mughal costume, textile and jewellery
TRANSCRIPT
Empire
MUGALUnfolding fashion of Mugal Empire
By Richa Parashar
Mugal empire played an important role in increasing the richness of Indian textile and costume. Mugal emperors( 1526-1857) were pas-sionate about painting, jewellery ,architecture,Poetry.This presena-tion highlights the costume ,textile, ornaments ad it’s effect of in todays fashion world.
Costume: Textile: Jewellery MUGAL EMPIRE
Men’s clothingMughal clothing refers to clothing devel-oped by the Mughals in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries throughout the extent of their empire in the Indian subcontinent.
It was characterized by luxurious styles and was made with muslin, silk, velvet and brocade.Elaborate patterns includ-ing dots, checks, and waves were used with colors from various dyes including cochineal, sulfate of iron, sulfate of cop-per and sulfate of antimony
Characterstic
sM
UGA
L EM
PIRE
Fig 01:Typical Mugal m
en clothingJam
a,Pajama,Patka,turban
Fig
02: P
ortr
ait o
f Prin
ce K
hurr
am
(Sha
h Ja
han)
, Mug
hal p
erio
d
MU
GAL
EMPI
RE
Men’s clothingThe Mughals (a mix of Turkish and Persian in-fluences) took shape during the reign of Akbar and Jahangir.
Mughal costume for men consisted of the 1) jama, a garment that was fitted till the waist and worn crosswise and fastened at the side with a lower skirt like portion that fell below the knees 2) the tight paijamas for the legs 3) the patka (sash) which here is secured with a jewelled belt 4) the chadar aka shawl 5) the turban. The jama and chador were usually fine muslin, fine enough to see un-derlying jewellery. Other clothing types included: “peshwaz” style robes and “yalek” robes
Cost
ume
deta
ils
Fig
04:
The
mul
tiple
side
ties
of
jam
a or
tuni
c a
nd fl
at h
eele
d w
ith a
poi
nted
fron
t end
and
w
ithou
t a b
acks
trap
Fig
03:P
agri
styl
es -
"Cha
u-go
shia
",
in fo
ur se
gmen
ts, t
he d
ome
shap
ed
qubb
edar
, ka
shiti
, du
palli
, em
broi
-de
red
nuk
ka d
ar, a
nd e
mbr
oide
red
and
velv
et m
andi
Fig0
4: T
his o
pule
nt fo
rm o
f em
broi
-de
ry in
one
in w
hich
met
al th
read
s,
mos
tly g
old
and
silv
er, w
ere
used
to
crea
te e
xten
sive
moti
fs. T
he tr
end
is
trac
ed b
ack
to th
e M
ugha
l per
iod
Fig
07:
Achk
an a
nd A
ngra
khas
are
use
d to
add
a se
nse
of fu
n an
d ta
ngin
ess t
o th
e us
ual k
urta
.
Men’s clothingThe Mughal inspiration could be see working into modern ensembles.
The rich colour ranges from pastel pink, jade, mauve to intoxicating champagne, rich gold, bright red, sophisticate maroon, electric blue, sunny saffron and ended with heavy jewelled looks, which at times become so intense that the embellish-ments almost replace the need for jewel-lery around the necks .Detailing for the collection revolved around stitched-in pleats and belted saris or kurtas along with dhoti or lungi drapes for pants and skirts
Toda
ys M
ugal
CON
TEM
PORA
RY
Fig0
9: M
ugha
l kun
dan
neck
lace
Fig
08:P
ersi
an b
lue
mee
na-
kari
neck
lace
in fl
oral
moti
f
Women were known to have as many as 8 complete sets of jewelry. Popular ornaments included 2 inch wide arm-lets worn above the elbows, bracelets or pearls at the wrist stacked high enough to impede access to the pulse, lots of rings (with the mirror ring worn on the right thumb customary for nearly all the inhabitants of the Zenana), strings of pearls (as many as 15 strings at a time), metal bands or strings of pearls at the bottom of their legs, and ornaments hanging in the middle of the head in the shape of star, sun, moon, or a flower
Women’s fashionWomen also adorned a variety of head or-naments such as Binduli, Kotbiladar, Sekra, Siphul, Tikka and Jhumar
Mug
al o
rnam
ents
JEW
ELLE
RY
Fig1
2:He
ad o
rnam
ents
such
as B
ind-
uli,
Kotb
ilada
r, Ti
kka
and
Jhum
ar
Fig1
1:M
or-B
hanw
ar, B
ali,
Jhum
-ka
s, K
anph
ool a
nd P
ipal
pat
ra o
r pa
pal p
atti a
re e
arrin
gs fr
om th
e pe
riod.
Fig1
1:Ha
nd o
rnam
ent
They wore long, loose jama likeribs, which had full sleeves and opened at the front. Underneath, an ankle length vest was worn and the ensemble was completed with a veil which cov-ered the hair and most of the face .Dur-ing the cold season, qabas (coat) made of Kashmir shawl cloth was worn asovercoats .Outside the harem they wereusually clothed in the burqa ,which cov-ered the body from head to feet leaving only a slit around the eyes
MU
GAL
EMPI
RECh
aracterstic
sWomen’s costumeThe clothes worn by Muslim women during the Mughal rule were not much different to the men.
Fig1
3: Id
ealiz
ed P
ortr
ait o
f the
Mug
hal
Empr
ess N
ur Ja
han
Fig1
4: T
he g
arm
ents
of M
ugha
l la-
dies
wer
e m
ade
of th
e fin
est m
us-
lins,
silk
s, v
elve
ts a
nd b
roca
des.
CON
TEM
PORA
RY
Toda
ys M
ugal
Women’s clothingThe Mughal inspiration could be see work-ing into modern ensembles.
Figure15 :Model w
earing anarkali during a fashion show
Fig
16 :T
he p
aasa
, or t
he jh
oom
ar
paas
a, is
a tr
aditi
onal
pie
ce o
f jew
el-
lery
wor
n on
the
head
.
the anarkali as a garment was identi-fied as a long flowy kurta that was fit-ted around the bust. The fitting around the empire line and subsequent flare in the garment was revived in the 1960s.
The paasa is defined by its pearled strings that carry a pendant-like struc-ture. Usually, it is worn on the left side of the head and is tucked into the hair in a way that it covers the temple.
The shoes seem to correspond to the salimshahi, a type of shoe introduced by Jahangir aka Prince Salim, flat heeled with a pointed front end (often curved) and without a backstrap (perhaps a precursor of the modern mojri).
JEW
ELLE
RYM
ugal
Orn
amen
ts
Men’s fashionOrnaments are worn not only for the pur-pose of attracting the attention of others around but also as a distinctive mark of status, rank and dignity.
The most important accessory for an Indian man was his turban, which pro-claimed his status, religion, caste and region of origin. To submit a turban to anybody was a sign of total subjugation and the removal of a turban was the most humiliating punishment that could be inflicted on any man.
Fig:The ornaments, footwear, head-wear and of Mughal period.
Fig:Jewellery for decoraticng turban
Pai-Jama: This is a compound of two Persian words “pai” meaning legs or feet and “jama” meaning cover. Draw-string pai-jamas have been worn in Persia since very ancient times. From about 1530 onwards, several types of pai-jama were worn in India.Churidar: Cut on the bias, much long-er than the leg, so that folds fall at the ankle, worn by men and women.Shalwar: A triangularly cut pai-jama with a quilted band at the ankle (pon-cha) worn by men and women.Dhilja: A woman’s pai-jama made of silk, cut wide and straight.Garara: A woman’s pai-jama cut loose to the knee and adding gathers.Farshi: A woman’s pai-jama cut with-out folds to the knees, and then gath-ered into pleats to the floor.
Cost
ume
deta
ilsM
UGA
L EM
PIRE
Women’s clothingladies wore multiple layers of clothing, with a tight fitting bodice that stopped short of the navel.The length hit the knees or lower, the waist fastened closely, and the neckline was in a “V” shape.
Fig:Costume of women in Mugal court
Ornamented shoes with turned up toes (Jhuti) were Persian in style, and were worn by men and women. Some other footwear were:The Kafsh, worn by nobles and kingsThe Charhvan, with a curling tongue fixed to the toeThe Salim Shahi, decorated in goldThe Khurd Nau, very lightweight, made of kid leatherLucknow was most famous for it’s footwear in Mughal times, and the art of Aughi, embroidery on leather and velvet footwear, was very popular.M
UGA
L EM
PIRE
Mug
alFo
otw
ear
Men’s fashionPeople prefer wearing them on traditional oca-sions like weddings. Along with traditional dresses like sherwani or kurta pajama, jutti form the quintessential accessory.
Fig:
jutti
for m
en w
ith e
x-te
nded
cur
ved
tip, o
r nok
h.
Fig:
Orn
amen
ted
Jutti
dur
-in
g M
ugal
per
iod
Fig:
Indi
an M
ojar
is Pa
ir
Jackets: Jackets over kurtas and saris have become a smart, chic choice for women across the nation. Historians across the country and paintings from the era suggest that empress Mumtaz was extremely fond of the trend. She was often painted wearing a long sleeved kurta under a short-sleeved jacket. The trend of carrying jackets over the usual kurtas and anarkalis is hence often credited to Mumtaz herself. Historians as-sert that jackets were not meant for women earlier and crafting these jackets that were rich in fabric and opulent in nature was a brainchild of the Mughals, notably Mumtaz.
Modern twist by Indian designers
MU
GAL
EM
PIRE
Modern twist given to traditional jacket
Men’s jacket inspired by Akbar’s jacket
Shru
ti H
aasa
n w
alk
the r
amp
foM
ugha
l In
dia
Show
by
Anus
hree
Red
dy
Reynu Taandon takes the ramp accompanied by showstopper Richa Chadha
This new collection juxtaposes the traditions of the Mughal era with the taste of a modern day
Ethnicity is kept intact, fusing it with mod-ern construction to make the ensemble fit for a modern bride. Fine fabrics such as rich velvet and Benarasi as the base for lehengas and anarkali suits has been used. Intense threadwork embroidery has been meticu-lously worked upon. Tulle and cancan has been used to create a lacy, floating look. Deep colours like burgundy, tomato red and hot pink dominate this line. Cocktail saris use shimmer chiffon, bejewelled borders and Renaissance motifs all over as the jaal. De-tailed bejewelled bustiers have been coordi-nated with the saris and lehengas.
FASHION
R
ELIV
ING
MU
GAL