There are significant differences between urban and rural dressing styles in India. In rural areas, traditional fabrics like cotton and khadi are most common, and styles typically reflect local cultural traditions. Men often wear lungis and kurtas, while women commonly wear saris. Urban dressing is more influenced by Western fashion trends and prioritizes comfort, with clothing choices also reflecting one's profession. While rural communities emphasize tradition and family bonds, urban living is more individualistic and flexible. However, urban and rural styles are increasingly blending as cultures globalize and people move between areas.

1. Urban Dressing v/s Rural Dressing
Parmar shubhda
Department of English
Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar University
Bhavnagar, Gujarat
shubhadaparmar10@gmail.com
Introduction:
The India’s most of the population lives in villages. When travelling during the
length and width of this subcontinent, one can really imagine the difference
between rural and urban India.
There is a big difference between urban and rural India. One of the major differences
that can be seen between rural India and urban India is their standards of living. People living in
urban India have better living conditions than those living in the rural parts of India. There is a
large economic gap between rural and urban India. Rural areas are less modern and open than
urban areas. Here rural people are not extremely excepting anything like urban people. Life in
the society was very simple and reflected in the way of living, dressing, food habits and manners
etc. However life in the city is not simple but very complex and complicated.
India is a well known country all over the world because of its culture and heritage.
In Indian culture, we include our festivals, rituals, dishes, dressing, etc. So, when it comes to
dressing there are two different aspects, i.e. one is culture and another is casual. Where comfort
is differs from person to person. The modern outfit with Western culture is common now days.
People are probably more attached to their traditions and beliefs. We usually see the society is
not moving towards rural area. They are more near to the nature. India is the continent falls
under the categories of hot and sunny countries. Being based on the agricultural background,
India has cultivated more natural fabric like Khadi, Cotton and silk. Rural folk are highly
depending upon the cotton and khadi for clothing.
“Good humor may be said to be one of the very best articles of dress one can wear in society.”
-William Makepeace Thackeray

2. People in the villages of India wear different types of dresses in their daily life. One
of the most important aspects of village life in India, dresses reflects the cultural variety and
richness of the region. The males in the villages usually wear lungi, dhoti, kurta, etc. On the
other hand, the women mostly wear sari. Beside in the urban areas are generally accepted latest
fashion .There are not particular dresses in daily life. In urban they are also wearing sari but style
of sari is particularly dissimilar from rural. So people from rural areas are generally following
their tradition and to the people of urban; they are blindly following latest fashion. Here I said
that, every villagers have own culture. Because in every village people’s dressing style is
different .And on the other side in urban area also dress code is changed with profession. So this
is difference between urban and rural dressing.
In rural community the force of traditional mores and the bonds of family unity are
more central than in the urban community.
According to Biesanz and Biesanz,
“In the rural community custom is the king, the folkways and mores control most of behavior.”
The sense of group responsibility which tends to be more and more dissolved in the
increase of the city prevails in village life. In village, clothing covers most of the body, is
common .In India, traditionally dressed woman cover the tops of their head and her face with her
sari. So this is symbol of old culture reflecting there. Here the family played a very significant
and major role. Its hold was very strong then.
If we are considering the 21st
century many rural areas do not follow their tradition of
dressing. Means women of village are not cover their head and face with sari. They want to live

3. life like urban people as well as looking like them. Here I want to say that, people are copying
another culture on their selves. But first of all should think about the culture they are following is
suitable his / her or not. Because just adopting culture is not much safer for us. Culture itself is
never entirely static or uniform, each age, each age group, each year brings some variation of
custom and accompanying clothing habits. Culture continually is being modified by development
in the social and economic and such changes are reflected visibly in the clothing of the people.
In the cities bond of families is not so well, and many functions which the families
used to celebrate, have been taken away by other institutions and relations. So we can say that in
urban area people live free minded life. They have not any tradition or not any rigid rules. Due to
professional life and capitalization, people prefer comfortable as well as new trendy wearing. So
they are following daily fashion, lives life in ‘fashion world’. They always create their own
fashion. They have not ashamed to follow any new trend or wearing what they like as fashion.
Here dressing is likely to relate with the power and position on has in the social circles. The
cities in India also have certain dress codes for professions e.g. 'khaki' dress for police force,
black coat and white shirt or sari is for layers and solicitors. So dress codes define the profession.
In comparisons with the western countries India is still backsword in the fashion trends but
gradually the Indian Sari and suits catching the fire on the red carpet.
Generally in urban area where as some persons organize some kind of parties or
celebration of festivals such as Christmas or birthday have different type of dress codes .In these
kinds of occasions the dress code is implemented it means that it's must for the person to dress
up like Santa or theme of black and white. So now days this is the trend of urban lifestyle that in
this modern and ever changing world of fashion dressing sense plays very vital role. Dress code
is very attractive and creative idea for all of us. Urban people are also fashionable in religion
also. They have different fashions on different occasion. They do not hesitate any time especially
in dressing.
If we are considering rural culture, the other side of the society, it is really different
from urban culture .There people are wearing very shining dressing on marriage ceremony.
Parties are not being organized in rural areas. It's a kind of taboo for such parties and night outs.

4. So if any one wears some modern clothes then s/he has been mocked. Because rural people are
not adjusting their mindsets for adaption of culture of urban especially in dressing. They are far
from them. In village we can also see typical dress code like, men wear dhoti and kurta. Working
lady generally choose choli. In these dressing they are feeling comfortable more. Here I also
present one example of shepherds. They have worn traditional clothes in day to day life. And
ladies of their wear blouse and back side’s body portion is extremely open. At time there is not
broken any traditional taboos for woman or not laugh on her. The male members of the society
wear Kediyu . So my point is that in festival of Navaratri or on another occasion urban ladies and
gents are following fashion of this tradition. So in one or another way people of urban are
remembering rooted fashion of rural and rural people are following urban trends. In short in the
world of dressing all people have wants; they are looking different from another people. And
whenever wear new dress, other people are appreciate them and also the dressing.
Here we can say that an advertisement of Amul Dairy Products is best example stands for the
rural dressing and the modern, techno friendly culture. ( Amul milk)
So trend is main aspect of life, especially in clothes. If they are belong to urban or
rural. But in 21st
century people are blindly follow it. If we are observing, we can have realistic
idea about dressing. Now days fashion is extremely opposition between rural and urban. People
of urban they are crazy behind fashion of rural and beside rural people has trend of urban
fashion. They disregard old culture for instance a rural girl is coming at urban area for study.
After completed her education once again she went at rural area. So at that time she is
tremendously changed. Her dressing her life style has modified, especially in dressing. Always
all persons' dressing is identification of them. Dressing speaks about the very persona of one's
self. In our life dressing performs very vital role.
If we are considering literature, there are also some rigid rules. Here I remember
novel “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Here present character of Hester Prynne a
Woman found guilty of adultery. She is required to wear a scarlet "A" ("A" is the symbol of
adultery) on her dress to shame her. So here we can see that how the dressing is indicating
personality of person.

5. First impressions are made of visual and verbal clues, which can form within few
seconds of meeting someone. Many things can part into a first impression, such as someone’s
posture, facial expressions, handshake, eye contact and dress. While with help of these cues an
identified portrayal of a person’s character and personality, they can give a good indication of
who someone is.
Appearance is the most important aspect in our day to life style. In present society a
person appearance, dressing and clothing does matter a lot. Dressing sense is said to be the
reflection of a person's personality as well as it reflects the time for which the individual person
attends. Depending upon this people of different tastes, cultures and behavioral of works.
Dresses or cloths divided into casuals wear, formal wear, comfort wear and traditional wear. As
classified above those all are situational and occasional wears. Here the main role is played by
the issue of dressing sense, it comes in to picture .that means provided that sense for situation
and connecting our dress to a particular dress. Dressing sense doesn't only mean situational
wearing of cloths but it also states the color combinations of your wear. Black trousers and white
shirts are the ideal and everlasting combinations in similar way we can state that any kind of dark
shirts with light color trousers can also be stated as the ideal form of dressing. As stated dressing
sense can differ from gender to gender that means females and males have different choice and
there interest of dresses and coming to kids they also has dresses with respect to their age groups.
Fashions also place a main role part of our clothing and dresses.
This is why dressing can be so important in our daily life .Your personal appearance
can also call a variety of reactions from people who know you and who around you, they react to

6. your appearance in positive or negative way. The success of the appearance messages sent by an
individual and how that same individual readers the messages sent by others, is influenced by
many factors. Each of us learns many values and attitudes about clothing and personal
appearance. These values and attitudes shape not only clothing choice but also other choices; we
must make concerning appearances and behavior.
Dr. Jennifer Baumgartner wrote the book on this phenomenon, which she calls the
“psychology of dress.” In “You Are What You Wear: What Your Clothes Reveal About You,”
she explains our clothing choices, but how to overcome key psychological issues in your
everyday life.
Dress behavior is a major sign of personality. Dress refers to the way one dresses,
and dress mentality refers to the person's mood open in the dress. For instance, a person who
dresses smartly, pleasingly, and attractively not only shows that the person has good taste but
also indicates his or her fine mood. So we are identifying person on her or his dressing .i.e. if
person wear white coat so we are know he or she is doctor. So dressing is giving symbol of
person’s identity. Here I present one example of an advertisement. How another person is
identify personality with help of dressing. (Airtal)
Dress is very important and attractive think of both of side in rural and also in urban.
Because when people are wearing new dress in rural area at that time they had lots of glad
feelings. Because they are wearing new clothes .And especially this location is doing on Diwali.
Generally in village on the festival people are parches new clothes.
On their hand in urban life shopping of clothes is very simple thing. But in urban life
when people are buying some special clothes i.e. if a man buy t-shirt like sign of Sachin
Tendulkar, at that time he feel very delighted. Some time Clothing has a significant effect on
self-esteem and confidence, claims expert. Some time clothes can attack attitude of person also.
As usual we are said that clothes are very important and valuable thing of every person’s
life. And after purchasing clothes all people have different kind of joy. In rural area they have
one kind of joy and on other hand urban people have different kind of joy.
Conclusion:

7. Dressing styles change over time for a diversity of reasons. Although environmental
changes can have strong effects, trade causes the quickest shifts in a culture's clothing styles.
Means in urban and rural area people wants to live with the trend. They have to make their own
fashion. Adopting western culture is not a problem but one should be very careful whatever they
are adopting is good or bad as per the current social standers. Just copying any culture won’t
work. We should find out our culture and try to remove them like bowery.
In short, we are said that rural and urban they have own culture in dressing. Dresses
are very important aspect of life. And without dressing all people’s life is half. Dressing is one of
the stages which demonstrate the personality of person in daily life.
Dress as an expression of modesty is a cultural variations rather than being based in the
universal of mankind. The average person however is appropriate to interpret the significance of
clothing only in terms of physical or utilitarian needs, such as the need for defense against the
weather often we forget that everyone has a variety of social and emotional needs that also must
be met in some way.
Dressing is a tool by which a person expresses the varieties of culture and his status in
the society. The dressing sense in the exacting culture gives a sense of superiority or inferiority
and acts as a medium of self expression.
Works Cited
 A.P. Thakar, Sunil Pandey, A.P Thakar and sunil Pandey. 21st Century India View and
Vision. New Delhi, 2009.
 wikipedia. n.d.
 (culturalindia and indian-clothing)
 (difference-between-urban-and-rural-india)