I keed. Despite my erstwhile devotion to all things Italian and denim, I do not think that there is ANYTHING which could persuade me to wear this unfortunate schmata— and that’s not because I’m conservative or unwilling to experiment for the sake of fashion.
Kanjeevaram, my beloved, politically incorrect, guilt-inducing Kanjeevaram, is heavy and inflexible enough; so how on earth does this thing WORK? Even if it is one of those new-fangled, “lazy saris” (as my Mother calls them), which is essentially a wrap-around, pre-pleated bottom with pallu attached, it’s still not easy enough.
I’d feel mummified.
Swaddled.
Slow.
Uncomfortable, and reminded of what it feels like to get x-rays, with that heavy protective blanket on top of me. Except at least when I’m getting x-rayed, I’m perfectly still. GAH. Yes, this is freaking me out, man. Must increase the drugs…
Said one fantastically-named blogher:
After color changing saree, pocket saree, it’s now turn for a Denim Silk Saree.
Sri Kumaran Stores, once a leading name in the garments business now seems desperate for market share. So out comes thinking caps (or is it cowboy hats) and innovation for the sake of it. In contrast to the appealing RMKV’s 50,000 color/ reversible saree, the concept as well as communication is a mild put off!
Incidentally, she has a pic of a very public version of this ad; a billboard which has some serendipitous placement, with regards to local greenery. Wait a second, what the– there’s a reversible sari?
My Mother is a disgrace I tell you. A disgrace. I’m always the last to know about such sartorial innovation. How someone who wears no makeup and has never thought to read a fashion magazine bore me, I have no idea. I’m terrified that whatever it is she has will skip a generation though, and that MY daughter will be a fearsome, dreaded rapscallion of a tomboy. Obviously, my Mother is praying for exactly this, as divine revenge for having to put up with me for 32 girly, glittery, glossy years. But I digress (and I must, for truly, it isn’t a post of mine, if I don’t!).
One final note: how the hell is this suitable for elders? Because they don’t move much? Give me a set sari over this isht, any day.
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Via Maisnon, Lizzie and Yindia Uncut…thanks all. Or, um, in this case, y’all.
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my mom would start planning the wedding….
Tell me about it. I was harrassed in Anna University by an engg workshop instructor of all people for wearing jeans to workshop several years ago (but I wore it everywhere else too because my favorite mode of transportation was the humble cycle). I quit in my 2nd year because I couldn’t take it any longer (it being the whole engg scene; the harrassment by the instructor just made it easy for me). The rest (of my life) is history. But according to Rahul’s link, the dress issue is still not history at Anna U, and after all these years the yare targetting the boys. Why doesn’t it surprise me.
But there were no dress code rules those years in liberal arts/science colleges, in general. Only professional colleges, if my memory serves me right. I doubt if there is a dress code in my sister’s college right now.
i dont even follow my dress code at work…
Personally I think they’re better than decent. Yeh dosti? Harmony in a Hindi film song was so rare, and it was done right. Mehbooba? I don’t even need to say anything. Then again I’m an R.D. Burman fanboy. The man’s music was featured in a video game preview over 30 years later. That’s staying power.
are FearlessRahul and Rahul 2 different people?
That’s good…I guess?
Puli, here are some pick-up tips. This guy(Mystery) doesn’t recommend buying a drink, rather sneezing is the way to go.
Yes.
i think with saris, the more formal it is, the better looking they are….
I assure you that it would have been heartily reciprocated.
Here’s a primer on the rise of “discipline” in some colleges. From second-hand horror stories, I can vouch for the following rules that were in place in one college (Sathyabama in Chennai, if you know of it):
Having read all that, I am indeed surprised that Sathyabama has not had a violent mass killing spree so far.
The most blood-curdling part of this was that some parents I knew (including some ghastly aunts of mine) actually liked this system. Bunch of control freaks I suppose.
Ha! I believed it up until “perpetually childlike.” (cause you used the word “compulsory”).
I also heard from the young sister of a friend, that when she was in high school, in a college in TN, she had to wear her hair in braids and fold them over like this. The school logic was, if you wore your hair open, or in a regular braid/ponytail then you are trying to attract the boys…hahah
Quoting Malathi,
I had not thought of this before, but it certainly seems true. I cannot think of many engineering and medical colleges where I grew up that did not behave like control freaks. The liberal arts thing is true too – in fact I know it was used as a negative statement by the control freaks. I suppose that I had a lucky time, going to college in sneakers or flip-flops, usually in jeans and a t-shirt, with a perpetually lazy half-shaved look. But then, my college didn’t care what students did outside the classroom.
Come to think of it, I have watched some quaint 1980s Indian movies that showed “college girls” dressed in sarees. I cannot for the life of me imagine any of that happening today.
When I was in engineering college ,on Tuesdays we girls had to wear salwar kameez ( white) while the guys wore pants and shirt ( in blue).When a group of us girls complained to a female teacher that the salwar kameez was not suitable for the workshop and lab, she told us to be thankful for small mercies.Evidently, the Director of the college originally wanted to mandate sarees for girls on one day of the week.The female teachers convinced him that this was totally impractical. Gads!!
All across India ,though on campuses dress ‘codes’ vary. Some urban colleges were “famous” coz the girls wore fashionable, western clothes whereas others in smaller cities would have teh feamle population dressed very conservatively.
PindaUSA wrote:
Hehe, you must have been SOOOO confused getting slightly different advice from the same person.
Bess wrote:
Rather than reading someone write about Mystery (who’s probably not the first person you should read anyway), email me and I’ll give you better resources. nospam4rahul at gmail dot com
Some places require you to wear a dark shirt and this is what happens when you do not.
Quoting SFGirl,
Excellent logic from the school. I suppose that it’s better now since it will only attract the pseudo-pedophile boys who like grown women dressed as little girls. 😀
Yeah, I was joking about taking advice from some guy who does magic tricks and wears guyliner.
I assure you, seeing it in person was so much worse. There was an element of “going native” in the whole shtick, as well, which also made it somehow uglier.
Puli, that is sad on many levels.
The same could be said of guys and formal suits/tuxes, yes? 🙂
Puli, Do you think Puli-amma being there was a coincidence? Or did the mommy radar kick in and did she appear to save you from a fate worse than death ? I am kidding
The lay-dar that kicks in when an offspring is in imminent danger of getting laid?
Or was she saving him from a date worse than death?
HA! Lay-dar Gay-dar How many more of those around?
Does it count if I say “objet d’art”?
How ’bout: pay-dar : that invisible thing that attracts all friends, relatives and hangers-on to you when you just received your paycheck?
I would totally wear that sari, whether it’s made out of denim or silk (although silk would be highly preferable). I’m with you Anna and others who don’t like crystals in their kanjeevaram; I’m a purist when it comes to traditional sarees. But, I do like sarees made out of unconventional fabrics like jute and bamboo, so denim I think would be fun.
I like the comment on Aishwarya Rao’s post which asked, in Tamil, “What’s next, a denim veshti?” Yeah, wear that to temple and get your ass kicked by a snakeskin chappal.
So they have pre-pleated saris now? Wouldn’t buying a pre-pleated sari require size measurements (particularly of the waist) to ensure that there is the appropriate amount left over for the anchal (pallu)?
The more I stare at the saree…i can see a future for it (not in it yet). My first reaction was similar to seeing Kanjeevaram silk slippers (holy yuck…no way!) but y’know it could work on the denim saree. It may even find its way into Rohit Bal’s denim-inpired couture collection
98 · Puliogre in da USA ahh….I am SO desi. just as I was about to head out, guess who shows up at my apartment? pulli-amma…
🙁
Do you have classes every week-night–can be better than weekends….
okay, i am a DBD who went to college in india– i wore jeans everyday in medical school without any problems and without anyone looking at me twice and this was way back in the late 80s, no one draped a sari actually (cant have those pallus flying around in dissection lab) –so if you are in a cosmopolitan city, its all cool but i agree, this is a desecration of the saree –some things should just not be messed with
Check out our saree blog; http://www.sareedreams.com
I just wrote about Digital Sarees (sarees designed for your digital avatar on second life and sim city).
actually Yahoo Avatars does have a few indian outfits including saris, salwar kamiz and sharara. i think they also hav the kurta-jeans combi.
Normally, we don’t allow that, but since you added this:
You’re fine. I point that out only so someone doesn’t ask later, about why one “Check out our blog” comment didn’t get nuked, when the other thousand did.
This (denim sari) is just a novelty and most likely will not become a trend. I think it looks okay but is not practical and the majority of Indians would not consider adding this to their wardrobe.
I would totally buy one if they were made with cruelty free fibers (why do so many pretty things have to me made with silk?) I would love it if they could really approximate the texture and durability of a very lightweight stretch denim in a sari; one of my biggest frustrations with saris is how easily they snag and pull. Also, many have very little ‘give’ in the fabric and can be quite binding — blend in a touch of spandex, please! A true ‘denim sari’ would make a durable outfit for those days when one has to help out doing hard work ‘behind the scenes’ at a community event, but still wants to look publically presentable.