From one generation to the other: Here’s why five influencers chose to refurbish a timeless heirloom

In the Indian wedding milieu, a bride often takes a little keepsake of her loved ones with her as she moves into a new life, in the hope that it will remind her of them. Several brides take that even further by wearing a treasured part of the family legacy on their big day itself—an heirloom wedding outfit. Passed on from one generation to another, the sari or lehenga is lovingly restored and worn on its own or incorporated in part to make for that forever memory. While it has got the celebrity nod with the likes of Kareena Kapoor Khan and Isha Ambani choosing to wear an heirloom piece on their wedding day, several other contemporary brides are also taking to the trend. Five well-known fashion influencers share why they opted for this and how it was significant to them. If you’re planning your own wedding outfit soon, here's the cue you need…  

Kompal Matta Kapoor

When Kompal Matta Kapoor tied the knot with her best friend and moved to America, she was keen to have a part of her own family’s Lucknowi heritage in the very first step of her life. The fashion student and blogger, says, “Chikankari handwork is something that will always be near to my heart because I was born and raised in Lucknow. I loved my mother’s beautiful collection of chikankari clothes and I knew had to have one of these on my own big day, so I chose to wear my mother’s most classic chikankari lehenga. It is subtle and designed in a white and pastel tone with delicate mukaish work. We restored it by adding a new dupatta with light embellished flowers, heavy tassels, and thick borders beneath to renew the edges. These small changes just gave it a whole new look and made it something to treasure for a lifetime. I even wore it for a festive shoot in India that I planned a couple of years ago.”  

Khushnaz Ashdin Turner 

Turner, a big believer in restoring heirloom pieces, says, “I am truly of the belief that beautiful things have to be worn again and again. If you have something you love in the wardrobe, maintain it and wear it as it is or have some work done on it to your liking. I’ve worn my mother’s orange-pink sari this way, as well as my mother-in-law’s sari that I accessorised with a belt to a close family wedding recently. She had this old brocade silk sari which I just got repolished. I also have these exquisite family garas (Parsi saris) with heavy embroidered borders, which I’ve recreated over time. Every few years, I bring them out, get them dry cleaned, polished, and put them on fresh chiffons, and colours that are more contemporary. While I can’t pull out some material my mother or grandmother wore 20 or 30 years ago, so I restore it and make it more wearable. Also, the borders on the garas are so expensive, and they are on net, so sometimes they need to be restored in places because of wear and tear, in case things get stuck in the zardozi. But all this instantly takes an old garment and makes it super relevant. I think that’s a must do, because otherwise these garas and saris don’t stay relevant, right? I even did a reel on how you can recreate an old sari, and the many ways to wear it. 

Tina Kakkad Dhanak

At Tina Kakkad Dhakak’s destination wedding, she chose to give an interesting take to her mother’s outfit and reveals, “With Punjabis, the chooda ceremony is such a special, only-girls’ side function. Mine was held in the morning at a resort in Mauritius with a scenic backdrop of a private beach. And here’s where I chose to wear my mums’ heirloom sari—a beautiful fuchsia Benarasi, which we turned into a lehenga. The sari first had to be polished and the thread work redone in some places, for which I reached out to a family friend who connected me with a local designer. I remember how restoring it took close to a month, but when I wore it that morning, it was the one of best choices I had made. The garment was light and had no work, but since I had wanted to underplay the morning, as the evening wear was heavier, it was perfect. Nobody had seen the sari before and when I wore it as a lehenga, everyone ended up complimenting me saying it was my best look, even though I had not chosen to go with any designer. To me, I felt like it was not just an outfit but something that was passed onto me for good luck and as a blessing. I loved how a piece of my mother was imbibed into my wedding function, and I know that if I have a daughter, I’m going to pass this sari on to her.”

Masoom Minawala

The global influencer and entrepreneur made for a pretty picture during her wedding when she opted to wear her mother’s sari. Minawala says, “For my haldi, which was an intimate event at home, I chose this beautiful, bright yellow chiffon saree from my mum’s closet. Once bought in Bombay decades ago, I had been eyeing it for quite some time. This function was very relaxed, so I opted for something easy and went with what felt natural to me in the moment! That is how I live, and I thought it would be fitting to do the same for my wedding celebration. The sari’s true selling point for my mother—who has roots in Rajasthan herself—was its embodiment of the classic Marwari style, the traditional gotta patti work at the borders and the lightness of the fabric. I loved that somehow this sari represented who I am, highlighted my roots, and showcased my culture. It was also a special way to have my mother’s love with me at my ceremony. I got the sari border done again and had a blouse made with gota patti flowers to match”

Megha Israni Bhatia

Megha Israni Bhatia wanted to honour her mother and grandmother by wearing their heirloom pieces at her wedding. She says, “I wore my mother’s sari for my registered marriage and my grandmother’s bangles. This was to be an intimate affair with only close friends and family, so I wanted everything to be very personal. My mother’s sari was about 25 years old, a cotton-silk drape in a light, baby-pink shade. I decided to get it dyed to a darker shade of pink and also had some gold zardozi work done to add to it. It ended up looking so beautiful and I was glad I made this choice. It felt like I had the purest emotion of love around me that day.”

Feature image: sabapataudi