Sensuous, magical, feminine, the sari is one of the most versatile garments. India's national costume is usually associated with traditional, even homely women, but the country’s youth are shattering this stereotype by customising the look in ways that are at once convenient and comfortable, and making the sari everyday wear.
From playing with draping styles to pairing the garment over leggings or jeans and replacing the choli blouse with a T-shirt or crop top, the new generation look upon the sari as a contemporary wardrobe staple, thanks to social workers and social media stars alike.
Soon after Eshna Kutty’s hula-hooping video – in a sari, wide-legged pants and trainers – went viral, many young women copied her casual style of draping, which is typically considered time-consuming and an obstruction to daily activities.
More women are now doing “unusual” things while wearing a sari. Jayanthi Sampathkumar, a senior engineering manager at Google in Hyderabad, has been running marathons sporting a sari since 2017.
She ran her first full marathon of 42 kilometres at the Airtel Hyderabad Marathon the same year in which she made the Guinness World Record for fastest running in a sari. “For this run, I got myself a lightweight nine-yard Ikat sari and wore it in the Madisar style with slight modifications,” she says.
We have reimagined handwoven fabrics to give them a contemporary look and appeal to youngsters and working women
Ramesh Menon,
founder, Save the Loom
More sari-clad athletes, young and old, can be found in the Pinkathon, a ladies-only marathon with a “sari run” segment organised by actor, model and humanitarian Milind Soman.
Another man with a sari-reviving plan is Ramesh Menon, who was devastated to see the destruction caused by floods in his home town, Chendamangalam, Kerala, in 2018. Menon launched Save the Loom, a non-profit organisation to help affected weavers and revive all the destroyed looms.
“We have since reimagined handwoven fabrics like kasavu to give them a contemporary look and appeal to youngsters and working women,” says Menon. The brand’s Vidhi line, for example, is a lightweight and breathable collection of saris in classic designs originally aimed at female lawyers going about their business in stuffy courtrooms. The range has since become popular with other female professionals.
Fellow handloom lover and sari enthusiast Mrinalini Shastry from Hyderabad launched a vibrant start-up called Six Yards Plus for women who are socially and environmentally conscious and looking for more versatile and long-lasting saris. “We are also constantly innovating to cater to the requirements of our young clients, considering their limitations of experience and time to shop the traditional way,” says Shastry.
The Sari Surprise unboxing scheme, for example, requires women to choose one of three categories – earthy, vibrant or festive – and fill out a brief questionnaire on their lifestyle priorities, before they are delivered a sari package that meets their needs and aesthetic preferences.
Sari spin-offs are also budding across the country to tap into the growing interest among young women.
Shruti Kasat of The Saree Sneakers, for instance, designs intricately embroidered trainers to match saris and other traditional Indian wear (although it is no longer uncommon to see women – even new-age brides – pairing their saris with on-trend white trainers).
In the online sphere, Border&Fall is a digital publication created to showcase Indian crafts and fashion. Its The Sari Series project was born from creative director Malika V Kashyap’s passion to showcase the numerous ways in which a sari can be draped other than the typical Nivi style.
The project is a digital repository of 90 short videos that portray 83 styles of draping, plus three short films that “capture how sari textures can envelop us, how they can travel with us like a second skin and comfort us as a friend”.
All you need to know about Formula E in Saudi Arabia
What The Saudia Ad Diriyah E-Prix
When Saturday
Where Diriyah in Saudi Arabia
What time Qualifying takes place from 11.50am UAE time through until the Super Pole session, which is due to end at 12.55pm. The race, which will last for 45 minutes, starts at 4.05pm.
Who is competing There are 22 drivers, from 11 teams, on the grid, with each vehicle run solely on electronic power.
Salah in numbers
€39 million: Liverpool agreed a fee, including add-ons, in the region of €39m (nearly Dh176m) to sign Salah from Roma last year. The exchange rate at the time meant that cost the Reds £34.3m - a bargain given his performances since.
13: The 25-year-old player was not a complete stranger to the Premier League when he arrived at Liverpool this summer. However, during his previous stint at Chelsea, he made just 13 Premier League appearances, seven of which were off the bench, and scored only twice.
57: It was in the 57th minute of his Liverpool bow when Salah opened his account for the Reds in the 3-3 draw with Watford back in August. The Egyptian prodded the ball over the line from close range after latching onto Roberto Firmino's attempted lob.
7: Salah's best scoring streak of the season occurred between an FA Cup tie against West Brom on January 27 and a Premier League win over Newcastle on March 3. He scored for seven games running in all competitions and struck twice against Tottenham.
3: This season Salah became the first player in Premier League history to win the player of the month award three times during a term. He was voted as the division's best player in November, February and March.
40: Salah joined Roger Hunt and Ian Rush as the only players in Liverpool's history to have scored 40 times in a single season when he headed home against Bournemouth at Anfield earlier this month.
30: The goal against Bournemouth ensured the Egyptian achieved another milestone in becoming the first African player to score 30 times across one Premier League campaign.
8: As well as his fine form in England, Salah has also scored eight times in the tournament phase of this season's Champions League. Only Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, with 15 to his credit, has found the net more often in the group stages and knockout rounds of Europe's premier club competition.
Tips for newlyweds to better manage finances
All couples are unique and have to create a financial blueprint that is most suitable for their relationship, says Vijay Valecha, chief investment officer at Century Financial. He offers his top five tips for couples to better manage their finances.
Discuss your assets and debts: When married, it’s important to understand each other’s personal financial situation. It’s necessary to know upfront what each party brings to the table, as debts and assets affect spending habits and joint loan qualifications. Discussing all aspects of their finances as a couple prevents anyone from being blindsided later.
Decide on the financial/saving goals: Spouses should independently list their top goals and share their lists with one another to shape a joint plan. Writing down clear goals will help them determine how much to save each month, how much to put aside for short-term goals, and how they will reach their long-term financial goals.
Set a budget: A budget can keep the couple be mindful of their income and expenses. With a monthly budget, couples will know exactly how much they can spend in a category each month, how much they have to work with and what spending areas need to be evaluated.
Decide who manages what: When it comes to handling finances, it’s a good idea to decide who manages what. For example, one person might take on the day-to-day bills, while the other tackles long-term investments and retirement plans.
Money date nights: Talking about money should be a healthy, ongoing conversation and couples should not wait for something to go wrong. They should set time aside every month to talk about future financial decisions and see the progress they’ve made together towards accomplishing their goals.
Winners
Ballon d’Or (Men’s)
Ousmane Dembélé (Paris Saint-Germain / France)
Ballon d’Or Féminin (Women’s)
Aitana Bonmatí (Barcelona / Spain)
Kopa Trophy (Best player under 21 – Men’s)
Lamine Yamal (Barcelona / Spain)
Best Young Women’s Player
Vicky López (Barcelona / Spain)
Yashin Trophy (Best Goalkeeper – Men’s)
Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City / Italy)
Best Women’s Goalkeeper
Hannah Hampton (England / Aston Villa and Chelsea)
Men’s Coach of the Year
Luis Enrique (Paris Saint-Germain)
Women’s Coach of the Year
Sarina Wiegman (England)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More on Quran memorisation:
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Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
How Islam's view of posthumous transplant surgery changed
Transplants from the deceased have been carried out in hospitals across the globe for decades, but in some countries in the Middle East, including the UAE, the practise was banned until relatively recently.
Opinion has been divided as to whether organ donations from a deceased person is permissible in Islam.
The body is viewed as sacred, during and after death, thus prohibiting cremation and tattoos.
One school of thought viewed the removal of organs after death as equally impermissible.
That view has largely changed, and among scholars and indeed many in society, to be seen as permissible to save another life.
