The Offbeat Sari

In India today, a new generation of designers, wearers and craftspeople are re-energising the sari, translating its heritage for a diverse, contemporary world. Visionary designers across the nation’s cities are playing with drapes, experimental techniques and inventive materials. This transformation is empowering women and people of non-conforming identities to rewrite the language of everyday fashion, wearing the sari in novel ways that unravel conventional forms of expression. This book brings together essays and interviews with designers working at the forefront of Indian fashion – from couturiers like Sabyasachi Mukherjee and Amit Aggarwal, to craft pioneers like Abraham & Thakore. Placing the sari’s leading creators in dialogue with writers and experts, this book reflects how creative ingenuity is expanding the possibilities of contemporary dress across India, revealing the radically offbeat ways in which the sari has become a site for innovation. Edited by Priya Khanchandani, Head of Curatorial at the Design Museum.