How to wear a Dupatta

Dupatta, also known as chunni, are a beautiful accessory to Salwar Kameez and Lehnga Choli. Like Scarf's or stolls there are many ways to wear a dupatta depending on the occasion and your overall comfort and style that you think looks best on you.

About Salwar Kameez

Western fashion trends have been leaning heavily toward ethnic Indian fashion clothing and patterns for years but the arrival of salwar kameez in the western fashion world has been so fast and so explosive that it can only be described as breath-taking. So what is so hot about salwar kameez and why are women all over the world going crazy over a fashion trend that has been around for thousands of years? The answer is simple: salwar kameez or shalwar kameez are filling a role that has been missing from the western fashion scene for years, graceful feminine elegance. For so many years, women in the western world have been bombarded by the fashion and media world with the idea that the "more skin, the better" theory of fashion. Every year saw necklines dropping, hemlines shrinking until the point that our clothing was playing "peek-a-boo" with our bodies. Women were told that this look was sexy, that we needed to dress this way to be thought of as attractive. With clothes getting skimpier and tighter, we were getting more uncomfortable. Salwar Kameez has given us a delicious alternative to this type of clothing. There are many reasons wear salwar kameez such as it is modest, great value, elegant, graceful and the bottom line is that it is comfortable. Salwar Kameez come in many different styles such as Parallel/Trouser style salwar suits with a short Kurta style top, churidar style salwar kameez, pajami and afghani style salwar kameez and traditional style salwar kameez which has innumerable variations. If that was not enough variation even for the most discriminating fashion diva, take into the account the countless varieties of embroidery and design enhancements available and salwar kameez become limitless in style, design and variations!

History of Salwar Kameez

Salwar kameez is emerging as one of the most popular costume in the fashion scene all over the world. Many western designers are taking inspiration from the Indian & Pakistani Salwar kameez. The Indo-Pak Shalwar Kameez has a very significant place in the history of the textiles of the sub-continent and traces back to the Vedic times. kameez salwar has emerged as comfortable, elegant and respectful apparel of the Indian & Pakistani wardrobe. Essentially a medieval garment the kameez salwar in its original form was brought into the country by the Muslim rulers, from the year 750 A.D. Salwar Kameez was brought into India during the Mougal era as a courtly garment from the central Asian invaders, and slowly became the popular garment of the people of the countryside with the spread of Islam. The men and women both wore different forms of what is today known as the kamiz shalwar. Pakistani & Indian dressing styles are marked by many variations, both religious and regional with a wide choice of textures and styles. The people of the Indo Pak Sub-Continent have been very fashionable from the very ancient times. Cotton cloth has always been worn by the masses while the rich favored the use of silks. Elaborate head-dresses and jewelry were even sported by men. The earlier dress code revolved around wrapping the body with varied lengths of cloth. Shalwar or Salwar resemble a pyjama drawn tightly in at the waist with a draw string and is tailored in such a way that it tapers at the ankles. The Kameez is like a Tunic Top and is worn over the salwar which is like a long shirt. The most common pattern has sleeves up to the wrists, slits on the sides with a mandarin collar with buttons in front. Another variation of the salwar is 'churidar pajama'. The Churidar Pyjama is a tighter version of the salwar accentuating the knees and ankles. The salwar-kameez is usually worn with the dupatta which is like a scarf or a stoll. The Dupatta is a rectangle cloth made of very thin cotton or synthetic material used to cover the head and the chest. Another variation is a Sharara where the women wear their costumes in three parts. The shirt of this costume are very small extending up to the abdomen, with a rich embroidery and Zardozi work that were first brought into the country. The bottoms were known as the Sharara which were a loose flowing gown divided in between. The heads were always covered with the Dupatta, which was both a mark of respect and honor. Like all garments, the salwar kameez has also transformed with time to suit the current day demand of the modern Asian women. In Punjab the shalwar kamiz acquired a more nationalistic and broader base often stretching to other parts of the country. Today the Shalwar Kameez is synonymous with the national costume of the country along with the sari. In Kashmir women wear a similar outfits but with thicker material to suit to the climate of their region. In Lucknow the baggy pajamas are replaced by tight and long leggings that form many folds at the ankles. These are called churidars, suggesting that they resemble bangles. The forms of the salwar kameez have changed with the changing fashions of the times and they have been tried out with various traditional combinations like the Lacha , Gharara, Sharara, Ghagra Choli etc. and more contemporary forms like the parallel trousers. Even with the changes in time it remains a costume that describes comfort and elegance.

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