Gen-Z has readily embraced the ease and versatility the saree offers

Emblematic of Indian fashion for centuries, what relevance does the saree have for a generation that has access and exposure to more global fashion than ever before?

The saree has never cycled out of style. The origins of the garment can be traced  back to the Indus Valley Civilisation and has since evolved through multiple iterations. It is the singular traditional Indian outfit that has perhaps had the maximum global impact, even co-opted by couture and inspiring it at the same time, season after season; think Jean Paul Gaultier, Dries Van Noten, Gucci, Issey Miyake and Diane von Furstenberg, amongst others. 

For the born-and-raised Indian, the saree is more than just a garment; it is an invariable staple of their wardrobes. In most households, there is an almirah dedicated to sarees by our mothers and grandmothers, the georgettes and chiffons painstakingly stacked separately from the cottons or silks. It is also the only garment that merits an heirloom status and passed down over generations, just like precious jewellery. 

But for a generation that has largely been raised alongside social media—and all the global fashion access that comes with it—the meaning of and exposure to Indian fashion has significantly shifted and taken new forms. Does the saree, then, still hold the same sartorial relevance it did for the previous generations? 

Buying versus inheriting

For much of the saree-wearing Gen-Z in India, the access to generations of sarees across fabrics, styles and prints—preserved so as to be handed down to them and the next generations—is easy. It is this inheritance that many are already dipping into. “The women in my family have always been excellent saree curators,” says stylist and content creator Pushpak Sen (@thebongmunda). “They truly take care of their clothes. The ritualistic practice they follow of coming home, air-drying the saree, ironing it neatly, and putting it away is amazing. My relationship with sarees began by transferring them from my mother's or grandmother's wardrobe to mine because it was what I had handy access to; but also because I loved the fact that it had their smell, and that gave me a sense of comfort. Like I was wearing a hug around my body.” Model Toshada Uma, however, developed a taste for sarees that wasn’t handed down. “My mother wasn’t big on wearing sarees, but my maternal grandmother did pass some pieces down to me. I started buying sarees in my late teens when I started travelling across India for modelling assignments.” 

“We do see a lot more Gen-Z buyers now—partly because our pre-draped sarees are so easy to wear,” says designer Shweta Kapur of 431-88. “I’d say a ballpark figure is about 20 per cent of our buyers [are Gen-Z]. And about 20,000-30,000 rupees is their spending cap,” she explains. The figures are higher for Warp 'n Weft by Sagrika Rai, who says, “Gen-Z is about 50 per cent of our customer base; the bigger the occasion, the bigger the spend.” Palak Shah of Ekaya, however, believes the Gen-Z buyer is still a burgeoning segment. “I’d say, for us,  they were only 0.1 per cent of our customer base, but that’s changing. They won’t spend as much on sarees as other generations—never upwards of 20,000 rupees.” 

A third alternative works for content creator Pavneet Arora. “I like my sarees customised. I prefer to work with neighbourhood tailors in order to support smaller businesses, so I choose my fabrics and detailing, and then have my sarees made.” But her mother’s closet does factor in. “I will admit I often raid my mother's wardrobe, and wear her sarees with a more modern blouse (which I get made) or I might just wear a crop top with it instead,” says Arora.

Breaking away with tradition

Swapping out a blouse for a crop top is only the tip of inventive styling iceberg for Gen-Z. Palak Shah of Ekaya Benaras observes the saree being transformed into myriad avatars of cool, and she’s here for it. “I mostly see them gravitating towards plain sarees. My collection of colour-block sarees, Iro, was released primarily for Gen-Z to start experimenting with the garment, and for it to be the first saree that they ever wore. When you’re playing with plain sarees, you have more room to style them and the saree becomes your canvas. I see them using belts and jackets and glasses, and it works.”

Rai, too, thinks that the many ways of styling the saree is the key area of difference. “Gen-Z is exploring it more. For example, wearing sneakers beneath the saree, especially with the uptick in the pre-draped saree’s popularity. Blazers are also often paired with sarees, and crop tops are regularly worn as blouses.” Arora also recommends a corset. “I wore a silver one to a wedding with a white net saree that belongs to my mother, and it was an instant hit,” she shares.  

For Uma, the traditional drapes work but she likes to add her own touch. “I gravitate towards the more classic saree drapes, but I will occasionally pair them with crochet bikini tops or any fun crop tops I may have. I have been wanting to learn how to drape the navvari style as that’s the way my ancestors wore it.” The signature is even gentler for Sen. “I'm actually not very experimental with drapes; I prefer to keep it classic. But what's unique is that my pleats appear on the right (versus the left); it’s my little signature that still pays homage to the old-school drape.” 

Sheer ease and adaptability 

Two major questions emerge when you think of the Gen-Z buyer choosing their sarees—what they’re buying, and why they’re buying it. The answer is distributed for both. For the latter, there is the camp that advocates for the saree as daily wear and another that sees it as occasionwear.

Sen, for instance, wears sarees routinely with ease. “What propels me to choose the saree over any other kind of outfit is that once you get the hang of it, it's so incredibly easy to wear—it takes me less than a minute. I really enjoy how a garment that is tied up in so many places still allows you to breathe more than most other clothes. I love that I can experiment with it, layer it; I can turn it into so much more than just a long piece of fabric.” The appeal, for them , is infinite. “I think one of its most underrated qualities of the saree is that it does fantastic figure correction. It hides all my pandemic fat, which I gained sitting at home gorging on sweets.” 

It’s the saree’s adaptability that makes it a go-to choice for Uma. “They translate beautifully from day to evening wear, so if I have a bunch of places to be at in a single day, I’ll usually reach for a saree. I wear them whenever the weather permits, because I haven’t quite figured out how to style them in my aesthetic for colder weather yet. But otherwise, they’re incredibly versatile to style.” Earth-toned linen and silk sarees reign supreme for Uma. “I love those for the more structural drapes I do. But my most recent obsession has been the leheriya from Rajasthan—it hugs my body and looks effortlessly sexy.”

Arora finds herself wearing sarees about once a month but admits that’s an increased amount for her. She usually gravitates to flowing fabrics. “I like a good, flowing, Sridevi-esque sari, so I tend to wear a lot of georgettes and chiffons. But if I want a stand-out saree for an evening occasion, I usually find that satin has an air of drama.” 

Shah espouses the same fact. “Gen-Z chooses styles and fabrics that are softer, more fluid, and not too busy. The stiffer fabrics are tougher; they take time to fall in love with.” Kapur sees the pre-draped saree being most popular. “They’re so easy to wear. You don’t really need to pay much attention to it when you’re getting dressed, and it's way sexier than a traditional saree, which really works for Gen-Z,” she says. She mentions that jersey as a fabric is chiefly chosen by her wearers because “it doesn’t need ironing. Boomers and Gen-X like big, bright colours, and millennials tend to lean towards bling, but Gen-Z wants a fuss-free saree.”

Rai, meanwhile, identifies that Gen-Z wants to establish a deeper connect with the saree through their buying process. “They want to understand the intrinsic details and the nuances of the weaving techniques,” she mentions. “Above all, they do want to be sensuous, even when wearing pieces with deep-rooted craftsmanship. Some look out for embroideries that are indigenous to states across India. The innovation aspect in drapes and styling is a complete advantage and asset for Gen-Z, making the age-old heirloom even more aspirational.”

The Nostalgia Factor

The link that sarees have to one’s childhood is perhaps incontestable. But how much of a driver is that warm, fuzzy association for a generation that navigates a much flatter world than the generations before it? Surprisingly, very much one. “My first saree memory goes back to when I was two or three years old, and I would take my mother's dupattas and wrap them around myself (badly) as a makeshift saree,” shares Arora. “Indian television soaps were often playing in the house, and some of the women wore sarees beautifully. The character of Komolika [essay by actor Urvashi Dholakia] always comes to my mind.”

Sen remembers being taken to an aunt that sold sarees to friends and families, subtly rooting in them a love for both sarees and smaller labels. “I have fond memories of my mother taking me to my aunt, and us looking at sarees together with all the other women. She would hold up a saree and ask me for my opinion. That might have also been the start of me gravitating toward homegrown labels as opposed to designers; I saw my mother do it first.”

Place In The Gen-Z Zeitgeist

“Sarees are a way to connect with my femme-ness, and to reclaim my agency in how I choose to express myself. For a large part of my late teens and early twenties, I’ve been bald and I have always been small-chested—attributes a lot of fashion professionals have voiced out to not be built for sarees; but I’ve always enjoyed pushing back against a stereotype,” says Uma. 

The role of both social media and Bollywood in popularising the saree among Gen-Z  is undeniable, acknowledges Arora. “Social media definitely played a role for me. And another great example of someone that influenced a lot of Gen-Z people to wear sarees is actor Alia Bhatt in the movie Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani. I wouldn't say I'd wear sarees on a daily basis,” she clarifies “but I have enjoyed wearing it more regularly.”

Rai thinks the generation’s understanding of sarees is only growing. “Today’s buyers are looking out for specific weaves and collector’s pieces, too. For example, for a wedding, they want to relive the emotion of a saree that looks like their mum’s, colours that will complement them, and have repeat value to make te garment their timeless treasure.”

Kapur succinctly says, “I once saw someone wearing a saree at a concert. That, right there, is a marker that it’s very much part of the generation’s fashion vocabulary,” while Sen concludes, “I find life is too short to not wear sarees.”

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