In Sanskrit, the word “sari” refers to a strip of cloth. Nevertheless, this fabric is more than just plain clothing for Indian women — and a few men — who have been wrapping themselves in silk, cotton or linen for millennia. They serve as ambassadors for traditional and contemporary design and craftsmanship, as well as being outstanding examples of India's diversity.
Saris have been made of a variety of materials for generations, including silk, cotton, chiffon, georgette and others. Yet, the Rig Veda, which was allegedly authored approximately in 3,000 BC, contains the earliest references to saris.
We are familiar with the Sanskrit word for sari, although some Buddhist and Jain texts imply that the word originated from the word “sattika,” which was used to describe women’s clothing. It used to be a three-piece outfit that included a chest band, bottom garment and veil. Around the sixth century BC, it can be found in Buddhist literature written in Pali and Sanskrit.
Cotton, ikkat, embroidered, silk and tie-dye fabrics are among the original handloom (handwoven) sari styles. In fact, ghagras, lehengas and cholis are considered to have evolved from saris.
Some claim that the Mesopotamian civilisation brought cotton, and the skill of weaving it into fabric, to India. Because of this, both men and women of the modern Indus Valley civilisation wore lengthy garments that are best described as loincloths. They were also familiar with cotton fibres. These fabric lengths were worn in the kachcha manner, which involves passing one end of the fabric or the centre pleat between the legs and tucking it up behind to allow for more freedom of movement in the lower body and legs.
According to early history, Egypt, Sumeria and Assyria also used such clothing. Thus it wasn’t just confined to Mesopotamia or the Indus Valley. This is demonstrated by the artefacts of all these civilisations that may now be found like seals and figurines.
According to the evidence that is currently available, women of the majority of these civilisations wore only these loincloths, leaving the upper part of the body bare, with the exception of the winter, when animal skin or shawl-like garments made of wool were worn to protect against inclement weather.
The name vastra was first used by the Aryans when they arrived on the plains of the powerful north Indian rivers. Although a Sanskrit word, with the original meaning of a garment or cloth, for them, it meant a piece of leather that had been treated and turned into usable apparel. Given that they lived in colder locations, their wardrobes also contained woollen garments. They started wearing cotton weaves as they travelled south, imitating the people of the Indus Valley. Over time, the practice of wrapping a piece of clothing around the waist, particularly for women, became known as neevi.
The women of our nation began asking artisans to create saris using gold threads, pricey stones and exquisite cloth as trade in India grew and wealthy visitors began discovering our area. It quickly developed into a status symbol that began assisting ladies in standing out among their peers and family members. No matter what class a woman belonged to, it was still a common choice of clothing.
The industrialisation wave arrived together with the British Raj. We soon learned about the methods of synthetic dyes. We first learned about the dyeing and printing techniques when local businessmen began to participate in the export and import of chemical dyes. The designs of saris began to represent the growth of textiles in India; they began to incorporate objects such as figures, motifs and flowers. The sari emerged as the first international garment from India as foreign influence grew. The first seamless garment made in India eventually became the representation of Indian womanhood.
With the recurrent invasions of various clans, India had access to a wide variety of new weaving, dyeing and printing designs and processes. For instance, the nomadic Central Asians introduced the tie-and-dye process of fabric dying to Gujarat and Rajasthan.
By the tenth century, Arab caravans were shipping patolas, which are still well-known today, bandhanis and leheriyas from this region to Egypt, Java, Sumatra, China and other middle and far eastern nations. Several new textile techniques were introduced to India in the twelfth century with the arrival of the Muslims.
The fine muslins used for saris and odhanis, which originated with Muslim women’s traditional outfit of a salwar and kurta, were frequently embellished with phulkari, which is the heritage of Punjab and features geometric designs done in earthy colours such as rust, magenta and green. Owing to their cultural background, Muslims frequently shunned pure silk clothing. Being the governing class, they created a variety of textiles that combined silk with other fibres to meet their needs. The names of these fabrics were Jamawar, Himroo and Mushroo.
Even though it has been decades since the sari was established as the traditional dress of Indian women, the allure of this exquisite and unusual feminine attire, appropriate for either the youngest girls or the oldest of women, has endured. In fact, despite the fact that technology advances at a faster rate with each passing decade, even the most contemporary ladies in the subcontinent have accepted it. Its turbulent past is now misty and forgotten. Despite the restricted potential for alteration in the garment, endless experimentation is employed to reproduce its beauty for each new generation of women, giving the impression that the garment’s future is limitless.
A sari is a cost-effective and simple-to-wear garment that can be worn for work, play or luxury in the current world. Over time, various Indian cities have established themselves as leading sari production hubs. Each centre is renowned for producing traditional saris that bear names derived not just from the locations in which they were first made but also from the weaving or printing methods employed, as well as the themes, colours or designs used in their creation.
The sari has been manufactured on handlooms, power looms and in enormous mills with the most advanced machinery in illustrious cities throughout the history of textile development in India. In today’s time we have more than 80 ways to drape a sari across the Indian subcontinent. Yet, there is a formal or classical way to do it. The two-piece Malayali version, the pleat-less Bengali and Odia forms, the Kodagu-style sari, which is a back to front variation of the traditional style, and so forth.
Also, there are variations based on the type of fabric and the weaving techniques employed. As a result, there are many different types of silk saris such as Kanchipuram, Banarasi and Mysore saris, as well as tie-dye Bandhani saris, Chanderi cotton saris and others.