The Pre-Draped Saree Might Just Become Your Festive Season BFF!

Most of us have our first brush with sarees in our childhood, you know, those long hours spent trying to look pretty like our mothers, draping on that saree and a stray string of pearls. You stare at your reflection in the mirror, wondering if you do look like her. Many years later, when your school farewell party or Teachers’ Day comes around, you attempt to drape your saree, your mum or girlfriend fussing over the pleats, trying to get them right. And then for many years, the nine or six yards of fabric gets relegated to the corners of the cupboard, retrieved only when you’re cleaning! But it looks like sarees are making a comeback, and this time in a more versatile, wearable form. Yes, contemporay drapes and even pre-stitched sarees are a thing!

Women are wearing sarees while they are out and about, pairing them with sneakers, crop tops and what have you. Of course, the purists would tut tut; there’s no way you can wear a cotton saree with a pair of flippant flip flops. But we are just glad that sarees are back now, and there’s not just a couple of ways to wear them. More than anything, the drape allows for the wearer’s personality to shine through.

Of course, for plenty of women, the struggle on the how to get it exactly right continues. And designers everywhere have been incorporating the drape into the final outfit. Now, you have options where a saree is already pleated, so no one is sitting down and ironing them out even as you hold on to the pallu.

Talking of pre-draped sarees, designer Purushu Arie has introduced the armhole saree where you simply slip in your arm to wear the saree. It’s literally the easiest, they claim. We can’t entirely credit her with starting this trend though. Many designers before her have dipped their toes into the ‘easy-to-wear saree’ trend.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bgge8wnBDqr/?taken-by=gauravguptaofficial

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bj7OVHmnxT7/?taken-by=houseofneetalulla

https://www.instagram.com/p/BjmFr-PFPR4/?taken-by=sonaakshiraaj

Sonakshi Raaj, in fact, catapulted to fame for her saree gowns. Other designers have also flirted with this concept. Gaurav Gupta, Neeta Lulla, Shirya Som and others have certainly introduced us to the concept before, so we aren’t going to call this ‘armhole saree’ revolutionary.

But if you’ve been putting off wearing a saree because of the technicalities involved, maybe this trend will actually get you to pour yourself into one. And for maybe just that reason, this is worth it.

Call us traditional, but a crisp saree worn well remains a favourite to date!