Other Topics : Art Culture - Fashion - Tourism

Latest & Hot Fashion News : 

Return to current news about latest fashion

The sari blouse in its new avatar
By Uma Nair, Indo-Asian News Service

New Delhi, Oct 23 (IANS) It is the age of change and the sari blouse is the latest to get a makeover at the hands of designers, tailors, customers et al. 

"A sari blouse in today's world says so much about a woman's signature style," fashion diva Ritu Kumar told IANS. "I think that today women want to say something through even the sari blouse they wear. It is an elegant style statement."

Gone are the days when the high-necked long-sleeved look was in. Kumar cites necklines in Bollywood and says that "the trend now is a 'less is more' kind of language. And why not? If you have the figure and the skin, show it off!"

Going back in time, Ravi Varma's portraits of Nair women show them wearing only the white sari or mundu without a blouse. 

"In the olden days women did not wear blouses," says Rajamma, 85, a trendsetter in her days at Madras Presidency College in Chennai. "We wore printed blouses in the 1950's she says." 

The earliest evidence of an Indian blouse is the kachuli - an unstitched piece of cloth stretched across the bosom and knotted at the back. From that humble beginning emerged the backless cholis and then came the lacy, full-sleeved blouses inspired by the fashion trends on London streets. Rajamma speaks of the 1950's and the 1960's look when blouses were soft drapes - simple and timeless with long sleeves. 

"(Actresses) Waheeda (Rehman) and Suraiya were our inspiration," she says, adding: "The fifties were fundamentally a time of conformity. You wouldn't find anything wild or risqué". 

Thus, in the hit movie "Parineeta", Vidya Balan sported the soft feminine look of the puffed-sleeve blouses in keeping with the 1950s' idea of womanhood.

Fast forward to 2005 and the sari blouse has gone through a minimalist transformation. For instance, Mandira Bedi's blouses on TV are always very swank and revealing. She might wear a halter-top and bring in summer 365 days of the year, or a classy backless number that speaks style.

Today the blouse trends of the West are influencing sari blouse designs. Thus halter necks, backless cholis, low U necks, boat necks, off-the-shoulder and a host of other sizzling designs that reveal and highlight the finer lines of the back and bosom are among the latest avatars of the sari blouse.

Designer Ritu Beri combines embroidered lace blouses with satin saris. She also has a variety of halter necks, backless cholis and the rather conservative round-neck, short-sleeved variety with a lot of back detailing like strings, key-holes and intricate embroidery. 

"Embroidery is ageless," says Ritu who works with all kinds of embroidery and believes in embellishment all the way.

Nowadays blouses use all kinds of fabrics, embroidery and embellishments, besides a wide spectrum of dazzling colours. Embellishments range from beads, sequins, and rhinestones, to layers of ruffles, appliqués, buckles and bows. 

The fabrics of the moment? "Women look for handloom cottons, chiffon and georgette, and, once it's cooler, velvet and the ever-versatile silk," says Ritu Kumar. At present, her racks have an array of peasant, asymmetrical, off-shoulder blouses in mothra and Leheriya prints as well as heavy embroidered sets with saris.

"Fashion is all about moods," says Kumar. "One day its retro, the next its soft and romantic, then its celebration time. So it depends on your mood as much as the occasion." 

Whatever the mood or the moment, the sari blouse is being reinvented and is clearly enjoying its time in the sun

Cinechance.com - Cinechance provides the details about the latest sari and blouse designs and lot of women participating in the discussions to know about the latest fashoin trends.

.