A choli (

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

: चोली,

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Nepali: चोलो ''cholo'') (known in South India as ''ravike'' (

Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

: ರವಿಕೆ,

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...

: రవికె,

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

: ரவிக்கை)) is a

blouse A blouse (blau̇s, 'blau̇z, ) is a loose-fitting upper garment that was worn by workmen, peasants, artists, women, and children.The Concise Oxford English Dictionary It is typically gathered at the waist or hips (by tight hem, pleats, parter ...

or a

bodice A bodice () is an article of clothing traditionally for women and girls, covering the torso from the neck to the waist. The term typically refers to a specific type of upper garment common in Europe during the 16th to the 18th century, or to the ...

-like upper garment that is commonly cut short leaving the

midriff In fashion, the midriff is the human abdomen. The midriff is exposed when wearing a crop top or some forms of swimwear or underwear. Cholis worn by Indian women expose a section of midriff, usually . Etymology "Midriff" is a very old term in ...

bare, it is worn along with a

sari A sari (sometimes also saree or shari)The name of the garment in various regional languages include: * as, শাৰী, xārī, translit-std=ISO * bn, শাড়ি, śāṛi, translit-std=ISO * gu, સાડી, sāḍī, translit-std= ...

in the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

. The choli is also part of the

ghagra choli Ghagra choli (also known as lehenga choli and locally as chaniya choli) is a type of ethnic clothing for women from the Indian Subcontinent, notably in the Indian states of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Pu ...

costume in the Indian subcontinent. In Northern Gujarat bordering Rajasthan, Palanpur in particular (Banaskantha), Polku, gu, પોલકું word was used.

Evolution

The choli evolved from the ancient ''

stanapatta ''Stanapatta'' (Stanmasuka) was a loose wrap cloth for the upper body. It was a chest band used in ancient India. It was a simple upper garment of the females during the ancient time similar to the ''mamillare'' or ''strophium'' used by the Roman ...

'', also known as ''kurpsika'' or '' kanchuki'', which was one of the forms of three-piece attire worn by women during the ancient period. This consisted of the ''

antriya An antariya () is a lower body garment from ancient India. It is a long white or coloured strip of cotton passed through the legs, tucked at the back and covering the legs loosely, then flowing into long pleats at front of the legs. History Antr ...

'' lower garment; the ''

uttariya An uttariya () is a loose piece of upper body clothing. It is a single piece of cloth that falls from the back of the neck to curl around both arms and could also drape the top half of the body. An Uttariya is similar to a veil, a long scarf an ...

'' veil worn over shoulder or head; and the ''stanapatta,'' a chestband, which is mentioned in

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

literature and Buddhist

Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or ''Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of ''Theravāda'' Buddhism ...

literature during the 6th century BC. Paintings from

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

and

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

from the first millennium BCE are considered the first recorded examples of the choli. Poetic references from works such as ''Silapadikkaram'' indicate that during the

Sangam period The Sangam period or age (, ), particularly referring to the third Sangam period, is the period of the history of ancient Tamil Nadu, Kerala and parts of Sri Lanka (then known as Tamilakam) spanning from c. 6th century BCE to c. 3rd century CE. ...

(third-century BCE to fourth-century CE in ancient South India), a single piece of clothing served as both lower garment and upper shawl. Paintings and sculpture indicate that the ''stanapatta'' evolved into the choli by the first century CE, in various regional styles. ''

Rajatarangini ''Rajatarangini'' ("The River of Kings") is a metrical legendary and historical chronicle of the north-western part of India, particularly the kings of Kashmir. It was written in Sanskrit by Kashmiri historian Kalhana in the 12th century CE. The ...

'', a tenth-century literary work by

Kalhana Kalhana ( sa, कल्हण, translit=kalhaṇa) was the author of ''Rajatarangini'' (''River of Kings''), an account of the history of Kashmir. He wrote the work in Sanskrit between 1148 and 1149. All information regarding his life has to be d ...

, states that the choli from the

Deccan The large Deccan Plateau in South India, southern India is located between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats, and is loosely defined as the peninsular region between these ranges that is south of the Narmada river. To the north, it is bou ...

was introduced under the royal order in Kashmir. Early cholis were front-covering and tied at the back. Cholis of this kind are still common in state of

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...

. In Nepal, the garment is known as a ''cholo'', and in Southern India as a ''ravike.'' Both of these styles are tied at the front, unlike Northern Indian cholis, which are tied at the back. In parts of the Hindi Belt, mostly in Rajasthan,

Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ar ...

and

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

, women wore vest-like garments, known as ''kanchli'', over choli; this complete costume is known as the ''

poshak ''Poshak'' () is the Hindi term used for the complete attire used in the vedic period. As mentioned in Sanskrit literature and Buddhist Pali literature during the 6th century BC, the costumes belonging to the Vedic and post-Vedic period 1500 BCE t ...

''.

Historical paintings

Image:Ajanta Paintings.jpg, Women in Choli and

Antariya An antariya () is a lower body garment from ancient India. It is a long white or coloured strip of cotton passed through the legs, tucked at the back and covering the legs loosely, then flowing into long pleats at front of the legs. History Antr ...

CE 320

Gupta Empire The Gupta Empire was an ancient Indian empire which existed from the early 4th century CE to late 6th century CE. At its zenith, from approximately 319 to 467 CE, it covered much of the Indian subcontinent. This period is considered as the Gol ...

. Image:Aj2.jpg, Women in Choli CE 320

. The early form of Choli tied at the back with the front covering. Image:Iacuci11d0b62ppy.D.0.Ajanta-Cave-painting-Painting-Dance.jpg, Dancing girl in Kurta/Salwar-like Choli

. File:Detail of a leaf with the birth of mahavira.jpg, Kalpasutra Manuscript c. 1375–1400. Example of early form of full sleeve choli. File:Vasant Rangini, Detail 15th century.jpg, Detail of Vasant Ragini, Rajastani painting 1500s showing early form of choli tied at the back. File:Krishna_defeats_Trinavarta.jpg, Bhagavata Purana manuscript c. 1525–40 File:Bhairavi Ragini, Manley Ragamala, an album painting in gouache on paper.jpg, Bhairavi Ragini, Manley Ragamala manuscript c. 1610. File:Female musicians wedding of Aurangzeb.jpg, Female musicians at Aurangzeb's wedding - Mughal c. 1636. File:Kangra Painting.jpg, Krishna flirting with the Gopis, to Radhas sorrow - Kangra Painting c. 1760. Full sleeve choli and bodies are worn in Himalayan states of India. File:Lady being offered wine, Deccan, 1600 AD.jpg, Lady being offered wine, Deccan, 1600 CE.

Historic photographs

File:Ghagra Choli1.jpg, Woman in gagra choli Image:Tamil Girl.jpg, Tamil girl in choli File:Tamil Sari.jpg, Tamil women in choli File:Bengali Sari.jpg, Bengali girl in full sleeve choli (1880) File:Ceylon India 1880.jpg,

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

n woman in choli (1880) File:Marathi Women.jpg, Marathi woman in choli File:Krishnacart.jpg, Plaque depicting ancient form of long choli and gagra worn during

File:Sindhi lehenga, choli and Sindhi traditional pantaloon shalwar.jpg, Woman in

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

i choli 1845

Changing times

Vidya Balan Insult India Parade or Bollywood Parade

Traditionally, the choli has been made from the same fabric as the sari, with many sari producers adding extra length to their products so that women can cut off the excess fabric at the end of the sari and use it to sew a matching choli. For everyday wear,

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus ''Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor perce ...

-based materials and silk cotton are widely considered the most comfortable. Chiffon and

silk Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the coc ...

are best suited for formal occasions. The ideal fabric for cholis in the summer is chiffon and

georgette Georgette is a feminine given name, the French form of (''Geōrgia''), the feminine form of George. Georgette may refer to: People * Georgette Barry (1919–2003), stage name Andrea King, American actress * Georgette Bauerdorf (1924–1944), Ame ...

. Designers have experimented with the choli, influencing pop-culture fashion in the Indian subcontinent, with adventurous tailoring and innovative necklines, such as

halter A halter or headcollar is headgear that is used to lead or tie up livestock and, occasionally, other animals; it fits behind the ears (behind the poll), and around the muzzle. To handle the animal, usually a lead rope is attached. On smaller ...

tubes Tube or tubes may refer to: * ''Tube'' (2003 film), a 2003 Korean film * ''The Tube'' (TV series), a music related TV series by Channel 4 in the United Kingdom * "Tubes" (Peter Dale), performer on the Soccer AM television show * Tube (band), a ...

backless ''Backless'' is the sixth full-length studio album by Eric Clapton. Produced by Glyn Johns, and released by RSO Records, ''Backless'' reached No. 8 on the pop charts. While the single "Promises" only reached No. 37 in the UK, it was a much bi ...

or stringed. Anupama Raj, a designer and boutique owner, commented that "there is a very real need to re-invent the choli so that it can be worn with a variety of outfits. Just as we see the choli to be a deconstructed form of the blouse, we need to deconstruct the choli." Bobby Malik, an exporter-turned-designer commented "the choli is the most sensuous of all garments created for women. It not only flatters the feminine form, but also brings out the romanticism in a woman. But where Indian designers have failed is at giving it an international look and making it still more beautiful."

Recent styles

File:Sherlyn Chopra at Playboy press meet 05.jpg, File:Priyanka Pripri photograph.jpg File:AmeeshaPatel04.jpg File:IndianModel.jpg File:Sofia hayat arjun.jpg File:Kajol at Shantanu-Nikhil's store launch (42).jpg File:Woman wearing sari (31000048043).jpg File:Koppikar.jpg

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Choli Indian clothing Pakistani clothing Embroidery Needlework Saris Tops (clothing) Kerala clothing Embroidery in India Sri Lankan clothing