The Sensuous Experience of Saree Shopping

The Sensuous Experience of Saree Shopping

South Indian women share a unique and sensuous experience. It is saree shopping. At our house, the expedition is usually preceded by an elaborate plan. Who are we buying for? What mode of transportation should we take? How early in the morning should we leave? Should it be before or after lunch? Which stores should we visit? Here we usually lapse into minor skirmishes with our mother pointing out how the stores my sister and I pick are grossly overpriced and with us responding, “but amma we pay for the comfort”. Finally we all happily compromise and settle on a route that will make optimal use of our time and pocket book. Usually if we receive a phone call from friends and they have an empty slot at the opportune time when we are planning our expedition, we ask them to come along to check out the latest “Alli Darbar” or “Aamrapali” sarees. Retired aunts and relatives who do not get to visit saree shops often, jump at the chance to follow a purposeful entourage. So what starts out with three persons ends up becoming a train of about 6. Men in our respective households heave sighs of relief at the sight of our departing backs, in anticipation of a restful day and, if possible, a long and undisturbed afternoon siesta.

The older women instruct the neophytes on the importance of caring for their gold chains in a crowd of enthusiastic shoppers. Thus properly prepared we embark on our adventure usually in a couple of autorickshaws, 3 persons to one, or squeeze into a car. We chat gaily along the way, about who wears what kind of saree, which colour would suit whom, why some people wear similar colours all the time or muse aloud about how we could possibly find a colour that “so and so” did not have.

Arriving at the store, we rush into its cool air conditioned interior to take cover from the blazing sun. As we enter, the familiar scents of fresh fabric, jasmine and incense assault our noses, the reams of fabrics in every imaginable colour, style and pattern offer a feast to our eyes and the sensuous experience begins, only be tempered by our mother’s stern adherance to strategy and a purposeful approach to saree buying. On the odd occasion, in the presence of immense beauty, she has capitulated, her eyes glazing over!

Saree shops come in all shapes, sizes and forms. There are those with staid male names which are usually super stores and hence popular with the masses. Then there are those with feminine names of beautiful courtesans of Hindu epics, such as “Urvashi”or “Apsara”, which are more up market and cater to an elite group. A happy medium are stores that represent a healthy compromise between the above two categories and are ones which we usually favour. A little pricier than the super stores but more exclusive in their choices, these are often not as crowded and offer the ultimate sensuous experience.

A saree is just 6 yards of material and that’s what makes it so unique and versatile. It can be worn by women of all ages, sizes and shapes and from all segments of the population. Sarees inspire a generous and giving spirit since anyone can buy for another. But whats most alluring about a saree is the fact that it represents an excellent medium for the human imagination to run rampant.

We are on short cushioned stools in front of long low tables covered with white cloth to be pampered by the salesclerks who stand behind the tables and reach for the gorgeous assortment on the shelves behind them. Nimble young men with ceremonial panache and ritualistic precision drop, in quick succession, an array of hues and tones in a celebration of colour. Cottons, voiles, silks, polysilks, cotton silks, crepes and chiffons in colours natural and imagined. Tones of blue, boasted by wild peacocks dancing in the sun, earthy tones reminiscent of vedic rituals before a pyre, cool greens of verdant palms swaying in the breeze and colours unknown of unchartered heavens conceived by human creativity and ingenuity. Teased, seduced and mesmired, our eyes flit from one to the next trying to decide which one we should examine further. Maintaining eye contact all the time, the vigilant salesperson senses a glimmer of vulnerability, a moment’s hesitation over a piece and offers to show us its pallu, the part that sticks out as a train on the left hand side once the saree has been draped, the ultimate piece de resistance This part is usually the canvas for the weaver’s creative expression in gold or coloured thread of beautiful original designs representing and depicting every conceivable art form. We each then hold up the selection against our bodies in front of the mirror with the pallu hanging over the side. The fabric contours the body and there, irrespective of our sizes or shapes, we stand bedecked in its lissom shimmer. We feel elegant, beautiful, feminine and desirable. The entourage cheers us on enthusiastically and even hangers on and salespersons in nearby counters join in the cheer. We are sold as we each take turns in this pantomime, modeling our sarees and being cheered on.

As anticipated purchases appear to mount, the store manager plies us with cool drinks or coffee depending on the time of day. We now have several more sarees than we had planned to buy. This is because you can never be prepared for what sarees you will find at the store on any given day. It is a treasure trove of surprises no matter how often you visit. Styles, colours and textures change almost every day. Sarees literally sell themselves to you for occasions that you had no plans to buy for. Sarees so befitting of some special person in your life beg to be bought, as “just what she will love”. We make a stop for matching blouse material and then hand over wads of currency to the cashier feeling a slight twinge of guilt. Our minds then return to dwell on the immense beauty that we traded the money for and we feel comforted - even enriched. Having made our purchases at one or several stores we pile into a car or autos, replete from a sensuous feast. Happy and tired during the ride home we talk little, except to make promises to go back and purchase sarees that got missed that day.