This is a question we often face when we meet customers face to face in our store in Bengaluru.  The question per-se is not asked in so many words but comments are heard when we present with a particular saree type – with tall borders, body having horizontal stripes, big bold checks, large butta on the body etc.

There are several blogs on the internet about classifying a women’s body type – comparing it to fruits such as pear, apple etc., or to geometrical shapes such as round or rectangular.  There is even a stereotype calling it an hourglass!  This appears to be a western idea – classifying body types and matching them with supposedly suitable dress types, cuts, lengths and color of the fabric and so on.  How appropriate it is to take such a casual match making and apply it to the Indian ethnic apparel styles and body characteristics?  Saree as an apparel is nothing like a tailored western dress. Is it not?    Also, honestly, how defensible is this name calling of a women’s body?  Such blogs are often hidden under mounds of text written ages ago and if this topic were to appear on social media today, it would unleash a tirade of arguments – for, against and irrelevant to it.

A body is what you are!  It is an inseparable part of your persona.  It’s a given that some women may be a little ‘healthier’ or taller than others.  Some may have a bigger frame than others.  That doesn’t mean a woman should only look at some saree designs and reject the others saying “…. they don’t suit my body type”.   Who makes these rules?

The Kanjivaram saree and its wonderful world of weaving is a melting pot of incredible and endless variety.  At the risk of over-simplification, it is possible to classify sarees into several groups depending on how the elements of the saree – body, border and pallu – are structured and visually appear from a distance.  The body of the sarees can be plain or embellished, the borders can be of varying heights and the pallu can be plain, semi-rich or rich and can have same base color as the body or of a contrast color.  But one must consider various other factors that make up a saree – the texture, quality of silk, the sheen and luster, the border motifs, the way a pallu is laid out, the size of the butta on the body, stripes, checks, interplay of colours, the level of contrast between the body and the border and one could go on and on……

Just for fun, let us hazard some matching of saree types to body types.  Mubbhagam sarees are those with very tall borders – between 14 to 16 inches in height (a.k.a. 3-part sarees).  They are made both in cotton and silk.  When draped, the border comes to the knees of a tall woman.  When such a saree is presented to a woman of average height, the immediate reaction is – “I am not so tall”.  Why?  A mubbhagam on such a woman would nearly look like a half-n-half (sarees with body split into two equal halves) and the way the 3-part pallu flows on the torso creates a whole new design!  My 82-year-old mother-in-law is hardly 5ft tall and her favorites are Kanchi cotton mubbhagams and she carries them off so well!  People often complement her for her choice of Kanchi cottons, along with her silvery white hair cut short at the neck.

Another saree type that faces women’s ire (those with healthy bodies) is those with horizontal stripes.  It’s fine if they are pin stripes but when stripes are a little bold, the saree gets brushed aside saying they make me look even fa*!  Whoever has heard such a joke!  We use such arguments as an opportunity to open the saree fully and encourage the customer to try it in front of a full-length mirror and it usually solves the problem.  The secret is… most stripes are only visible in close quarters!

The well-proportioned Vidya Balan – a Bollywood diva you can’t ignore – is an avid saree-draper who is best looking in solid silk Kanjivarams with heavy borders and pallu.  She cleverly designs her blouses with deep cuts at the neck and back and elbow length sleeves.  Her idea of losing all neck-ornaments brings the focus completely to the saree.  She looks equally stunning in plain satins and chiffons.   The most important thing she is seen with, when in a saree is, a wide disarming smile!

Quite the opposite is Rekha with her lean and short frame, is often seen on stage in heavy Kanjivaram bridals and brocades – and exudes oomph even at her late age! 

In English-Vinglish, Sridevi (average height and a lean body) sports a wide range of crisp cotton Kanjivarams, smartly draped and walking the streets of New York projecting sheer confidence and determination. 

The famed carnatic singer M S Subbulakshmi, a woman with a small frame wore very traditional, silk Kanjivarams to her concerts with blue-shot-black body matched to small maroon zari borders. This saree color is now iconically know as MS blue and you cannot bring up a picture of her in your mind in any other kind of saree! 

Each one of these examples clearly shows that choosing a saree is about creating a signature fashion statement irrespective of physical body attributes.

Clearly, it is unfair to choose a saree based on body type.  Rules and conventions, even if they exist, are meant to be broken.  It is about building one’s own personality and brand, and one’s attire plays a large part in it.  Kanjivaram is a world of its own when it comes to variety and each creation is unique.  All of them are there to be explored and experimented with.  It would be rational to say that choosing a saree should be based on the occasion, time of day or some such thing rather than body type.

What’s your take on this?  Take a few minutes to write a comment.

Want to read more about body types?  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somatotype_and_constitutional_psychology