Author and sari aficionado Soha Parekh compiles the tradition and history of the nine yards sari into a coffee table book
What prompted you to do the coffee table book Sari: Splendour In Threads on saris?
I am deeply interested in Indian traditions, culture and books. My passion for saris, cultural symbol of India, has translated into this book. It will be unveiled at the Gallery BMB on April 18.
Do you feel we’ve still got a long way to go, when it comes to popularising the sari internationally? Do you thing our designers are doing enough?
There is still sometime till the sari gets internationally popular. Though in recent times, there has been tremendous awareness of this unstitched garment. The designers through various interventions have been contemporising the sari. We see various international celebrities coming to India and adorning the sari.
Shobhaa De: I have an emotional bond with my saris. They are like comfort food. I flirt with other garments, other silhouettes, but always come back to the one look that is timeless, elegant and flattering — the eternally alluring sar
Tantalising discussion. To be honest, I fear for the long-term future of the sari. The reason I fear for it is that (in general) young women, particularly from the middle classes, in India don’t want to wear saris frequently. They’ve relegated the sari to special occasions, which means they are less used to moving in the 6 (or 9) yards of fabric, they are less practiced at draping quickly. This in turn means that they are more likely to consider other options for special occasions in the futre.
I’d love to read other readers thoughts on this subject.
I do understand your fears, Resource Dragon, here in the UK it’s unusual to see anyone under about fifty in a sari on a day to day basis but there is good news too.
The sari is becoming much more international. As the article says, international female celebrities visiting India simply have to wear a sari at some point. Some like Liz Hurley have really taken to them. Many female visitors to India now feel that their visit is incomplete without trying a sari. I’ve just had an exchange on Flickr with a woman from Mexico, I think, who now describes herself as a ‘total sari fan’ after a trip to Sri Lanka. But you don’t have to visit India to be a sari fan. Many countries with a sizable Indian population such as the UK or Canada now have sari stores and, of course, you can purchase saris from one of the many online stores from anywhere in the world.
It is certainly disappointing that young Indian women seem to be turning away from the sari but as the sari extends it’s international reach this may change. I do think that sari designers need to address this issue as well though. Most sari designers seem to concentrate on glamorous evening wear when whats needed, to make the sari more popular, are contemporary casual sari’s or office wear sari’s that women can wear every day.
@ trevor_buk: I’d agree with you about the need for designers to make casual-wear/office wear saris. I also think the sari could have a whole new lease of life if some of the non-nivi drapes were to be accepted/adopted for daily use. (There are some photos in this blog of some of those drapes and also some in Sari Safari.)
I love traditional hand-loom saris – but I have one issue with them: the ironing! An affordable machine that irons 6 (or 9) yards for you in a trice (and doesn’t use enough power to light up an entire city!) would also help to keep the sari alive and well.
Oh, the ironing! Spot on, Resource Dragon – I collect mostly regional cottons that I’ve bought from Sari Safari. I’d love to wear them in non-nivi styles, but I don’t want my inept draping and dumpy figure to do the beautiful sarees an injustice! Tucking in all that extra fabric is a pain because I am quite short, and it makes my middle even fatter. Sigh. Salwar/churidar kameez suits are so much easier to wear.
I bought an oversize ironing board just for the sarees, and then got a hint from a young woman at the Indian grocery store: She said to put sarees up on a long clothes line and spray them (just water?), rather than washing. That would certainly reduce wrinkling, and I’ll try it soon. Maybe this spring I will just venture out in my sarees, and try other draping styles.
i need the book for my reference, author by Soha Parekh “the tradition and history of the nine yards sari into a coffee table book, where can i get the book? what the price??
I started out collecting kantha quilts, moved on to buying used sarees on eBay to make some of my own, discovered that some of the used sarees were too beautiful to cut up and began buying new, handlooms from SariSafari and a couple of sellers on eBay. So, of course, I had to start learning how to drape, via YouTube and Chantal Boulanger’s book. I’ve been working on a variation of the Gujarati style, with the skirt portion of the saree folded over to create a knee length skirt and the pallau in front (a Bagh cotton print). Have worn it to a couple of casual parties and no one batted an eye.
I so agree with Resource Dragon and Clio about the ironing. Major pain!
I really liked the collection of sarees on your website. I am desperately looking to buy an ethnic, traditional, elegant saree. How can i buy online? Is it possible to see more varieties of your traditional stuff?