Sari

A sari (sometimes also saree[1] or shari)[note 1] is a women's garment from the Indian subcontinent,[2] that consists of an un-stitched stretch of woven fabric arranged over the body as a robe, with one end attached to the waist, while the other end rests over one shoulder as a stole (shawl),[3] sometimes baring a part of the midriff.[4][5][6] It may vary from 4.1 to 8.2 metres (4.5 to 9 yards) in length,[7] and 60 to 120 centimetres (24 to 47 inches) in breadth,[8] and is form of ethnic wear in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan. There are various names and styles of sari manufacture and draping, the most common being the Nivi style.[9][10] The sari is worn with a fitted bodice also called a choli (ravike or kuppasa in southern India, and cholo in Nepal) and a petticoat called ghagra, parkar, or ul-pavadai.[11] It remains fashionable in the Indian subcontinent today.[12] The Hindustani word sāṛī (साड़ी, ساڑھی),[13] described in Sanskrit śāṭī[14] which means 'strip of cloth'[15] and शाडी śāḍī or साडी sāḍī in Pali, ಸೀರೆ or sīre in Kannada and which evolved to sāṛī in modern Indian languages.[16] The word śāṭika is mentioned as describing women's dharmic attire in Sanskrit literature and Buddhist literature called Jatakas.[17] This could be equivalent to the modern day sari.[17] The term for female bodice, the choli evolved from ancient stanapaṭṭa.[18][19] Rajatarangini, a tenth-century literary work by Kalhana, states that the choli from the Deccan was introduced under the royal order in Kashmir.[11]