Team 10

Traditionally, there are many components to the kathak Costume for both the males and females. The costume can be divided into both Hindu and Moghul types. The Hindu style formerly being used at Rajasthan’s Hindu courts while the Moghul type was used in the Moghul context. The costume resembles those seen and worn in Mughal miniatures (Jeffrey Hays, 2008) Generally, both males and females wear tight- fitting trousers, ankle belles, full- gathered or pleated ghagra skirts with a choli for women and a long-sleeved jacket with a traditional topi hat for men. The full-length skirts that the women wear of the miniatures seem to be transparent, allowing for there to be a glimpse of the lower garments (Adarsha Dress Palace, 2016).

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Traditionally, females wear a saree in a tied-up style so that it is easier for them to move. There are also times where women wear lehenga-choli with the optional odhni which is a shawl-like scarf that is worn over the kurta and gharara or veil. The Kurta and gharara consist of a duparra and the wide-legged pants that flare dramatically from now. There are other dancers who adopt the Mughal costume which consists of an angarkha that tightly fits above the wiser and the skirt portion cuts on the round supplemented by the churidar on the legs. In all cases, the materials of the costumes are usually highly ornamented and valuable. The woman’s outfit also includes rich jewellery and the obligatory nose ring, which gained popularity during the Middle Age and can usually be found in bright colours such as orange, red and green.

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