Inspired by the quintessential Yash Chopra’s heroines who looked sensual, pristine and simply beautiful in their sarees, Apaapi dedicated the second episode of handloom and saree awareness through its flagship initiative “Saree कीसारी baatein”, on saree being a comfort wear, in a tete-a-tete with the stunning Ms Mayuri Singh Sengar.
Yash Chopra’s heroine was fierce in her ideal, optimistic, ambitious, independent, traditional, yet a rebel who was not restricted with conventional norms. Mayuri Singh is every bit the lady, who we admire in Yash Chopra’s films. She completely believes that life is short, and the world has a lot to explore. Unrestricted by a particular passion, she wears many hats; a lawyer by profession, she is a certified yoga instructor, a triathlete, a passionate traveller, an amateur gardener, a saree enthusiast, and a blogger. Green is her new found love, whether it is her plants or her favourite green saree that she wore for the show. Apaapi is forever grateful to Ms Mayuri Singh Sengar, for taking out time to provide her candid insights on how saree has always remained her partner of good times.
Mayuri’s initial admiration for the saree, like many of us started after seeing her mother always draped in it, but what made it her constant love was the manifold saree stylings that a single garment offers. We can never disagree with her on this, saree can be what you want it to be; women can drape it as a saree and men can tie it as a dhoti. Isn’t it amazing!! Saree is undoubtedly, the soul of India, the only garment that binds India transcending geographical distinctions.
Generally tagged as an occasional wear, saree can be confidently worn to workplace and traveling with saree can give you an exotic experience. During the candid conversation about Mayuri’s experiences, admist her infectious laugh, she shared that her favourite travel drape for her cosy vacations are comfortable sarees, wearing which she gets her best travel photos.
Within the short excerpt of our conversation, which you can access it here on IGTV Live (https://www.instagram.com/tv/CIasME5gBCd/ ), we have interchangeably used sarees and handwoven sarees and the hacks shared apply equally to both the categories.
Salient Hacks:
- Practice wearing a saree (“Wear a Saree”): Apaapi along with our guest Mayuri, strongly believes that comfort is primary while you travel, and for comfortable saree experience, one must practice wearing it. She said “… if you are wearing saree and you need someone to help you in draping the saree, I would say, first practice and then only think about traveling with saree (..) because for one who does not have practice, they worry about how they will walk, they worry about the pleats or the pallu will fall...”
- Know the weather of the place you are travelling, before you pack: Saree can be a comfort wear, provided you pack according to the weather of the place you travel. Stating example from her own experience, she added “…I live in Mumbai, which is humid, and before this, I was in Delhi, and Delhi has extreme weather (..). So there (Delhi) you must wear saree as per the season, (..) because different fabrics have different effect on your body. So, when I came to Mumbai (..) I need something which absorbs the heat, so my go to fabric, here, in Mumbai or beach locations became cotton sarees...”. India, in general across its length and breadth experiences hot and humid climate which makes cotton sarees, a safe choice when there is any conflict of choice while packing your travel bags.
- Experiment in your saree stylings: A single garment can have different looks with little experimentation. Apaapi believes that saree can be the most stylish outfit for you to travel, due to the multiple styling opportunities that it offers. In order to avoid perceptions about saree being cumbersome to travel, Mayuri shared few tips that travellers can easily get it right. She added “...so, you can actually try drapes, which are fuss free where you don’t have to worry about pallu. Like when I am in the airport, I know I might have to run to catch the flight, I might have to walk a lot. So, what I do is, I drape a saree with, not really a blouse but with a shirt (..) and I will fix the pallu or tuck it in a way that I don’t have to worry about the pallu (..) While traveling, you can experiment with the drapes and different drapes will give you different looks...” . Hence, a beautiful and comfortable saree is what you need to pack in your travel bag.
- Pack sarees in a way that it minimizes add on: As said, a beautiful and comfortable cotton saree is enough to give you multiple stylish looks. Mayuri, while sharing her packing secrets, shared that she considers minimizing the addons to travel compact with sarees. She said “... if I am carrying this green shade saree, I will pack sarees with similar shades, so that I have to carry one petticoat (..) and that goes with the blouse also...”. Experiment with your saree stylings and minimize the addons while packing are the mantras from Apaapi.
- Avoid heels while travelling: Traveling in saree can be extremely comfortable when worn with comfortable footwears. Mayuri in her conversation, brings forth her personal love for flats and shoes for that extra comfort while traveling with saree.
The heroines of Yash Chopra made us dream of enchanting saree drapings admist the mountains and lush green fields in reel-life. Yes! It can be a reality. Traveling in saree can give you the best experience and make your travel extra special with beautiful photographs as memories, what requires is to follow the salient hacks put forth in the blog. Finally, Mayuri’s mantra for everyone, requires to be followed, “Practice wearing saree, and you will find it so comfortable and convenient”.