The Gazetteers Department

The articles of dress of jalgaon Hindus are not materially different from those of Hindus in other parts of Maharashtra. The manner in which some of these articles are worn may differ slightly according to community or tradition. Thus Hindus having a Gujarati origin have kept to the same way of wearing the dhoti that their Gujarati ancestors followed not only decades but even centuries ago. The kurta or sadra had undergone changes due to prevailing fashion or style but the material has remained the same, viz., coarse cotton piecegoods. The old fashioned heavy, white, folded turban has now remained only among the agricultural men folk and the upper cloth piece worn over the shirt or the coat has almost disappeared. The dhoti and kurta however continue to be a common wear among the older generation.

Male Dress.

Among the younger people, however, the dhoti is getting rarer whether in towns or villages. The loose pyjama, the half-pant and the pant have practically usurped the place of the dhoti. During the days of British rule, the western mode of clothes had to some extent become fashionable in cities, but its glamour has now completely disappeared and the only remains of it among the towns people are the pant and the shirt. The bush-shirt or the bush-coat is the latest fashion and has invaded even the villages. The old uparne, sadra, barabandi, kopri, angarkha and dagla are now rarely seen anywhere. The head dress has also considerably disappeared and bareheadedness is getting into fashion. The made-up turban, folded turban, rumal, patka, safa and even the cap have tended to become things of the past. They may be resurrected on a few social occasions but that has ceased to be a necessity. In winter some warm clothing is worn according to means, the woollen blanket known as ghongdi being the resort of the agriculturists. In home wear the dhoti has been largely replaced by loose pyjamas among the towns folk, but the rough dhoti persists in the villages and among peasant and labouring population.

Female Dress.

A full nine-yard sari and a bodice of similar material constitute the dress of grown-up women whether in the rural or urban areas. The manner of wearing the sadi slightly differs as between the village folk and the towns people. That is due to the necessities of the occupation in which they are employed. While a peasant woman will wear the sadi with more tidiness and in a close-fitting manner, the urban woman will wear it somewhat loosely and the material would he of finer counts. The skirt of the sadi in the former case will cover the head in the case of the village woman but the urban woman will let it hang on her shoulder or wear it across the shoulder. Sadis of five or six yards length have become fashionable of late among younger women and girls and they are worn cylindrically with a parkar (petticoat) inside. Polkas and blouses of different cuts are also getting fashionable and in towns frocks and skirt blouses are coming into vogue in the case of girls.

CHILD DRESS.

For babies, whether boys or girls, a cap known as topre or kuncade is considered essential. Angadis and zablis are used for the body. For children the style of dress is the same, though dress material in their case may be somewhat fine, soft, and cotton or woollen according to seasonal requirements.

ORNAMENTS.

The ornaments worn by women in the towns and those worn by women of the peasantry or working class present a wide difference. Women in towns prefer to have light and delicate articles while those in the rural areas wear heavy and rather crude products of workmanship. Gold ornaments in the rural areas would be found occasionally in well-to-do families like those of Patils, Deshmukhs and Chaudharis. Others would wear silver trinkets on hands and feet and even on other limbs of the body. They might even be of brass and nickel. Glass beads and glass bangles would be profusely worn. The city population of women would be generally sparing in their use though in this respect fashions go on changing and many educated women arc now found putting on as many as eight or ten thin bangles at a time on one of their hands. Gold ornaments still hold away among the well-to-do classes and besides giving prestige to a family, they are looked upon as insurance for emergencies. Those who can afford it also go in for pearls and precious stones. The introduction of cultured pearls from Japan has made it easier to use articles made of pearls like bangles and various kinds of necklaces. Similarly, the invasion of 'Czechoslovak' jewellery has made it possible for girls and women of modern tastes to use various kinds of beads and earrings at cheap prices.

Not long ago, it was fashionable for men folk to adorn their bodies with ornaments and it was not rare to see men who flaunted a bhikhbali on one of their ears, usually right ear. It was usually of two pearls with a green or red stone between them or two or three pearls strung together by a gold wire. But this ornament is now less frequently seen. A gold or pearl kantha with an emerald pendant was a favourite ornament among rich men and may still be seen in some landlord or savkar families. Rings of various styles of gold and often with one or other of the precious stones inset are the only ornaments that are still used by men. Buttons, links, studs, collar-pins or tie-pins of real or artificial gold seem to be the new fashion and the wristwatch has usurped the place of' the old poci or salkadi. Among the rural folk silver ornaments and silver kargotas to be worn round the waist are popular.

Even among women the craze for decorating almost every limb has faded out. Formerly, the hair used to he laden with a number of gold ornaments and the ankles with heavy silver wear including something for the toes too. But they are tending to disappear, particularly in cities. For the hair only flowers are considered proper among the sophisticated, but among the rural women ornaments still persist. Earrings of pearls or other real or artificial stones are fashionable. The mangalasutra made of gold and black glass beads is considered a necessary item in the case of married women with husbands alive. Various styles of gold necklaces or ornaments of gold and pearls are in current use. In the case of rural people they are of silver and continue to be still old-fashioned. Golden bangles of various kinds are popular and in rich families they are made of pearls and precious stones too. For special occasions ornaments round the arms known as vanki are worn. A nose-ring was once considered absolutely essential, as important for man led women as mangalasutra, hut the same importance is no longer attached to his ornament, it is now used only on special festive occasions. Decorating children with various trinkets is fashionable, bindalis around the wrist, a hansali round the neck and sankhli around the wrist. Preferably gold is used in making them hut among the poor classes silver replaces it.

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