Like Chetan Bhagat's One night at call centre, I had experience of one day at call centre for their hiring process. I will tell you all about this changing scene and spirit of India but for now I share about what I said for interview to prove Britishers would understand spoken English of Gujarati medium educated lady from Rayjcoat!
What do you think a middle aged lady would say for five minutes? 'Saree' ofcourse!
I have found sari as eternal as ancient Indian culture and as new as IT outsourcing to India. Sari reminds me of my childhood, fragrance of my mother wrapped in soft muslin. I started trying out wearing sari at tender age of 4 making sure that pleates dont create lumps and bumps around my waist.
I was fortunate enough to intertwin my love for sari and love for design living in Britain. One of the London museum invited community memebers to take part in sari design competition. the brief described how Indians use design inspirations from their surrounding for example peacocks, mango and elephants combined with local craftsmanship and artistry. Same way NRIs had to use their british surrounding to come up with concept. I chose 3 unique aspect of UK life to create my sketch books.
first, idea I developed was 'tudors'. I created corsett style blouse in ivory raw silk with black lines from piping black silk, like a woonden planks to make it look like wooden black and white tudor house. this was accompanied with flowy chiffon with 3 giant tudor roses for pallu.
Second one, was stamps, postal service is british gift to reast of the world. I tried to symbolize that. Each over lapping stamp to high light high profile faces from british science, politics and sports etc. Blouse to go with like red post boxes of rooyal british times!!
Third design, based on english language itsel with its rich literature. I used words, snaps of poets and writers and blasted words fro famous verses with inetersting juxtaposition..
Today like indian youth has put sari on top inaccessible shelf, british youth have put their language supremacy on top shelf where buddying young minds cant reach. They all are settling for cyber slang and pop language.
coming back to its homein India, I have mixed feelings observing the trends of sari and how its heading towards confined compartment. Lot of new designers use sari as walking canvas for their modern technique of combining fabric, modern embroidery to use threads and paints in contemporary way. No ceremeny is complete without a glamorous sari.
Sari makes a lady look faminine, elegant and sensual. It easily outnumber variety of regional cusine from differnt corners of India and variety of fabric to suit the mood from romance to sorrow and blouses to match, seduction to sainthood.
Sari is versatile tool too. It works as crib for infant sleeping next to poor labouror lady to swing outside huts for toddlers. It is mosquito net at dusk and keeps warm in winter and cool in summer acting as sun screen on hot summer afternoons. it works as sitting mat, rolled as cushion, napkin, blanket, a sack to carry veg from lariwala, basket to collect flowers from morning walks. List elongates with your own imagination.
However, I am saddened to see that sari is being pushes to two extreme end of Indian society. On one hand there are designer sari being used for catwalks that cost fortune, certainly more expensive than buying gold and silver in some cases. On other hand it is stuck with counter job girls, porters, hostesses or labourors. One of the effect of globalization, middle India has entered jeans generation. youth will refuse to wear sari without reason. it is being taken as fancy dress for Indian gathering and while the ceremony is half way girls as young as 9 years start asking if they can change their expensive slawar, lahenga or saree for jeans.
I donr have problem with jeans. Jeans have travelled long way from cowboy america to India today.What I would say to youth today though.. Chillax, girls!! when you wear jeans dont fret about the size and when you wear sari feel comfortable about your identity without fear of appearing orthodox. Flaunt both!! it is called true democracy of dressing up!!
for my PTA in UK and X.Mas parties everytime I walked in fellow british friends envied and said 'Give us a twirl'.
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