Lehenga Choli: Dare to Flare
By Somdyuti Bhattacharyya
No Indian occasion is bereft of the sight of a lehenga choli!
The draping of the dupatta can be done in various ways to achieve modified looks. Lehengas are usually worn to weddings and other grand occasions, owing to their heavy and opulent features. A lehenga is basically a three-piece ethnic attire that has an imperial touch to it.
Background
Lehengas have been winning the hearts of North Indian women since the 1800s. They evolved centuries ago as a palatial attire among the Mughals. The fine artistry of ancient artisans gave birth to an attire as glorious as a lehenga.
These initially emerged as a modification of draped pants, but gradually the stitch between the legs was compromised, and finally an efficient and glamorous outfit known as the lehenga emerged. Lehengas are quite comfortable and mobile, making moving in them easier. Just a tie around the belly and you are all set!
The minimalistic feel yet luxurious outlook of the attire is what makes it an easy grab for weddings and other glam events. Historically, lehengas were made of cotton fabrics and dyed with patterns; later, royal fabrics and embroideries were used to stitch lehengas, thus turning them into an imperial attire.
The making
Of course, making a three-piece attire will surely be extensive and time-consuming. From yarning the fabrics to ornamenting the embroideries intricately, the execution of one lehenga choli can take up to half a month. For more exquisite handmade lehengas, it could take over a month to finish, owing to the details and length of the drape. Communities and on-site producers decentralise the work by assigning separate tasks to various individuals. This helps make the process go faster and more efficiently.
Varieties
Still undergoing transitions, the lehenga choli has conditioned its modification with several cultural variants constructing its delineations or styles in the vivid versions of the present-day visions of the lehenga choli known to us.
Talking of cultural variations, lehenga cholis come in innumerable avatars. A tie-dyed cotton lehenga, along with chaniya cholis, is donned by women from Rajasthan and Gujarat; meanwhile, lehengas intricately embroidered with zardosi or gota are found around Lucknow.
While wedding lehengas are immensely ornamented with heavy beads, pearls, Kundan or Swarovski crystals, the ones meant for party wear are usually lined with georgette or silk.
Traditionally, the variations of the lehenga as bottoms included the sharara, lacha and gharara. All of these variants emerged during the 1200s and came into popularity during the 1800s.
A sharara drapes from the knee onwards. Shararas are essentially pants that have flared bottoms. The flares in shararas are decorated with numerous embellishments. They are usually complemented with kurtis, and the dupatta is a disposable accessory here, but it can elevate your whole look too.
A gharara can be differentiated from a lehenga in terms of volume. The numerous spread pleats in ghararas contribute to their density and volume. Ghararas are also a part of three-piece attires, with a blouse and dupatta.
A lacha consists of an elongated blouse that reaches almost up to the knee. The design might be similar to that of a gharara or lehenga, but here the variation lies with the blouse rather than the bottoms.
Innovations and modifications
Worldwide trends and recent fashion influences have cast a lasting impression on this imperial ethnic attire. The contemporary world has accepted the lehenga even without its original partner, the choli/blouse.
From being topped with shirts, crop-tops and shrugs to being worn as a half saree; from just finishing in a rounded flare to newer creases like umbrella cuts, fish cuts and mermaid cuts; from primary fabrics like cotton or satin to more heavy and luxurious fabrics — lehengas are the most experimented on in the fashion industry.
Presently, various modern-world fashion designers have popularised a more pop and more finessed form of lehengas. Ranging from Manish Malhotra’s glittery glam collections to Sabyasachi Mukherjee’s grand wedding collections, a lehenga’s flare with glamour is not only limited to India but also pretty popular in the whole wide world.
Every girl dreams of a Sabyasachi lehenga for her wedding, no matter what her culture is. A flexible garment like a lehenga has imbibed modern and contemporary styles with grace.
Maintenance
A lehenga choli isn’t something that you keep buying every now and then, hence the maintenance should go hand in hand. Washing with detergents and rinsing should be avoided no matter what. Dry cleaning is the only way to sustain a pair of lehenga choli; also, storing it in a dry place wrapped in newspapers or plastic is recommended.
No occasion is fulfilled without posting a graceful slow-mo twirl in your gorgeous lehenga. An attire that keeps Indian traditions in place and is flexible enough to adorn with contemporary designs — what more could a girl ask for?
About Somdyuti Bhattacharyya
Somdyuti is an experienced Content Manager with a demonstrated history of working in the fashion, health and computer software industry. He is skilled in painting, dance, communication, creativity skills and fashion. A strong media and communication professional with a Bachelor of Science (BS) focused on Economics from Maulana Azad College.
