1. The Regional, Modern fashion styles of India…
A beautiful smoky eye with perfectly tailed kohl; the sound of her hanging jhumka
as she turned; the train of her sari flowing like the tail of a peacock; the anklet still
in her feet in the midst of the city life; from the Cinderella-slippers and the
Punjabi’s moccasins to the sneakersand the black leather boots, India witnesses it
all and showcases them gloriously, full of pride.
Flashes of colors, clinking as they turn and tic-tac while they walk; people in India
with their bizarrely unique and unexpected attires are always worth being
noticed. India, with its multi cultured environment celebrates a huge amount of
traditions that change with every other street that is easily reflected in the way
the people carry themselves. Be it your own home, or your neighbors’, you’ll still
find the changes that accompany each feet of this colorful country.
What is fashion? Fashion is a formof art. Itis the way one expresses herself to the
entire world. It tells a lot about our nature, behavior and our outlook on the
world. Style and fashion are closely related to each other but are not the same.
They are dependent on each other. Fashion is always undergoing changes. It’s
never the same. Even at the same time, the fashion may be different at different
places. Fashion is popular style or practice that is commonly practiced by people
at a time. For example, recently there is a fashion of crop tops, jumpsuits.
Similarly, there could be fashion about anything at all. It could be about a new
way to tie your hair or maybe about a new style of heels. It could be about a new
makeup that is in the market or it could be about a new clothing style. Style is a

2. manner of doing something. It depends on an individual’s personality that how
she carries out that fashion in her own way. It represents our character rather
than just the dresses speaking for us.
Being the carrier of Indus valley civilization’s history, some fashion decree is still
followed by us as the successors. Wrapping
a piece of cloth on the entire body was the
basic concept that is still being modernized
and continuously results in a new fashion
statement. The effect of westernization in
the fashion styles has resulted in emergence
of the traditional numbers blended with the
westernized ways. Be it the Saree worn by the village women, showcasing their
love for authenticity or the Sari worn by the Top models in the fashion shows.
From the ‘Banarasi’ saree to the ‘Kanjivaram’ silk saree and the ‘Bomkai’ silk
saree to the ‘Bandhej’ saree or the now-trending georgette, chiffon or net sarees,
we find their presence all-round the country.
Af
For the common women of India, Fashion is a far off thing on some days and a
matter of pride on the other. A working woman carry herself in the way she can
tackle the situations the best of her entire day. She chose to dress in comfort and
that is her style statement. Sometimes we must not run after fashion but must
experiment with new things as well. It is important that in the process of
following the fashion blindly, wemust not forget our own self. She wears a salwar
kameez and still feels the most beautiful. She wears a jeans and a kurti and dare

3. everyoneto tell her sheis not good enough. She wears what her culture demands
but most importantly she wears what her heart desires. Being in India, she
believes she has the choice to do as she desires and when she desires. She
attaches herself to the traditional attires but is not afraid to make a change in that
attire if she needs to.
Each and every state in India enjoys its own different traditions that have been
going on for years. With little or no- change, the styles are immortal and
impossible to replicate.
Visiting the state of Rajasthan might leave you in the awe of its vibrancy and
kaleidoscopic colors. Descended from the times of Rajas and Maharajas, the
fashion and style employs a richness that is one of a kind. From the embroidered
odhnis in the shades of red and yellow to the stone work and beaded beauty in
their ghagras, adorned with the heavy ornaments and silver jewelry with the
fullness given by carved images of camels and elephants, they show the true
Rajasthani spirit.
Taking inspiration from these traditional styles, we see a hint of all these in the
now- trending clothing and jewelry styles. The big beautiful head gears or the
famous nose rings to the jhumkes and anklets, today’s Indian females are
continuously accepting these without any hesitation. The famous ‘juttis’ of
Rajasthan, especially of Jaipur are worn women all over the India.

4. Go to the south of the country and the everlasting pleasant climate will sway you
to take the road of market and explore the different possibilities of fashion and
styles.
Ever seen a south Indian bride? If you have, then you must know what it means
when I say that the South Indian attires are simply beautiful. With their peaceful
shades of white, golden, orange and blue, they reveal a beauty that touches the
soul.

5. The world famous silk sarees namely Kancheepuram saree, Mysore silk saree and
the Konrad sarees are all a boon of the south Indian fashion. The south Indian
women combine their graceful sarees with the godly gold jewelry around their
neck and head, full with the elegant tagdi around their waists. Teaming it all up
with a beautiful thick stranded bun decorated with a string of off white jasmine
Gajre and the divine deity is a step away. Young women with a taste of grace are
now- a – days choosing south Indian fashion styles of silk sarees and the bold
makeup to go with it. The South India males’ styles belong aptly with their
counterparts.
The controversialstate of Jammu and Kashmir with its beautiful valleys also offers
a distinct taste of fashion. Very true to their tradition and dedicated to their
cultures, these hilly people just take a strong sense of belonging in their attires.
From the pashmina shawls to the headscarf, Taranga flowing to the heels of the
women, these colorful silky clothes contribute to the completion of the formal

6. dress. Earrings, bangles and pendants so worn by the Kashmiri women are rich in
style and wonderful to look at. Either in silver or in gold, their intricate detailing is
worth experiencing for. Then only you’ll know the meaning of becoming a
‘Kashmir Ki kali’.
The intense fashion sense can also be seen in its true form in a Bengali beauty on
the occasion of their mostawaited and famous occasion of durga puja. Cladded in
a white saree with a wide red border and a tincture of golden on their wrists and
neck, and you see a shadow of durga Maa in front of you. The Bengali way of
wrapping a saree is different from that employed elsewhere in India. It is this
unique way among other things that still catches the attention of the today’s
fashion lovers. With the open flowing hair and a showcase of the red sindoor on
the married women’s head, along with ‘shakha-paula’ on their wrists, they are
marked different in their style sense.

7. With the flamboyant colors of Punjab, it is one of the places that live in all the
shades of Grey. From the utmost traditional dresses of Punjabi suit salwar to the
latest gowns from the fashion magazines, the Punjabi women do a variety of
them all. Gorgeous high heels or Punjabi ‘juttis’, they dress as per the occasion
and leave their mark wherever they are. Their long braided hair adds to their
fierce look that aptly marks them as the ‘shernis’ of Punjab.
Talking about Punjab brings in mind the thing that represents it that is the
‘turban’. Itis one of the most important parts of their attire that they never forget
to wear. As per the occasion, they tie it up on their heads in different colors. They

8. also match the color of their turban with their outfits. Be it in villages or the
modern cities, turban is a symbol of respect and also an essential part of their
complete attire.
The seven sisters of north-eastern India arefull of culture and each of these states
celebrates their uniqueness by employing different traditional attire that is
different from those seen and found in rest of the country.
Assam is famous for its Muga and Pat silk sarees and Mekhela Chador. Assamese
women wear traditional jewelry like large silver bangles, Kopo Phool earrings and
Mukuta Moni necklaces. These are beautiful and unique in their designs.
In Nagaland, the Naga shawls are quite famous that are available in different
patterns ranging from floral to geometrical and are also given as gifts on special
occasion. They are considered to be proud and respectable part of their attire.

9. The women of Mizoram sport beautiful head gears decorated with feathers,
stones and other random materials. They also wear long sleeved shirt- dresses
paired up with checkered colorful long skirts.
The women of these states wear a lot of jewelry consisting of rings, bamboo
earrings, silver jewelry and beaded turquoise pieces. This is made using brass,
silver, gold, bone and ivory.
From North to South and East to West, there are thousands of traditions that
need to be followed and billions of women to follow them. Each and every
woman takes it up to her to take forward their history by dressing in their
traditional attires but sometimes change is also healthy. A combination of
different attires or a new culture altogether can also be adopted by them as long
as our traditions don’t wither because of them.
Even though each place has its own culture but in some places generalized trends
are followed. In cities like Mumbai, Delhi and other metro cities you will find
people with a mixture of different dressing senses. Being the metro cities, the
recent changes in fashion are acknowledged quite early here hence even the

10. common population are aware about these so it is easy for them to follow such
trends. Be it the charming look of short skirts with a sling bag to the bubbly look
of long flowing skirts with an embroidered handbag, from the slim fit jeans to the
loose yet elegant palazzos, from the long kurtis to the crop tops, from the
handicraft jewelry to the single pendant look; all these changes are easily
observed by the people and hence they start following them creating a chain as
they further publicize these.
Television and film industry also have a major impact on the fashion trends in our
country. People tend to follow their favorite stars and try adopting their fashion
sense. Hence, the ways the actors and actresses dress themselves up become a
major deciding factor for the rest of the people.

11. India is a bird and its feathers makes it complete. Each feather is unique and
beautiful in its own way and helps it to fly high. The feathers are the people and
their decoration is the fashion. Fashion is a tool to express, it helps to be
confident and stand tall. Style isn’t only in what you wear but also in the way you
feel inside. Our regional attires bind us to our roots and the fashion and style is
for nothing but to portray our history outwardly. Each little change will make it
different but will still keep it the same. One must feel proud in her attire and shall
do so on her own wish.
Next time you are on the street don’t just pass by but look. Look at the people
and see what makes them unique. Look at their attire and see how they fit into
this beautiful mosaic of colors that is our country, India.