Hindustan Times
Sari makes a comeback in Pakistan
Indo-Asian News Service
Karachi, February 20, 2007
The sari is back in fashion in Pakistan, especially among the urban elite, nearly three decades after it went out of vogue due to the conservative policies followed by former dictator Zia-ul Haq.
The comeback of the beautiful six-yard drape is partly thanks to Indian cinema and TV channels.
"The Indian electronic media has played an important role in promoting the sari culture in Pakistan. Now Pakistani actresses on TV channels are being seen wearing saris, especially young women," The Nation newspaper said.
Reviled as an 'alien' dress, especially during the 1980s as part of Zia's "Islamisation" drive, when the conservatives and the clergy termed it "vulgar" and "revealing" because women wearing it expose their midriffs, the sari is making "a strong come back", the newspaper said.
Among the new advocates for the sari is Nasreen Jalil, the Naib Nazim, or deputy mayor of Karachi, Pakistan's commercial capital. She has been seen and photographed at official functions sporting "expensive French chiffons".
Jalil's specialty in wearing saris with sophisticated patterns and vibrant colours has long captivated people in the world of fashion. Now other women are following suit.
It is not that the traditional and more popular salwar-kameez is out, but the urban elite seem to be preferring the sari for formal occasions, the newspaper noted.
Among the graceful ladies who regularly wore saris were Naheed Mirza, wife of former president Iskander Mirza, Nusrat Bhutto, wife of former prime minister Z A Bhutto and mother of Benazir, and Begum Shaista Ikramullah and her daughter Princes Sarwat, who was married to Prince Hassan of Jordan. Pakistani actresses Nayyara Sultana and Sabiha Khanam also preferred to wear saris in films.
Former director general of World Health Organisation (WHO) Nafis Sadiq was among the international bureaucrats who donned the sari.
The sari culture was targeted during Zia-ul Haq's tenure when religion was used to attack the significance of sari and the then-information minister, Mujeebul Rahman, allegedly banned the sari on Pakistan TV.
Observers pointed out that women belonging to other walks of life like education, medicine, showbiz, and representatives of social organisations prefer to wear the sari because it enhances the beauty and personality of the wearer, the newspaper said.
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