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...and oh, those saris!
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| Home | Traveling in the Central Highlands of the Andes Cordillera in Peru, I never tired of seeing the traditional dress of the indigenous people. Mostly women, but men also. |
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A woman in Cuzco |
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And so it is in India. In no other country I've visited are the traditional modes of dress in such widespread use. And the sari is front and center. Take a gander
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Exhibit A is Amolika, a colleague of mine in New Jersey, now living in Pune, India |
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Here set to dine out with hubby Vikram |
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The rich variety of colors and patterns are often stunning |
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A woman I photographed at the Taj Mahal (where I spent more time with people than with the monument) |
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Again, at the Taj |
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These people are waiting for a train It's typical to simply sit on the platform, anywhere there's space |
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But sometimes there's a similarity These women from the state of Gujarat were sitting in a group at the Taj |
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Love those faces! |
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And these women in Mamallapuram are associated with a local temple |
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And to demonstrate the versatility of the sari, here a woman on the ghats of Varanasi uses hers as cover for changing clothes |
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Indian people--both men and women--are extraordinarily adept at doing a full clothes change in public, all without ever exposing themselves |
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My friend Usha from Mamallapuram |
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Usha again |
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And 3 lovely ladies at the temple in Kanchipuram |
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And I couldn't resist capturing just this beatific face |
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Banu, elegant seller of textiles |
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and with her sister Asha |
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I think the sari weighs more than she |
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There seems to be little difference between dirt-poor and relativelhy well-off women, in the vibrancy and elegance of their saris |
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I have seen women in Mumbai doing street cleaning, clothed
in saris as if they're going to a ball
I have seen women doing construction work in saris |
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And here with cargo |
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Murima and Beratumi, garbage collectors in Mamallapuram |
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and the next day |
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Rajisuri, hotel maid in Mamallapuram |
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