When it comes to fashion, and that too Indian fashion, the best place to start learning about it is by looking back at how Indian royalty dressed. The same can be followed if you’re looking to develop your personal style. For decades, people have created guides on how to dress like royals. From the iconic and evergreen equestrian outfit to wearing organic fabrics with absolute ease; I’ve often found myself looking at Pinterest images of what regality means, in terms of fashion, with a sense of awe.
There is a kind of relaxed, quiet confidence that comes through when you look at the outfits that royalty are often seen wearing. That’s probably because they’re mostly comfort-oriented and made with good-quality fabrics. Who wouldn’t feel confident in such clothes?
Now, don’t get us wrong, we’re not glorifying privilege. We’re saying that obviously, royal people have access to many things that the bourgeois don’t and we can always learn from them. There’s no harm in looking up to people (as long as you’re not harming yourself in the process).
For instance, the classic chiffon saree; Everyone from Rekha, Sridevi, Sushmita Sen and Alia Bhatt to designers such as Sabyasachi Mukherjee and Manish Malhotra have championed the outfit through their craft, in some way or the other. The saree offers its wearers a lightweight Indian clothing option that is bold and even sensual in some sense. But do you know of the royal connection here?
Indira Devi, Maharani of Cooch Behar, British India was one of the first Indian women to bring the chiffon saree to our fashion scene. And much like the Indian chiffon outfit, Maharani Indira Devi also had a bold and fierce personality.
In fact, According to this cool, and super insightful video shared by Pritha Dasmahapatra, a doctor and textile enthusiast, the Maharani was quite the fashionista.
Indira Devi was the daughter of Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III and Chimnabai II, and the princess of Baroda. But after getting married to the Maharaja of Cooch Behar Jitendra Narayan, she became the Maharani of Cooch Behar, British India.
The Maharani had married Maharaja Jitendra Narayan by going against her family’s expectations of her and was known for her different fashion choices and tastes. Later, she spent a large chunk of her life in Europe, where her fascination and interest with the fabric chiffon deepened. It was in Lyon (France) that she found herself getting larger pieces of chiffon weaved so that she could turn them into stunning sarees. And if you recall, her daughter Gayatri Devi was seen donning many of the same kind of chiffon sarees as well. Have a look at this informative video –
Pritha also wrote a wonderful, and detailed caption explaining how Indira Devi had quite a collection of custom-made footwear by Salvatore Ferragamo.
Thank goodness we were given the chiffon saree by the Maharani, because if there is any way to wear the saree and be comfortable AF, it has to be by wearing chiffon. Right?
Here’s how people have responded to the video:
A chiffon saree and pearls – classic!
