COSTUMES OF KERALA

Reflect the inherent lifestyle.Generally dress in off-white or white attires.Largely traditional in nature.

COSTUMES

FOR WOMEN• Mundum neriyathum• Mundu – lower garment• Neriyathum – upper

garment• Color of the blouse

indicates the marital status of women.

FOR MEN• Main garment is mundu.• Many men wear no

garments above the waist.• Always washed to a dazzling

whiteness.

RELIGIOUS COSTUMES

Mundu neriyathu is the traditional two piece costume of the Hindu women. The traditional dress of Christian women is chatta(blouse) and mundu. Muslim women, wear a long dark blue or black garment with the purdah.

The traditional wear of the Hindu men residing in the state of Kerala is Kasavu mundu. This dress is more popular in the rural and remote areas. This attire is a piece of cloth made of cotton, three to four meter long having a silk border.

BRIDAL COSTUMES

• Hindu - In a Hindu marriage, one may see the bride dressed in a mundu or a sari. The bridal costumes are very beautifully designed and represent a fine embroidery work done with precision and care. Kancheepuram sari is one of the popular choices during this auspicious occasion. Kundan, cut work, zardozi and other intricate work may be seen on the bridal saris. The fabric used for bridal attire are Silk, crape and georgette with usually red, maroon, orange and magenta colors.

• Muslim - During the Muslim wedding celebration the men in general wear white colored mundu and shirt. In the recent years kurta and shervani have also become popular in the Kerala state. The bride wear a silk sari for their wedding along with lehenga. The dupatta forms the head dress and golden lace is also attached. The entire dress is richly designed with bright colors.

• Christian - The sari worn by the Christian brides are also white in color during their wedding ceremony. The veil on their head is also white in color. The color white symbolizes purity for the brides. Gowns have also become quite popular these days as the bridal costumes. There is not much restriction among the dresses men wear. They may wear shirts and trouser or shirt with mundu. Some also opt for blazers along with the trouser.

KERALA – DANCE FORMS

• Kathakali• Mohiniattam• Theyyam• Thullal• Koodiyattam• Oppana• Margamkali• Thitambu nritham

KATHAKALI COSTUME

• Katha – story, Kali – play.• Kathakali performers use a luxuriant costume.

Characters have their faces elaborately painted and they wear stylized costumes and tall headdresses. Great importance is laid on the Vesham or make-up which are of five types - Pacha, Kathi, Thadi, Kari and Minukku. The colours used in the make-up are determined by the nature of the characters. The costumes in Kathakali represents the three qualities of nature viz. satya (nobility), rajas(aggressiveness) and tamas (darkness) represented by pacha, kathi and thadi respectively.

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SAREE WEARING STYLES – KERALA

• Adivasi/Tribal style

• Danda Mundu style

• Maar Kachha style

• Chatta Mundu

• Mohiniattam style

KERALA - TEXTILES

• Kerala has a tradition of lace-making and embroidery that has a strong European influence

• Hand-loomed textiles are woven at cannanor, palgar, kottayam and trivandrum.

• Cotton textiles are printed at trichur, quilon and trivandrum.

KESAVU SAREES

• Another very popular pick from the region would be a woven Kasavu saree. This is a gold bordered saree with real gold thread woven to form simple or intricate borders. They look very elegant and are worn by Keralite brides at their wedding.

• some with motifs of peacock, flower, window design, Deer, Katahakali, and also Mural hand-painted

HANDLOOM FABRICS

• The Handloom fabrics of Kerala follow a tradition about 150 years old. Initially such fabrics were woven by specialized weavers exclusively for the members of Royal Family. Gradually, the tradition spread from them to the local weavers all across Kerala. Now, different locations in Kerala have mastered its own specialized technique of weaving and are famous for their uniqueness in quality and design; the fabrics are known by special names based on the location in which they are manufactured.

Medium count cotton

Material : Cotton, 100s/80slength : 2mwidth : 1.06m Weight : 140gms

• Fine count cotton

Material : cotton 60sLength : 2.02mWidth : 1mWeight : 110gms

Bibliography

• http://www.prokerala.com• http://www.indfy.com• http://www.indianetzone.com• Indian Textile - John Gillow and Nicholas Barnard• Saris : Tradition and beyond -Rta Kapur Chishti• Indian Saris (Traditions-Perspectives-Design) -Vijai Singh Katiyar