over their shoulder or worn over their heads as a veil. Working women often pulled their sari up between their legs to make a sort of pants. Women who were fighting with the army tucked in the top part of the sari in the back, to free up their arms for fighting. Most saris were five or six yards long, although some saris were nine yards. Younger women generally wore brightly colored saris, but widows and other women in mourning wore only white ones.
By the Aryan period, women wore one very long piece of cloth called a sari, that they wrapped around themselves in different ways. The word “sari” comes from a Sanskrit word that just means cloth.Saris are first mentioned in the Vedas, about 600 BC. Wealthy women wore saris made of silk, but most women wore cotton ones.There were many different ways of draping saris – to dress up women wore them like skirts with a top part thrown over their shoulder or worn over their heads as a veil. Working women often pulled their sari up between their legs to make a sort of pants. Women who were fighting with the army tucked in the top part of the sari in the back, to free up their arms for fighting. Most saris were five or six yards long, although some saris were nine yards. Younger women generally wore brightly colored saris, but widows and other women in mourning wore only white ones.
This is a video showing how to put on a sari:
Men also wore one long piece of cloth called the
dhoti, which was generally white. They wrapped the dhoti (DOE-tee) around
their legs to make sort of pants like the working women. Dhotis though
were shorter so they didn’t have the part that covered the chest
and shoulders. Men also often wore long cotton cloths wrapped around
their heads as turbans.
With the Islamic invasions around 1000 AD, Persian fashions in clothing entered India and became popular especially in the north, though they never replaced the sari or the dhoti. Both women and men began to sometimes wear trousers with long tunics over them down to their knees. The trousers are called churidar. Women generally wore churidar with a long veil or scarf over it.
With the Islamic invasions around 1000 AD, Persian fashions in clothing entered India and became popular especially in the north, though they never replaced the sari or the dhoti. Both women and men began to sometimes wear trousers with long tunics over them down to their knees. The trousers are called churidar. Women generally wore churidar with a long veil or scarf over it.
Indian women who could afford it generally wore a lot of silver or gold jewelry, especially earrings and nose-rings. Sometimes they also put a spot of red on their foreheads called a bindi (BINN-dee) as a decoration.
To find out more about Indian clothing, check out these books from your local library or from Amazon:
Traditional Fashions from India Paper Dolls, by Ming-Ju Sun (2001). Written for kids. Includes two dolls and sixteen costumes.
India and Sri Lanka (Cultures and Costumes), by Conor Kilgallon (2002). For kids.
Eyewitness India, by Manini Chatterjee (2002). Written for kids.
Ancient India, by Virginia Schomp (2005). Written for middle schoolers. Very good for reports.
The Sari, by Mukulika Banerjee and Daniel Miller (2004). For adults, a great discussion of what it's really like to wear a sari.
More on Indian costumes for kids, and how to make Indian food and plan activities for kids? Click here.
Indian food
Indian people
India-related projects for kids
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