Ghagra Choli

Gagra choli or Ghagra choli, which is also known as Lehenga choli, is the traditional clothing of women in Rajasthan,Gujarat,Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Sindh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Jammu & Hindi speaking Terai region of Nepal. It is a combination outfit of a Lehenga, tight Choli and a Dupatta.

Ghagra Choli - 1

Lehenga or Ghagra is a form of skirt which is long, embroidered and pleated. It is worn as the bottom portion of a Gagra choli. It is secured at the waist and leaves the lower back and midriff bare. The ancient version of skirt or Ghagri evolved from Bhairnivasani, which in turn evolved from the Antariya when stitched on one side became tabular and was worn gathered together at the waist, and held by a girdle. This was one of the earliest forms of a clumsily stitched skirt. It was worn using drawstring or nada. The ghagri was a narrow skirt six feet long the same length as original antariya. This style can still be seen worn by Jain nuns in India.

A choli (Hindi: चोली), (ravike in South India Telugu: రవికె, Kannada: ರವಿಕೆ) is a midriff-baring blouse shell garment in the Indian sari costume worn in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and other countries where the sari is worn. The choli is cut to fit tightly to the body and has short sleeves and a low neck. The choli is usually cropped, allowing exposure of the navel; the cropped design is particularly well-suited for wear in the hot South Asian summers.