Samantha Cameron looks radiant in a stunning scarlet saree as she joinsThe Indian saree has a global appeal. The magic of this ethnic Indian garment is eternal and far-reaching and has enamoured one and all. The saree has evolved from traditional attire worn by Indian women to a fashion statement and a global ambassador, representing India worldwide and symbolising Indian culture.
The beautiful, delicate garment transcends social status and vocation. Women from all walks of life wear the saree – homemaker, politician, teacher, celebrity and more. Even foreigners who visit India don’t miss a chance to wear the saree. The saree has become a symbol of Indian culture and the exquisite garment has many takers, even beyond Indian borders.
Powerful women across the world such as politicians, celebrities, socialites, singers and performers Hollywood celebrities, for example, have donned the saree on multiple occasions
The queen of pop, Lady Gaga looked like a queen in an ivory saree designedand embraced the elegant Indian wear. Pamela Anderson, Ashley Judd, Jessica Alba, Halle Berry, Paris Hilton, Oprah Winfrey and many more have worn sarees and surprised their fans.
International celebrities don saree
Music sensation Lady Gaga, known for her quirky looks and bold fashion statements, created ripples across social media the world over and left her fans in awe when she wore the Indian garment, the saree, to an event earlier in 2022.
The saree was designed by famous Indian fashion designer Tarun Tahiliani. The queen of pop, Lady Gaga looked like a queen in the ivory saree and brought back saree in the limelight worldwide. The designer says, “The saree gives you license to be as revealing or covered up as you want. It can inhabit your grandmother’s world or the world of a Versace dress.”
Canadian-American actress and model Pamela Anderson also made waves, in India and across the world, when she wore Indian clothes during the famous appearance in reality television show Big Boss in 2010. The diva wore a saree inside the Big Boss house and captivated one and all with her appearance. The iconic desi look by Anderson who is famous for her role in Baywatch is one for the books. She pulled off the saree look with grace and style and even accessorised her saree with silver bangles and a bindi.
Popular English model and actress Elizabeth Jane Hurley aka Liz Hurley has been one of the biggest endorsers of the elegant Indian attire. Most recently, in 2019, the ‘Bedazzled’ actress celebrated Christmas in a unique style by wearing a stunning off-white saree with a heavily-embellished border.
She was earlier married to Indian businessman Arun Nayar. Their wedding was an elaborate affair and took place at the Umaid Bhawan Palace where Liz wore a pink silk saree that was heavily encrusted with jewels and made her look like the perfect ‘Indian’ bride. A lover of sarees, Liz, in one of her trips to Mumbai for a charity event embraced the saree again. She wore a white georgette saree embellished with mukaish work complete with a metallic bindi and a pair of glittering earrings.
Other celebrities who have aced the saree look include socialite and model Paris Hilton who wore it when she visited India to promote her luxury brand; tennis sensation and model Anna Kournikova who wore a baby blue saree with white embroidery at a tennis exhibition in Dubai; Hollywood actress Ashley Judd wore a purple saree at the YouthAIDS Benefit Gala in Virginia, USA; Brazilian model Giselle Bundchen set the mercury rising when she wore a sequined saree by Suneet Verma for a magazine photoshoot.
Powerful women love saree
One of the most influential and powerful women in the world, Oprah Winfrey, once draped an orange and gold saree when she visited India and attended a party hosted by socialite Parmeshwar Godrej in Mumbai. Oprah is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author and philanthropist, best known for her talk show ‘The Oprah Winfrey Show,’ broadcast from Chicago, which ran in national syndication for 25 years, from 1986 to 2011.
Media mogul Oprah’s love for saree began when, in 2005, Indian actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan appeared as the guest on her show as part of ‘Women Across the Globe’ segment and Aishwarya draped the traditional Indian outfit, the saree, on Oprah during the show. Oprah remarked that she felt ‘sensual’ after wearing the light-pink coloured saree.
In 2014, former British Prime Minister David Cameron’s wife Samantha attended a Diwali party in London wearing a beautiful flowing royal blue saree with a detailed gold trim. The PM gave a speech on the contribution of eight million Hindus in the UK to the country and launched the new Encyclopaedia of Hinduism – an 11-volume project involving 1000 contributors.
When Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited UK in 2015, Samantha Cameron wore a saree for a rally at Wembley Stadium for the PM’s speech. In fact, in 2013, Samantha had worn a russet-coloured saree for a visit to the Swaminarayan Mandir at Neasden in north-west London. It was former British PM Tony Blair’s wife Cherie Blair who started the trend of dressing up in sarees and salwar suits for meetings with the South Asian community in Britain, and what came to be known as saree
Media mogul Oprah’s love for saree began when, in 2005, Indian actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan appeared as the guest on her show. Here she is seen with Aishwarya and Abhishek Bachchandiplomacy.
American socialite, media personality and businesswoman Kimberly Noel Kardashian or Kim Kardashian, as she is popularly known, has expressed her love for Indian attire time and again. One of the biggest celebrities of her time, with fan following across the world and more than 336 million followers on Instagram, Kim wore a Sabyasachi saree and other ethnic outfits for a magazine photoshoot recently.
She posted on her social media handle: “The sarees, the jewellery, the clothes — everything was so beautiful! I told my show (Keeping Up With the Kardashians) that we have to figure out how to get to India.”
Indian designers take saree global
Late Indian costume designer Bhanu Athaiya had an illustrious career spanning over a hundred 100 films where she worked with legendary Indian filmmakers such as Guru Dutt, Raj Kapoor, B.R. Chopra, Vijay Anand, etc. and international directors such Conrad Rooks and Richard Attenborough (of ‘Gandhi’ fame). She had won the Academy Award for the Best Costume Design in 1983 at the 55th Academy Awards for the epic film ‘Gandhi’ by Attenborough.
Bhanumati Annasaheb Rajopadhye was born on 28 April 1929 in Kolhapur, Maharashtra – a city known for art. Born to Annasaheb Rajopadhye, a painter and photographer from a wealthy family and Shantabai Rajopadhye, she was the third of the seven children.
Her antique textile collection was up for auction after her death. It comprised a silky bridal Banarasi, a pink brocade kunchi of Maharashtrian tradition, heirloom textiles, zari Paithanis, South-style silk sarees, etc.
To document century-old exquisite heirloom textiles, the auction house brought in another avid lover and collector of sarees, the Maharani of Baroda Radhikaraje Gaekwad, who has an inspiring collection of handlooms and heirlooms herself. The royal is an active social media user and regularly posts images of herself draped in lovely sarees from her exquisite collection. She is one of the most influential brand ambassadors of sarees in the country presently.