You will need to see yourself in a full-length mirror while you drape your saree You may also have one or two large safety pins handy (these are not used traditionally, but many modern Indian women do cheat a little, so why shouldn’t you?).
First open out the saree to find the fall, a relatively narrow strip of cloth that is stitched along part of one edge. Its purpose is to add weight to the bottom of the saree. You will see that the fall is stitched only a certain distance along the edge. At the other end of the saree, the pattern becomes more elaborate or decorative. This end is referred to as the pallu. When the saree is worn, the fall will face inwards and encircle your ankles. The pallu will hang over your left shoulder.
There are many ways to drape a saree, but the most popular, by far, is the Bengali style. The description below is how to drape a saree in the Bengali fashion. The saree will be wound, from right to left, twice around your lower body, up and across your front and the pallu hung gracefully over your left shoulder.
Before you can drape the saree you must first put on the saree blouse (choli) and petticoat. Wear your sandals or shoes and view yourself in a full-length mirror so that you can judge the length exactly. Tie the petticoat so that the bottom is, say, two inches above the ground. Tie the string so that it is comfortable, but not too tight. You will be tucking the top of the saree inside, so don’t make it too tight.
Stand in front of the full-length mirror. Open out the saree. Find the end that has the fall (the opposite end of the saree from the pallu). Hold the end section so that fall is at your feet and facing towards you. Hold it against yourself, so that the end is on your right side. Stretch out the top edge of the saree horizontal and look at yourself in the mirror to adjust the height so that the bottom is just barely – maybe one inch – over the ground (it must cover the bottom of the petticoat). Fold the top edge of the saree over the petticoat and tuck it inside securely.
Keep the saree stretched out and at the correct height and gradually wrap the saree around yourself, watching the length carefully in the mirror and tucking in the top edge until you complete a full circle plus a little. You will find it easiest if you turn yourself around while doing this. You should stop a little before your navel. This is where you will gather pleats, but before you can do that you need to sort out the pallu, so that it will hang nicely over your shoulder.
Take the other end of the saree and wind it very loosely one more circle around yourself, but do not tuck in yet. Take the pallu over your left shoulder and see that it hangs down so that the end of the pallu comes down the to about base of your spine. You should now have a loose section in front of you.
Now you must make the pleats. With your left hand, stretch out a section of the saree where you finished off tucking in. Place your right hand in front of your navel. With the thumb and outstretched index finger inside and the remaining fingers outside, grasp the top of the saree.
Make the first pleat like this:
Make more pleats in a similar fashion until you use up all the slack. You should have made about five to seven pleats in all (the exact number depends on your size and the length of the saree). Press the pleated portion against yourself and carefully adjust the height (don’t bend forwards to see -- use the mirror). Tuck the top of the pleats inside your petticoat. [You can also get someone to help you make the pleats if you find the above description difficult to follow.]
Remove the pallu from your shoulder and turn yourself around while you wind the saree a little loosely around yourself once more. Bring the final section up across your front and hang the pallu neatly over your left shoulder. At this point, you may want to use a safety pin to secure the pleats.
Now all is done except tidying up the pallu. For stiff formal wear (and uniforms), the pallu should be fan-folded lengthways into four (or six). Arrange the pallu so that it hangs a little precariously out towards the edge of the shoulder and pin it neatly to the saree blouse with a safety pin. If you prefer to be a little less stiff, you can simply gather the pallu together as it passes over the left shoulder. If you want to show off the pallu, let it fall down your upper arm and hang from there.
Complete your appearance by wearing a matching bindi. An Indian woman would always wear bangles with a saree; maybe glass bangles in matching colour or, of course, gold bangles.
Copyright (c) 1998, John & Kalpana Lloyd-Jones