Wardrobe of a Lucknawi Gentleman
Men from Lucknow are known for their sartorial style.
Glimpses of traditional men's attire...
Dr. S.M. Zaheer in an achkan (2012) by UnknownLucknow Bioscope
Ackan (Achkan)
The ackan is a slightly loose- fitting knee length jacket. The upper part is like a coat and the lower part has a slight flare as in an angarkha. The chest fastening can be on the side but now it is more frequently on the front. The ackan is worn with a pyjāma, cūṛīdār or dhōtī as the lower garment. It is made of linen, jamavar, silk and cotton. Today, it is usually worn on festive occasions.
Ackan/Sherwani in banarsi brocade.
Achkan in woven silk fabric. (1900/1935) by UnknownLucknow Bioscope
Sherwāni (Sherwani)
It is a tight- fitting coat like garment that falls just below the knee. The sherwani has a breast pocket on the left side. It can be made of brocade, silk, cotton or woolen cloth and is usually worn at weddings or formal occasions. A sherwani can be further embellished with zardōzī work on the cuffs and collar. Sherwani buttons are often plain, but can also be made simply in gold with the more elaborate ones have a jaṛāu setting of precious stones.
Angarkha
The angarkha is a full-sleeved knee-length, hand-stitched garment with a fitted bodice and a slightly flared skirt. The front of the angarkha has overlapping panels which are usually tied (not buttoned) together on one side. Angarkhas are made of fine cotton, and in Lucknow they are embellished with cikan work and kāmdāni. They are usually worn on formal occasions.
Muslin angarkha in the finest cikankāri.
Kurta
A commonly worn upper garment, a kurta is loose fitting. Fine muslin kurtas are hand-stitched. A kurta may be knee length, even longer or shorter, depending on the choice of the wearer. The front of the kurta has a single wide panel with two narrower panels on either side and a similar construction at the back. There may be cikan work along the neck, down the taveez in the front and along the seams. Kurtas are made of fine cotton or silk.
They are worn as an everyday garment and the more elaborate ones are for formal occasions. Fine cotton kurtas, with cikan embroidery and crinkled sleeves exemplify the sartorial elegance of men’s wear in Lucknow. Plain coloured or printed cotton kurtas are becoming increasingly popular.
Cikan embroidered kurtas in different neck styles.
Pyjāma: It is a loose fitting, trouser like garment, made of heavy white cotton. Pyjāmas may be worn as night wear, as part of day clothing or as formal wear. Some pyjāmas are slightly narrow and the typical Lucknow ones have very broad pāinchās.
Cūrīdār: As the name indicates, this is a tight-fitting pyjāma with excessive length which is then bunched up like bangles or cūṛīs along the lower end of the calf. Cūrīdārs are made of cotton or silk and are usually considered formal wear. A cūrīdār is cut on the cross, fits snugly along the leg, and is very comfortable to wear. It can be paired with an angarkha, ackan, shervāni, or kurta.
Tōpī
The most commonly worn ṭōpī (cap) in Lucknow is the dōpallī. As the name suggests, it has two sides which are stitched together to form a cap. Topis are made of fine cotton, worn plain or embroidered with cikan work. Older versions of the dōpallī are the more elaborate four-sided or five-sided caps which are rarely to be seen now.
Tōpīs of three different styles...
Shyamji Srivastava and Venkatesh Srivastava wearing a fine cotton dhoti (2023) by UnknownLucknow Bioscope
Dhōti
This is a running length of fine cotton or silk, wrapped around the lower body and tied at the waist. It has a fall that partially covers each leg. There are two styles of tying a dhoti, the tāmrapatrak [palm leaf] or the hastishaundik [elephant’s trunk]. Dhotis are paired with kurtas and worn at festivals and most often for Hindu religious rituals.
Traditional dhōti worn with a short kurta.
Some old photographs of men and children of Lucknow in different costumes...
Lucknow continues to be the place of choice for men wanting to get finely embroidered kurtas and elegantly tailored ackans and shervānis.
Curation: Noor Khan & Saman Habib
Photography: Ayan Bose, Tasveer Hasan, Najeeb Aziz
Team: Nagma Ehtesham, Nasreen Khan, Nimra Rizvi, Mariyam Imran, Saman Habib, Noor Khan
Text, Editing and Translation: Saman Habib, Noor Khan, Sabiha Anwar, Isha Priya Singh, Waseem Ahmed, Stuti Mishra,Divya Joshi
Gracious Contribution by:
Amir Jamal
Amir Naqi Khan
Arif Ansari
Bhavna Singh & Digvijay N Singh
Faraz Ali Zaidi
Sanjay Muttoo
Venkatash & Shyamji Srivastava
Zainab Hussain
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