Churidars, also churidar pyjamas, are tightly fitting trousers worn by both men and women in the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

. Churidars are a variant of the common shalwar pants. Shalwars are cut wide at the top and narrow at the ankle. Churidars narrow more quickly so that contours of the legs are revealed. They are usually cut on the

bias Bias is a disproportionate weight ''in favor of'' or ''against'' an idea or thing, usually in a way that is inaccurate, closed-minded, prejudicial, or unfair. Biases can be innate or learned. People may develop biases for or against an individ ...

, making them naturally stretchy, which is important when pants are closefitting. They are also longer than the leg and sometimes finish with a tightly fitting buttoned cuff at the ankle. The excess length falls into folds and appears like a set of bangles resting on the ankle (hence 'churidar'; 'churi': bangle, 'dar': like). When the wearer is sitting, the extra material is the "ease" that makes it possible to bend the legs and sit comfortably. The word ''churidar'' is from

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

and made its way into English only in the 20th century.Hawkins, R. E. 1984. ''Common Indian words in English''. Oxford University Press, New Delhi. Earlier, tight-fitting churidar-like pants worn in India were referred to by the British as ''Moghul breeches'', ''long-drawers'', or ''mosquito drawers.''Yule, Henry and A. C. Burnell. 1903. ''Hobson-Jobson: A Glossary of Colloquial Anglo-Indian Words and Phrases, and of Kindred Terms, Etymological, Historical, Geographical and Discursive.'' London: John Murray. 1021 pages. Churidars are usually worn with a '' kameez'' (tunic) by women or a ''

kurta A ''kurta'' is a loose collarless shirt or tunic worn in many regions of South Asia, (subscription required) Quote: "A loose shirt or tunic worn by men and women." Quote: "Kurta: a loose shirt without a collar, worn by women and men from South ...

'' (a loose overshirt) by men, or they can form part of a bodice and skirt ensemble.

Gallery

Image:Kashmiri children in churidar 1890.jpg, Portrait of Kashmiri children wearing churidar pyjamas Image:churidar.jpg, 19th century painting of Indian women wearing transparent skirts over churidar pants Image:Silk kurta churidar mojari2.jpg, Cotton churidar worn with silk side-opening kurta and ''mojari'' shoes Image:Vita in Bangladesh.jpg, A woman visiting Bangladesh wearing a churidar File:Photograph of President Truman shaking hands with Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru of India upon Nehru's arrival at... - NARA - 200152.jpg,

Jawaharlal Nehru Jawaharlal Nehru (14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat, and statesman who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20th century. Nehru was a pr ...

, prime minister of India, dressed in churidar being received by American president

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. As the 34th vice president in 1945, he assumed the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt that year. Subsequen ...

upon arrival at the National Airport, Washington DC, October 1949 File:All India Muslim League Working Committee Lahore 1940.jpg,

Muhammad Ali Jinnah Muhammad Ali Jinnah (born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 187611 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the inception of Pa ...

, the founder of

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

, center, and

Liaquat Ali Khan Liaquat Ali Khan (1 October 189516 October 1951) was a Pakistani lawyer, politician and statesman who served as the first prime minister of Pakistan The prime minister of Pakistan (, Roman Urdu, romanized: Wazīr ē Aʿẓam , ) is the he ...

, its first prime minister, extreme left, both in churidars, at the

All-India Muslim League The All-India Muslim League (AIML) was a political party founded in 1906 in Dhaka, British India with the goal of securing Muslims, Muslim interests in South Asia. Although initially espousing a united India with interfaith unity, the Muslim L ...

Working Committee meeting in

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

, March 1940 Image:Choonasee pant churidar.jpg, Portrait of the son of H.H. Chunnasee Rajoonath Pant (wearing churidars). 1860. Oriental and India Office Collection, British Library. Image:Maharaja nabha churidar.jpg, Portrait of Sir Hira Singh, Raja of Nabha,

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

, in churidars. c. 1890. Oriental and India Office Collection, British Library.

References

{{Clothing in South Asia Indian clothing Bangladeshi clothing Pakistani clothing Muhajir culture Hosiery Trousers and shorts Men's clothing

Gallery

See also

References