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There are more than 80 recorded ways to wear a saree. Fashion designer Shaina NC declared,"I can drape a sari in 54 different styles".
The most common style is for the saree to be wrapped around the waist, with the loose end of the drape to be worn over the shoulder, baring the midriff. However, the saree can be draped in several different styles, though some styles do require a saree of a particular length or form. The French cultural anthropologist and saree researcher Chantal Boulanger categorised saree drapes in the following families:
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There are more than 80 recorded ways to wear a saree. Fashion designer Shaina NC declared,"I can drape a sari in 54 different styles".
The most common style is for the saree to be wrapped around the waist, with the loose end of the drape to be worn over the shoulder, baring the midriff. However, the saree can be draped in several different styles, though some styles do require a saree of a particular length or form. The French cultural anthropologist and saree researcher Chantal Boulanger categorised saree drapes in the following families:
- Nivi – styles originally worn in Andhra Pradesh; besides the modern nivi, there is also the kaccha nivi, where the pleats are passed through the legs and tucked into the waist at the back. This allows free movement while covering the legs.
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- Bengali and Oriya style.
- Gujarati/Rajasthani – after tucking in the pleats similar to the Nivi style, the loose end is taken from the back, draped across the right shoulder, and pulled across to be secured in the back
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- Maharashtrian/Konkani/Kashta; this drape is very similar to that of the male Maharashtrian dhoti. The center of the saree (held lengthwise) is placed at the center back, the ends are brought forward and tied securely, then the two ends are wrapped around the legs. When worn as a saree, an extra-long cloth of nine yards is used and the ends are then passed up over the shoulders and the upper body. They are primarily worn by Brahmin women of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Goa.
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- Dravidian – saree drapes worn in Tamil Nadu; many feature a pinkosu, or pleated rosette, at the waist.
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- Madisar – this drape is typical of Iyengar/Iyer Brahmin ladies from Tamil Nadu.
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- Kodagu style – this drape is confined to ladies hailing from the Kodagu district of Karnataka.
In this style, the pleats are created in the rear, instead of the
front. The loose end of the saree is draped back-to-front over the right
- shoulder, and is pinned to the rest of the saree
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