Home>>Articles >>J.Panchapagesan Articles >>The Naked Truth About Clothing

ROTI---KAPDA—aur-- MAKHAN---for those who are less versatile in Hindi, the translation is FOOD---CLOTH---and—HOME. These 3 are essentials for all human beings in that order. A home that does not provide shelter and privacy cannot be called as a home. Also a meal that cannot provide nourishment and energy does not deserve to be called food. Any body selling the above 2 commodities with those qualifications are bound to grow bankrupt quickly. When it comes to the question of women’s clothing, every year the fashion centers from Europe and America come up with the latest designs. But in the name of modern designs they have come up with another way of not covering the body; it is also the dress equivalent of the home that provides no shelter or privacy. If a person didn’t want to cover the body then why should they go at all for buying such clothes, least of all expensive fashions? Actually there is a tussle between 2 opposite forces. Every human being from the age of 3 or 4 has an inborn sense of shame to go naked. Every religion agrees on the need to cover body from public. At the same time there are also vulgar forces that promotes exhibition of human body in the name of fashion. Most of the humanity is caught between these 2 impulses of covering the body or not. Accordingly clothing designs are attempting to make compromise between these 2 forces. All animals have skin to protect them from cold and prohibitive weathers while GOD has given human beings with a thin skin, so thin and also fur free that it requires external covering for protection.

The ALMIGHTY has also put in to us the sense of shame that forces us to cover ourselves. Our CREATOR designed it this way, so that we will always need to cloth ourselves in public. After all human beings started out naked only. However EVE enticed ADAM to eat the APPLE in the Garden of Eden and the consequence was the humans were too embarrassed to wear no clothes at all on every day basis. Therefore human beings needed something to cover-up. Early clothing consisted of fig leaves that evolved in to present days dress codes. But the type of materials used for clothing, and also the demand of covering particular areas of the body varied from place to place of the globe ably dictated by the climate, culture, tradition and also even religions.

Different layers of clothing are absolutely necessary in extreme cold regions, and a thin and soft covering sparing major portions of the body must be followed for tropical regions. In between the religion also interferes with your dress code and some times rather crudely with the strict punishment for violators. The basic need of clothing of human beings around the world slowly but steadily turned in to a forum of fashions, culture, religion and even wealth and prosperity. There is no need to acquire more than 2 or 3 sets of cloth for both sexes, though however any average middle class citizens own dozens of sets of clothing. But still there are many poor people in India who cannot afford even the minimum clothing.

During pre-independence days it was a common sight to see poor people in villages were just wearing a loin’s cloth with women folk slightly better in covering with the sari to the minimum. It is a known fact that our FATHER OF THE NATION sarcastically called as HALF NAKED FAKIR by WINSTON CHURCHILL was moving around with a towel around his hip with the determination that he would be like that until all Indians are sufficiently clothed. As for as men’s dresses are concerned it has become westernized in India at least at top levels. The influence of British played havoc in standardizing the male dress with coat, suit, tie, socks, shoe and even hat.

All ICS officers were compulsively wearing this irksome dress much against the very hot climatic and humid conditions of India. Even a bridegroom who does not adore top posts was foolishly demanding a set of suit from his in-laws that was only used for his marriage and reception. Fortunately most of the dresses of the fairer sex are still indianised with influence of Europe to the minimum. Perhaps an Indian woman was more a house wife until recently with typical sari having its own charm even outside India. Actually a sari has an ageless charm since it is not cut or tailored for a particular size with its popularity through out centuries because of its total simplicity and practical comfort in a tropical country. For a single length of material the sari is the most versatile garment in existence with its rectangular shape of 5 to 6 yards in its length. But even within India there are varying styles of wearing in Gujarat, Bengali, Kerala, and south Indian Brahmins-iyer-iyengar. We are all aware that in the famous epic of MAHABHARATHA the heroine DHRAUPATHI’S sari couldn’t be disrobed with the endless supply of it by LORD Krishna. That clearly indicates the existence of sari even 5000 years back. A choli (a blouse that ends just below the bust) and a petticoat (a waist to floor length skirt) will complete the dress. In extreme cold a woolen shawl, with gloves for the hands, socks for the foot, and scarf for the head would complete the dress. For the men folk they have already switched over to the pant, shirt, socks with shoe, and tie on occasions, full suit for meetings and other occasions of importance. In the house they prefer LUNGI or DHOTHI. But the typical dress of Indian men as found in villages is still SHERWANI, DHOTHI, and KURTA-PYJAMA, along with head wear made out of lengthy cloth like PAGADI. The young girls prefer CHURIDHAR, SHALWAR KAMEEZ, and LEHANGAS. But of late jeans either tight or loose have become the order of the day for both sexes with tops for girls.

Only about 2 decades back bell bottoms and Bermuda shorts were ruling the fashion world. Perhaps its convenience in its adaptability for riding 2 wheelers and other arduous work makes it more suited for both. Of course the see through, and skin tight garments with provocative nature that has got influence of western countries could be avoided. Every now and then we here hue and cry from the fundamentalists objecting such kind of dresses, especially when ladies of higher ups are involved. It is evident that market governs the cloth’s design that has necessarily to be followed by the designers. The strategy of introducing UNIFORM must greatly be appreciated as it nullifies all attempts to display erratic dressings.

In schools the economic status of all children are made to look uniform. There is also an added advantage of recognizing the particular school to which they belong. In history warriors were wearing uniforms according to the rank that is being followed even now amongst army, air force and navy. Some of the categories of groups of people that are widely adopting uniforms are as below. Defense personals, security organizations, nurses and doctors, police, drivers and conductors of public transport, chefs in hotels and restaurants, prisoners, different sports teams, scout, managers in private companies, religious heads and so on. Actually a uniform is a set of standard clothing worn by members of an organization, while participating in the organization’s activity. Almost all the festivities of all religions stress the importance of wearing well designed new clothes either ready made or stitched. During marriages a good chunk of expenses are towards costly dresses that comprises of wedding suits, different varieties of saris made out of expensive silk and other related dresses. The whole family including children is intoxicated with the dresses that they are going to wear for the marriage of their dear and near. The world has come a long way from using leaves and skin of animals to protect from nature’s fury to wearing space suits and oxygen cylinders to go beyond the earth’s gravity.

It is a strange thing that whales and sharks under the ocean, the birds on the sky, and all animals of forest are with standing all weather condition ably protected by nature from complete extinction. Perhaps by the repeated exposure to all kinds of weather for the past millions of years GOD was bound to give them the development that needed to protect against hazards. Perhaps human beings also might have been gifted with natural protections if only they had braved to with stand all kinds of hardships with out wearing any protection!

BY J.PANCHAPAGESAN FLAT-11,130 GILL NAGAR EXTN STREET CHOOLAIMEDU CHENNAI PH-044 23744963 EMAIL id- jpanchapagesan@yahoo.co.in