Instagram might have inspired many of us to buy a lehenga for the next wedding that we plan to attend, but the OG wedding style across communities in India has always veered towards sarees. But you don’t need to worry about looking dated in a saree as designers have been offering several fresh takes on saree styling this season.
“When styled well with the right jewellery and hair, you can hardly go wrong with a saree, it works for a wedding and looks sexy too,” says celebrity stylist Reann Moradian. A simple way to go right with a saree this season is to keep it easy-breezy, be it with the choice of fabric, the colour palette, or your blouse style. “I love wearing and recommend pre-stitched sarees as they give you the ease to dance and mingle around without having to worry about the pleats coming undone. Falguni and Shane Peacock and Arpita Mehta do great stitched sarees and the colour palette is perfect for the season,” she adds.
Let your accessories do the talking
A saree works for all body types and there are enough fabric options for you to decide what falls best on your body and accentuates your curves. What really makes or breaks a saree look is how you accessorise it. If you are a bride, it’s okay to go all out with a heavy maangtika, neckpiece and earrings to match a traditional silk brocade saree. Whereas, if you are attending a wedding, pair your classic Banarasi or Kanjeevaram with fresh flowers in the hair (perfect for a good profile shot), and if you are wearing a heavy neckpiece, wear tops for earrings, and if you have big earrings and wish to keep your neck empty, a dainty matching maangtika can complete the look, don’t do it altogether to compete with the bride! “Remember to pace your jewellery with sarees. You can tie your hair up in different kinds of buns based on your saree and blouse. Or you can even keep your hair sleek and straight, which will still allow you to show off your jewellery,” says Moradian. A potli with dangling bugle beads or faux gems is another celebrity favourite at the moment. Moradian is currently loving the luxurious brocades and organza sarees in bright colours by Raw Mango by Sanjay Garg, and Ekaya.
Accessorise with fresh flowers.
Pace out your jewellery, if your saree is busy, choose light jewellery like Athiya Shetty in this pre-stitched Falguni and Shane Peacock saree.
If you are the bride, take inspiration from actress Patralekhaa Paul’s traditional wedding look and go all-out with your jewellery.
Blouse in the house
“Blouses with thin straps are very in at the moment. You can also wear a long-sleeved blouse with a deep neckline. The neckline of the blouse can be wide, deep or high depending on the look you are going for and how heavy or light your saree is and what you want to highlight in your look,” says Moradian. Statement blouses with cutouts or voluminous sleeves are quite popular at the moment, but when in doubt, you can never go wrong with a simple, classic cut. You can drape your saree in different ways too. The pallu can come in front when you want to show it off, or you could have the pallu over the shoulder draped loosely with a belt on your waist. Pick a plain belt or a beaded belt based on the occasion.
A belt can instantly add some detail to a single-colour look. You can choose to go with a tiny blouse or a full-sleeved one based on the occasion.
Pop it with colours
“With so many mini trends at the moment, now is the time to wear whatever you feel like. You can wear soft pastels for a day wedding or even do bright colour contrasts (think purple brocade sari with a green blouse, or a green sari with a fuschia blouse),” says Moradian. You can also do an intense solid coloured look with a plain saree, which never fails to make an impact. If planning to wear a ruffled saree, which has been having a moment for a while now, it’s best to go with a solid colour rather than a printed version if you are trying it for the first time.
These ruffled lehenga and sarees make for great sangeet outfits.
Pastels and summers are a match made in heaven. These soft pastels are perfect for your day look.
Traditional sarees don’t always have to be heavy to be wedding-ready, as Sanya Malhotra shows us in a bright blue Banarasi brocade saree with a matching blouse by Raw Mango.
Rani Mukerji shows how all-over print can make for a light-yet-impactful look.