Begum Liaquat Ali Meets President of MIT

A gharara (

Urdu Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...

: ,

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 ...

: ग़रारा,

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

: ঘারারা) is a traditional

Lucknow Lucknow () is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the largest city of the List of state and union territory capitals in India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is the administrative headquarters of the epon ...

i outfit, traditionally worn by Muslim women of the Hindi-Urdu Belt region of

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. It consists of a kurti (a short, mid-thigh length tunic), a

dupatta The dupattā, also called chunni, chunari, chundari, lugda, rao/rawo, gandhi, pothi, orna, and odhni is a long shawl-like scarf traditionally worn by women in the Indian subcontinent. Traditionally, in India, the dupatta is part of the women's le ...

(veil), and most importantly, a pair of wide-legged pants, ruched at the knee so they flare out dramatically known as ''Gharara''. The knee area, called the ''gota'' in

Hindi-Urdu Hindustani is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in North India and Pakistan as the lingua franca of the region. It is also spoken by the Deccani-speaking community in the Deccan plateau. Hindustani is a pluricentric language with two standa ...

, is often elaborately embroidered in

zari Zari () is an even thread traditionally made of fine gold or silver used in traditional Indian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani garments, especially as brocade in saris etc. This thread is woven into fabrics, primarily silk, to make intricate pat ...

and

zardozi Zardozi, or zar-douzi or zarduzi (from Classical Persian زَردوزی ''zardōzī'', literally "gold embroidery"; ; , , , ), is an Iranian, Indian subcontinent, Indian-subcontinent and Central Asian embroidery type. Zardozi comes from two Pers ...

work. Each leg of a traditional gharara is made from over 12 metres of fabric, often silk brocade.Handcrafting a Culture
/ref> Ghararas originated in

Awadh Awadh (), known in British Raj historical texts as Avadh or Oudh, is a historical region in northern India and southern Nepal, now constituting the North-central portion of Uttar Pradesh. It is roughly synonymous with the ancient Kosala Regio ...

region of

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

during the era of the

Nawabs Nawab is a royal title indicating a ruler, often of a South Asian state, in many ways comparable to the Western title of Prince. The relationship of a Nawab to the Emperor of India has been compared to that of the Kings of Saxony to the Ge ...

. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the gharara was part of the everyday attire among Muslim women of the Hindi-Urdu Belt. Ghararas were also made popular in Pakistan and Bangladesh, in the 1950s and 1960s with popular public figures like

Fatima Jinnah Fatima Jinnah (31 July 18939 July 1967) was a Pakistani politician, stateswoman, author, and Activism, activist. She was the younger sister of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the List of Pakistan Movement activists, founder and first governor-general of ...

and Begum Rana Liaquat Ali Khan wearing them. Although they are no longer worn as an everyday garment, they remain popular as wedding attire among Muslim women of the Hindi-Urdu Belt and also among Urdu-speaking immigrants in

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# ...

and

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

Images

File: Lucknow Women 1.jpg, Lucknow women in Gharara File:Lucknow Women 2.jpg, Lucknow Women in Gharara File:Lucknow Women 3.jpg, Women in Gharara File:Lucknow women 5.jpg, Women in Gharara File:Lucknow women 6.jpg, Women in Gharara File:Lucknow Girl.jpg, Girl in Gharara File:Lucknow Wedding.jpg, Lucknow wedding File:Lucknow women.jpg, Women in Gharara File:Lucknow singer.JPG, Lucknow singer in Gharara

References

{{Clothing in South Asia 19th-century fashion 20th-century fashion Dresses Pakistani clothing Bangladeshi clothing Indian clothing Culture of Lucknow

Images

See also

References