There are many things in life that we take for granted. We are so used to see them the way they are that we hardly spend any time thinking about the effort (mostly long term efforts) that have evolved them from a primitive stage to what they are today.
When you have a walk-in-closet full (well, may not be literally full, but plenty) of clothes can you ever imagine that in the 19th century, women in Calcutta did not have any proper clothes to wear outside the women's quarters of their houses?
That is the background of the evolution of a saree. That single piece of cloth for which women all over the Indian subcontinent rave about!
In the 19th century there were hardly a handful of women who would think of going out in the public. So no one thought about having a proper style of dress for that purpose. In the absence of traditional clothes, one Bengali lady used to wear gowns just like the Europeans, some others had a hybrid between an European gown and a saree. Those look funny now, but we must bear in mind that just like an unstable piece of a buggy first version software, those were stepping stones too. A stalwart in this line was Jnanadanandini (Gyanadanandini) Devi. There were no ends to her enterprise. Being the wife of Satyendra Nath Tagore (Rabindra Nath's second brother), she was persuaded by her husband to come out of seclusion. She accompanied him to his workplace in Bombay, which was a revolutionary step in those days as it was customary for the wives to stay at the in-law's house even if her husband worked else where. When she was to leave for Bombay, Jnanadanandini found that she did not have any decent clothes to wear. The way they wore a saree in those days without a blouse or petticoat, was very uncomfortable to be worn outside. That is when she had this elaborate and cumbersome "Oriental dress" made. I have never seen any pictures of it, so all I know is that it was extremely uncomfortable and practically impossible for the lady to put it on and off by herself. She never wore that thing again in her life. In Bombay, she liked the way Parsi ladies wore sarees. She decided to drape the anchal/pallu (the hanging part) to the back instead of bringing it in front. When she returned to Calcutta wearing a saree in her own style, it soon became popular with the girls of Tagore family. They called it "Bambai dastur" (Bombay style).
Just like the European ladies, they also started wearing a chemise underneath a saree, which was later replaced separately by a jacket and a petticoat. That jacket has evolved into a modern day blouse. Of the various styles of draping a saree, the greatest evolution came when pleats were added to the front. That drastically increased the leg span and also added aesthetics.
The Tagore family has done wonders in modernizing Bengal. However, even though Jnanadanandini was one of the foremost in the saree front, the final touches came from two other ladies.The maharani of Cooch behar, Suniti Devi started the style of pleating the hanging portion of the saree. This way, a lot of the heavy cloth could be kept on the left shoulder, neatly pinned with a brooch. It looked way nicer and also allowed ladies who wanted to cover their heads with it. Suniti's sister Sucharu, who was the maharani of Mayurbhanj wore a saree in almost the style we wear nowadays to the Delhi Durbar.
More things got added, more styles were interchanged later, through the ages. Now ladies do not cover their heads, nor do they wear bejewelled brooches. If you watch old movies, you'll see how the style has changed over the years. The accessories have changed, so have the blouses. On one hand designer sarees have taken place of traditional ones, on the other many traditional styles have been rejuvenated. Whatever happens, a saree will always retain its grandeur all over the world!
PS: I wore an absolutely traditional saree in the old Bengal style for my wedding.
Note: The people in the Tagore family picture are - Jnanadanandini (in the white saree), her husband Satyendranath (standing), Kadambari and Jyotirindranath (sitting). Jyoti and Satyendra were Rabindranath's brothers. Kadambari was Jyoti's wife.
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| Tagore family. Source. |
When you have a walk-in-closet full (well, may not be literally full, but plenty) of clothes can you ever imagine that in the 19th century, women in Calcutta did not have any proper clothes to wear outside the women's quarters of their houses?
That is the background of the evolution of a saree. That single piece of cloth for which women all over the Indian subcontinent rave about!
In the 19th century there were hardly a handful of women who would think of going out in the public. So no one thought about having a proper style of dress for that purpose. In the absence of traditional clothes, one Bengali lady used to wear gowns just like the Europeans, some others had a hybrid between an European gown and a saree. Those look funny now, but we must bear in mind that just like an unstable piece of a buggy first version software, those were stepping stones too. A stalwart in this line was Jnanadanandini (Gyanadanandini) Devi. There were no ends to her enterprise. Being the wife of Satyendra Nath Tagore (Rabindra Nath's second brother), she was persuaded by her husband to come out of seclusion. She accompanied him to his workplace in Bombay, which was a revolutionary step in those days as it was customary for the wives to stay at the in-law's house even if her husband worked else where. When she was to leave for Bombay, Jnanadanandini found that she did not have any decent clothes to wear. The way they wore a saree in those days without a blouse or petticoat, was very uncomfortable to be worn outside. That is when she had this elaborate and cumbersome "Oriental dress" made. I have never seen any pictures of it, so all I know is that it was extremely uncomfortable and practically impossible for the lady to put it on and off by herself. She never wore that thing again in her life. In Bombay, she liked the way Parsi ladies wore sarees. She decided to drape the anchal/pallu (the hanging part) to the back instead of bringing it in front. When she returned to Calcutta wearing a saree in her own style, it soon became popular with the girls of Tagore family. They called it "Bambai dastur" (Bombay style).
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| Traditional red and gold saree for my wedding |
Just like the European ladies, they also started wearing a chemise underneath a saree, which was later replaced separately by a jacket and a petticoat. That jacket has evolved into a modern day blouse. Of the various styles of draping a saree, the greatest evolution came when pleats were added to the front. That drastically increased the leg span and also added aesthetics.
The Tagore family has done wonders in modernizing Bengal. However, even though Jnanadanandini was one of the foremost in the saree front, the final touches came from two other ladies.The maharani of Cooch behar, Suniti Devi started the style of pleating the hanging portion of the saree. This way, a lot of the heavy cloth could be kept on the left shoulder, neatly pinned with a brooch. It looked way nicer and also allowed ladies who wanted to cover their heads with it. Suniti's sister Sucharu, who was the maharani of Mayurbhanj wore a saree in almost the style we wear nowadays to the Delhi Durbar.
More things got added, more styles were interchanged later, through the ages. Now ladies do not cover their heads, nor do they wear bejewelled brooches. If you watch old movies, you'll see how the style has changed over the years. The accessories have changed, so have the blouses. On one hand designer sarees have taken place of traditional ones, on the other many traditional styles have been rejuvenated. Whatever happens, a saree will always retain its grandeur all over the world!
PS: I wore an absolutely traditional saree in the old Bengal style for my wedding.
Note: The people in the Tagore family picture are - Jnanadanandini (in the white saree), her husband Satyendranath (standing), Kadambari and Jyotirindranath (sitting). Jyoti and Satyendra were Rabindranath's brothers. Kadambari was Jyoti's wife.
2 comments:
বাঃ রীতিমত রিসার্চ করে লিখেছ তো রিয়া। ভালো লাগল পড়ে।
Arey eta to "Thakurbarir andarmahal" pore ar Ma'r theke jene jene likhechi :D
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