Half the fun of attending an Indian wedding is getting dressed up. Especially for women, this is the chance to go all out and match dress, shoes, jewelry, makeup, purse, bangles, other accessories, nail polish – anything. The men’s attire is a bit more toned down but still stylish.
Western formal or party wear is acceptable, especially for men, but one might regret that choice later upon seeing all the beautiful traditional Indian wedding outfits. Plus, wearing a saree is not as tough as it looks and there are all kinds of easy-to-wear alternatives like pre-tied sarees, skirts and festive pant-shirt combinations for men and women.
Indian Wedding Guest Attire for Women
Female wedding guests in India have no color restrictions (though there is usually a popular color of the season) and mainly three clothing choices: the saree, the most authentic dress for an Indian wedding; a lehenga, an often heavily embroidered skirt-blouse-scarf combination or a festive salwar kameez. Here are more detailed descriptions of all three:
- Lehenga (or lehnga): long skirt accompanied by a matching choli (blouse) and dupatta (long scarf). Cholis come in many cuts and styles and are as elaborate as the lehenga. Easier to wear than the saree, this combination has gained popularity at weddings in recent years.
- Salwar kameez (also shalwar kameez or shalwar qameez): Like the men’s version, salwar kameezes are popular because they are easy to wear, extremely comfortable and fit any body type. The women’s kameez (shirt) comes without pockets to avoid bagginess and assuming that women will carry a purse anyway. It can be worn with loose-fitting pants or tight ones (churidars). Salwaar kameezes usually come with a matching dupatta worn in many different styles.
- Saree (or sari): The most authentic but also most difficult to wear Indian piece of clothing. Lengths vary from seven to nine meters and there are different saree draping styles. The saree blouse is less elaborate than the lehenga’s because most of it will be covered. However, various saree blouse designs, cuts, necklines and back styles are available.
A word of caution: in India, more is more and definitely considered good taste for women. Too plunging a neckline and exposed backs are frowned upon, especially at weddings. Also check before where the wedding is held – outside or in an A/C hall – as an additional (woolen) shawl for cooler venues or cooler climates (northern India can get quite chilly) might be required.
Indian Wedding Attire for Male Guests
Unlike the ladies’ attire where traditional prevails, the men’s attire at Indian weddings is usually split between traditional Indian and western wear. Inspired by Bollywood, clothing options for men have become more adventurous as pink, orange or other bright colors and even dupattas are acceptable for accessorizing. Below are some popular clothing options explained:
- Achkan: long coat with a mandarin collar, no lining, made from light material
- Churidar: tight-fitting cotton pants, worn with a sherwani or long kurta
- Kameez: loose-fitting shirt or tunic with pockets, usually worn with salwars
- Kurta: loose-fitting shirt that can be worn with formal western or Indian pants
- Kurta paijama: pre-matched set of shirt and pant that can range in formality from sleep- to wedding wear; popular because of its high comfort level
- Paijama or salwar: loose-fitting, lightweight pants with a drawstring waistband; wide at the top and narrower at the bottom; worn with a sherwani, kurta or kameez
- Salwar kameez: pre-matched pant-shirt combination
- Sherwani: knee-length, coat-like garment with lining; made from heavy suit material (see picture below)
Western wear for men always means a full suit, even if it is hot, at least during the first part of the festivities. Later, the suit jacket may be removed. During the baraat, the Indian wedding procession, the male relatives and friends also wear colorful turbans that mark their affiliation with (or support for?) the groom.
Indian Bridal Dress Options
For the Indian bride, getting ready on the wedding day usually starts right after getting up. She might go to a beauty parlor or call a stylist home to get her hair and professional makeup done. Her close female relatives will then help her with getting dressed. An Indian bride might wear her mother’s wedding saree or a brand new one. In any case, it will be richly embroidered, made of heavy, quality material and have any shade from light pink to dark maroon as red is considered auspicious.
The saree has long been a must for the Indian bride, but in recent years, the lehenga (see above) has gained in popularity. It might be a bit easier to wear than a sari but can become equally heavy if richly embroidered and made of heavy material.
Once dressed, the bride will put on her chudas (red and white wedding bangles) and her gold wedding jewelry (gold is also considered auspicious). Finally, a red and gold dupatta is pinned to her hair and then she’s ready to go. No wonder that dressing up an Indian bride can take several hours! Good that the wedding mehendi (the henna designs on hands and feet) was done in advance.
The Indian Groom’s Wedding Dress
An Indian groom wears a suit or an achkan-churidar/salwar or sherwani-churidar/salwar combination, depending on the weather and the family’s tradition. At South Indian weddings, grooms are traditionally bare-chested and wear a white dhoti (men’s sarong). The groom does not have to wear red and might stick to black or dark blue (for suits) or brown, beige, olive or other earthy tones for traditional wear. Bride and groom can match their outfit styles and colors.
There are many more details to dressing up for an Indian wedding and the best sources of inspiration for wedding outfits are probably Indian fashion magazines. Most of them publish special wedding issues that focus on the latest styles, wedding designers, price ranges and where to buy Indian wedding outfits. Here are two articles discusses the pros and cons of sari versus lehenga and how to accessorize Indian wedding dresses.
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