The sari has come of age, declared the fashion press after the Times Square show. Wrong! In the south, girls in pavadai used to shift to half-sari after they came of age, and graduate to sari at the time of marriage. Wondered what pavadai means? Pav = legs; aadai = garment!
The sari came of age yugas ago. Alia Bhatt knew it or not, the sari is mentioned in the Rig Veda. It is ageless; even in this metric age, it is measured in yards. A vadhyar once told me that stitched clothes are not to be worn at vedic rituals, because they have been ‘polluted’ by the touch of iron; that’s why certain temples don’t let you wear shirts. The sari—as also the dhoti, veshti or mundu—has thus survived yugas ‘unpolluted’. To each, his faith.
This story is from the May 19, 2024 edition of THE WEEK India.
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This story is from the May 19, 2024 edition of THE WEEK India.
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