Sporting the Saree

Can sarees be fun? The Saree Speak group, with its new avatar of the old kitty party, the rush of meeting strangers and games around the saree will have us believe that sarees are not only fun but also a source of deep community building

- Arti Sandhu

December 29, 2018 6:00 am IST. New Delhi Having just flown into India a few days ago, I was still reeling from the side effects of jet lag. I had been up since 3 a.m., and as the rest of the house slept, I was killing time on social media. The numerous posts on the Saree Speak Facebook group were keeping me busy, when all of a sudden, I noticed a mention of an All India Saree Speak meet happening in Goa. Vini Tandon (the founder of Saree Speak) had also posted a message alongside asking if any other meets were planned across the country and beyond. My heart raced. I really wanted to attend a saree meet. While I had been a member of the group for some time, I had never participated beyond likes and a few comments. Still, I was curious to know what this could lead to. Since Goa was out of the question, with fingers crossed, I looked to see if there was one planned for Delhi.

I was in luck! There was. But of course, it was that very same day in the afternoon, and the registration date had passed. I promptly messaged the organiser Preeti Gupta to ask if there was room for one more person. I felt sweaty, out of breath and anxious.

Within a few minutes, Preeti called me back. In her warm Aussie-desi accent, she said could squeeze me in! I was over the moon.

That was until I realised I had no saree to wear. Once again, I was in panic mode. My mother offered up her own selection of sarees, but our tastes are too divergent. When she suggested I should go without a saree (in plain clothes), I was mortified! I was a fashion professor, I needed to have a saree for this event.