Indian Accessories

In its long history India has produced a large variety of traditional dresses; some are in the national level while others are in the state levels. Kurta/kurti, the evergreen Indian costume, comes in the first category and also is a traditional

wear of countries like Pakistan, Bangla Desh and Afghanistan. Kurta is the name for the male wear and Kurti, the female name. Kurti is a long lose fitted shirt that reaches just above or below the knees. Kurta is normally worn over salwar, jeans or trousers. A versatile garment like this is suitable for both formal and informal occasions.

The original traditional Kurti consists of rectangular fabric pieces with some gusset inserts and is usually very simple and plain; only certain forms come in decorative patterns. The sleeves are also very simple and plain and fall straight to the wrist without narrowing and are not cuffed. But you can see certain kurtas with embroidery and decorative works. The Kurti has its side seams left open for 10-12 inches so that the wearer can move about freely.

Almost all kurtis have front opening, often a hemmed slit in the fabric either tied or buttoned at the top, though certain types might feature plackets instead, with or without buttons at shoulder seam. You can see the opening centered on the chest in most of the kurtis while in other cases it is little away from the center. The traditional kurits do not feature a collar whereas some designs are seen with stand up collars called “Mandarin collars”

Kurti is an ideal dress for both hot summers and chilly winters. Summer wear kurtis are made of thin silk and cotton fabrics while thicker fabrics like wool or khadi silk, a thick coarse hand spun and woven silk mixed with other fabrics, is used for making winter wears.

The modern version is available in almost all fabrics, various designs and patterns. The designs might be simple and plain or moderately to richly decorated to satisfy a wide variety fashion tastes of the people and to suit the various occasions. Embroidery is the most common decorative work done on the kurtis. Especially several light summer kurtis come in chikan embroidery around the hem and front opening. The embroidery work is usually done on light semi-transparent textures with matching threads. This Kurti is a blend of traditional looks and subtle nuances of modernity.

The ultra-modern kurtis for women are short, just touching the waist, with short sleeves or without sleeves and come in various enchanting color combinations, designs and vibrant colors. These kurtis, worn over churidars, jeans, parallels or capris, look extremely magnificent and fit for any casual or formal wear.

The women in Haryana state, India, wear a traditional costume termed as Daman-Kurti-Chunder. While daman and chunder represent lehenga and dupatta respectively the kurti is a shirt-like blouse in white color. This decent daman-kurti-chunder costume beautifies the Haryana girls with its rich outlook.