Friday, November 22, 2024
Himachal Pradesh

Himachal People

▪Introduction ▪Castes ▪Language ▪Dress ▪Houses

Dress

Dhoti, kurta, coat, waistcoat, turban (or cap), a hand towel upon the shoulders and a copy of the Panchang (astrological ephemeris) under the arm are the traditional attire of the Brahmin priest. The Rajputs wore tight fitting churidar pyjamas, a long coat, a starched turban with a special crown, pointed shoes, a flourishing pair of moustaches and a frown upon their foreheads. The Rajputs followed the Purdah system.

Their wives and daughters when they stepped out of the house, rode in curtained palanquins. They lived in close proximity to each other and had special guest houses, a little removed from their dwelling places. Women belonging to the Brahmin and the Rajput families wore kurtas, salwars, long skirts (ghaghri), embroidered tops (choli) and red head scarves (rahide) with gold edgings. The farmers and labour classes wore only kurta, a loincloth and a cap. They put on long pyjamas only on special occasions like a wedding or a festival. The new socio-economic trends have changed all this classes and castes now wear western style clothes.