WHAT’S THE NEXT BIG TREND IN TRADITIONAL ETHNIC WEAR?
Indian traditional wear is always evolving and being reinvented in the most exciting ways. The credit for it all goes to Indian designers who are charismatic and hell-bent on creating designs that are not just breath-taking but can be classified as works of art.
But what’s next? When it starts to seem like we’ve seen it all, a new trend drops and we fall in love with ethnic clothes all over again.
We are here to spill the tea on all the biggest ethnic fashion trends you can expect to see everywhere this season.
Aren’t we all bored of the same old sari pleats? Sarees are traditionally worn on a number of different occasions, could be festive or just a casual brunch. Although sarees tend to look incredibly stunning on everyone, we ask, do we wear sarees or do sarees wear us? Getting trapped in your own pleats can be kind of troublesome, but pants, on the other hand, are comfortable and easy to walk about in. Traditionally worn by Maharashtrian women, a dhoti sari is your usual 9-yard sari wrapped around your body into a dhoti on the bottom half and then draped like a traditional saree on your top half. This draping style was always a part of our culture but it became a sensation when the prodigy herself, Anita Dongre, started experimenting with them. Although Dhoti Sarees weren’t the common choice of draping a sari, the designer helped every woman understand how utterly comfortable yet gorgeous the silhouette is. Dhoti sarees have been all the rage since and they are making a much-appreciated comeback. You should definitely try it for yourself, pick out your favorite sari and start draping.
An Indian girl might own a lot of things but she definitely takes pride in all of her lehengas. Oh! A lehenga, such a beautiful gift the Mughals give us. That’s right! Lehengas became famous in India because of the Mughal Empire in the 10th century. Once it was introduced, it spread like wildfire. Every woman today owns at least one of this traditional attire and we also know that you’re always on the hunt for that perfect lehenga only so you could one-up your last one. All traditional lehengas look the same, with their blouse, long skirt, and dupatta. The silhouette had started to look bland so the great fashion minds at the time started experimenting with different silhouettes and draping styles to reinvent the classic lehenga. Every designer had a vision in mind for the attire and they created stunning pieces that left us all in awe. One of the most trendy lehengas of today is a Layered Lehenga. A layered lehenga has multiple layers built into the skirt and usually, there are three layers. All these layers are frilly, voluminous and so absolutely stunning. If you want to pick out a lehenga for an upcoming event, we suggest you go say goodbye to the old long skirt and try the trendy new layered lehengas.
We wore them all of 2020 and no surprise, they are still one of the most worn ethnic wear styles of 2021. What we all don’t know is that Sharara pants were also a part of traditional Mughal clothing. Instead of lehengas and sarees, Mughal women wore long and bejeweled pants that were frilled at the end with kurtas. These beautiful flared pants were called shararas. This traditional attire became a sensation in the 1970s when Pakistani women started appreciating and wearing it. Eventually, they started being worn here and the rest is history. In 2020 when comfortable clothes became more important than jazzy stuff, sharara suits came back into fashion. They were worn by the biggest celebrities in B-Town and all fashion enthusiasts. Be it a luxury designer or a small boutique designer, each one of them started making their own versions of shararas. There’s plenty of style variations to choose from now. We say, ditch the plain old suits and get yourself a sharara!
You know it’s going to become a major fashion statement when the queen herself, Ms. Komal Pandey wears it. A saree in an Indian women’s wardrobe is a staple, just like rice in an Indian kitchen. Usually, during summer cotton sarees are preferably worn because of the hot and humid climate that we live in. Although cotton sarees are a great daytime outfit option, they tend to fall flat and not give your body a lot of shapes. Organza is a fabric that is super light and paper-like which when draped, adds loads of volume to your silhouette. A number of big fashion houses like Ogaan started making organza sarees and they have become a growing trend. We saw a lot of the big names in the industry rocking this sari last year and we knew it was going to be the most popular sari of 2021.