INDIAN COSTUME

HISTORY
TIMELINE

BY SHALINI CHATTERJEE
GUIDED BY: MRS. ANITA RAY
SUBJECT: HISTORY OF FASHION
 THE PERIODS OF HINDU
HISTORY
 Indus Valley civilization (3300-1400 B.C.E)
 Vedic Period (1600-800 B.C.E)
 Classical Period (coincidental with Axial Age)
(800-200 B.C.E)
 Epic and Early Puranic Period (200-500 C.E)
 Medieval and late Puranic Period (500-1500
C.E)
 Present Modern Period (1500 C.E)
Priest King draped
in Patterned Robe
or Shawl
DISTINCTIVE ATTRIBUTES

 It has tree leaves pattern on one shoulder

 The other shoulder is bare
 An armlet is seen which gives a hint of their
ornamental preferences
 It has a coronet with central circular motif on
head
 It was discovered in Mohenjo-Daro
 It was generally thought to be a priest, but it
maybe a nobleman or even a deity as there was
no proper evidence
 A stately appearance is created by his
meditative expression and formal drape of
shawl
 Robe appears to be printed or appliqued in a
trefoil
Bronze statue of
Dancing Girl
 DISTINCTIVE ATTRIBUTES
 It is 4.5 inch high
 It was discovered in Mohenjo-Daro
 The young woman is naked, her body is
ornamented with a profusion of jewellery
 Her hair is elaborately ornamented
 It has heavy bangles on her left arm
 It supposes to represent a dancer or a votive
figure
 FEMALE CLOTHING COSTUMES
• The waist is bare
• Skirt is held by a sash or girdle with beads secured by
pins
• Some wore cloaks wrapped around the upper part of
body
• Headdresses used stiffened cotton cloth
 MALE CLOTHING COSTUMES
• Generally nude
• Figures of man at Harappa might be wearing close clinging
dhoti
• The main fabric used was cotton, no evidence of use of linen
and wool
• Footwear as such was not found
 VEDIC PERIOD
• This period is associated with the entry of Aryans
into India around 2000 B.C.E
• The Vedic hymns showed evidence of use of cotton
• People became more conscious about clothing
• Common mode of dress was draping
• Earliest Vedic hymn, Rig Veda refers to garments as
‘vasas’
• Showed evidence of shoes and sandals with
scorpion stings
 MAURYAN AND SUNGA PERIOD
(321-72 B.C.)
• Continued to wear unstitched
garments: antariya,
kayabandh, uttariya
• Women covered their heads
with uttariya straight or
crosswise
• Elaborate jewellery was worn
by both men and women
DONOR FIGURE
(BHARUT)
 SATAVAHANA (ANDHRA) PERIOD
(200B.C.- A.D. 250)
• Costumes were a mixture of foreign
and indigenous garments
• Kancuka in stripes or beehive design
• The Ushnisa was always worn and a
crown or tiara when necessary
• In late Satavahana, clothing was made
of thin cotton, Antariya, Uttariya and
kayabandh were widely used
• The Ushnisa of men was wrapped three
to four times after covering the topknot
of hair
KING
 KUSHAN PERIOD
( 130 B.C.- A.D. 185)
• Costumes are divided into five types worn
by:
 Indigenous people; antariya, uttariya and
kayabandh
 Guardians and attendants; harem and
sewn kancuka, red-brown in colour
 Foreign Kushan rulers and their entourage
 Other foreigners such as grooms, traders
 Mixture of foreign and indigenous
garments; where purely draped garments
were replaced by cut and sewn garments YAKSHI :
FEMALE DOOR
KEEPER
 GUPTA PERIOD
(EARLY FOURTH TO MID EIGHTH
CENTURY A.D.)
• Preference for stitched garments
• With the white calf-length tunic, chaddar
added dignity to the attire
• The ushnisa was slowly becoming obsolete
• Members of the nobility are still seen in
their fine silk or muslin antariya
• For women, the antariya was worn in
kachha style or lehnga
• The antariya was occasionally worn as an
Indonesian sarong- a wide garment
reaching from under the armpits to mid-
thigh
PRINCESS
( AJANTA, CAVE I )
 MUGHAL PERIOD
• Introduction of fine cotton and printed
clothing
• Akbar renamed garments; Jama(coat) became
sarbgati, izar(pant) became yar-piraban,
fauta(belt) became pat gat, burqa(veil) became
chitra gupta
• Most women wore half-sleeved bodice (choli),
ankle length skirt (ghagra), and the head scarf
(odhni)
• The headgear was a jewelled, feathered turban
 PUNJAB
• Churidar and kurta was most
commonly worn by women
and men worn kurta and
pajama
• The traditional footwear was
Jutti
• Women wore shawls of
Phulkari designs(flower work)
• Accessories included kaleera,
chooda, paranda
 MAHARASTRA
• Nauvari sari: nine yard sari as the
traditional costume of women
• Brahmani nath: intricately designed
nose ring
• Jondhale haar: a stunning necklace
that represents one of Maharastra’s
main grains; jawari
• Thushi: choker necklace with closely
bound tiny gold beads
• Dhoti worn as cultural heritage along
with kurta or shirt for men
 KARNATAKA
• Kanjeevaram silk belongs to
Karnataka’s Kanchipuram
• Another renowned form of sari is
the Mysore silk sari. It is
distinguished by the pleats being at
the back
• The cultural costume of men is
Lungi and a silk or cotton muffler
placed on the neck covering the
shoulder
• The traditional embroidery is the
Kasuti embroidery
 WEST BENGAL
• The traditional saris include
cotton, Baluchari and Jamdani
• The men’s costumes are dhoti and
panjabi
• Traditional embroidery is the
Kantha work
• The jewelleries include Tikli,
Kaan, Chik
• Shakha (white bangles) made of
conch shells and Pola(red bangles)
made of red corals are very famous
 JAMMU AND KASHMIR
• Phiran is the most popular
form of dress for men and
women
• The Pathani suit is popular
among the men
• Pashmina shawls obtained
from mountain goat is popular
• The traditional embroidery is
Kashida kari
THANK YOU