~ Sowmya Srinivasan ’13
The last time I went to India was a few months ago, for my cousin’s wedding. Despite being there for hardly a week, I noticed something that was a bit disconcerting- the absence of the colorful cultural clothing I have been brought up to love. During the trip, I was happy to have a chance to wear Indian clothes for a whole week, but felt a bit out of place wherever I went after I realized that practically nobody my age seemed to share my love of the salwar. The streets were teeming with girls dressed in Western garb- jeans, T-shirts, ballet flats.
Before we left home, my mother and I spent an exciting hour or two choosing which of my salwars I would bring, and even longer debating which half-saris I should bring to wear at the wedding. Considering the enthusiasm with which I did this, I was surprised when, during the wedding, relatives close and distant lauded me for being the only one to wear a half-sari.
But is this really cause for celebration? Shouldn’t we be mourning what appears to be the loss of an integral aspect of the culture, our unique style of dressing? Some women living in South Asia, large parts of which are undergoing intense Westernization, say that they are moving away from the traditional styles of dressing as a way of seeming more “modern” and “liberated.” Also, they say that, for people on the run, wearing traditional clothes just isn’t convenient.
I guess it is easy for me, living in the US, to deride these trends that seem to shun a traditional way of dressing. But, if I were in their place, I would love to find a way to fuse the ancient with the modern.