The Indian Fashion statement
Visit the place that has added colour and beauty to the lives women through the years. Learn more about the bangle market with Raisa Daimary.
Based on the Indian traditions, bangles or chudis are an important part of women's garb in most cultures of India. They are the ultimate female accessories, a symbol of femininity and a topic of many a Bollywood numbers.
All girls in traditional Indian society can wear bangles although it is not a compulsion but married women are usually expected to wear bangles.
However, it is the colour that plays a significant role in the choice as different colours have different meanings according to tradition. The types of bangles also differ and could play as a marker to distinguish a certain community. Red bangles are worn on the wedding day and after it as a charm that is supposed to ensure her husband's safety and luck. The breaking of a bangle before the death of the husband is considered a bad omen; widows don't wear bangles.
It is not much of a surprise then, to find a whole market dedicated to this romantic piece of an ornament. In fact this is one of many in Delhi. The chudi-bazar at Connaught Place near Hanuman Mandir however stands apart as it is said to be more than a century old.
It has adorned the wrists of women who've made their way to this to this market with choicest of bangles of silver, glass, metal, clay, wood and plastic and of uncountable colours. There are plenty to choose from. Pick the more traditional ones or the chic modern ones; mix them and match them. Single coloured or embellished, they do wonders to glam up any outfit.