1

MUGHAL COSTUMES

The Mughal Empire was founded by Babur in1526. Though Babur was from the Persian
region, his ancestors were Mongolian and Central Asian – Timur and Chengiz Khan. He
ruled in India only for the short period of four years. He did not contribute to the
evolution of Mughal Costumes, faithfully wearing the costumes of his Persian forefathers
and complaining about the heat of Delhi.

Babur continued to wear the chafan (long coat) and postin (sheep skin jacket) of his
nomadic ancestors, totally unsuitable for the sweltering heat of India.

His son Humayun too spent much of life in exile, dying soon after his return to India.
However, he had a particular fondness for choosing the colour of his robes in accordance
with the movements of the planets. This practice was similar to the Indian tradition of
wearing colours according to the season and in accordance with certain auspicious days –
yellow for the springtime, burgundies and olives for the monsoon etc. It was left to
Humayun’s son Akbar to make a huge contribution to the Mughal style and costume.

AKBAR was a practical man. He recognized the unsuitability of the thick Persian and
Turkish influenced clothing wore by his forefathers. He therefore introduced the use of
the local clothing into the Mughal court. His decision may also have been influenced
politically. He started using the chakdar jama. This was an unlined cross over tunic,with
slits at the sides which sagged down in points at the edges. Hence the name (chak –
pointed, jama – pants). After some time , Akbar restyled this garment by removing the
slits and having a shortened scalloped hemline, and increasing the full ness of the skirt.
He was also clever enough to differentiate between the Hindu and Muslim Jamas –
whereas the Hindu jama fastened on the left side of the body, the Muslim jama fastened
on the right hand side.
Akbar also gave poetic names for these garments, though the usage was rather limited.
Thus the jama was renamed as the sarbgati (one that covers the entire body), The izar
(drawers) were called the yaar-pirahan (companion of the coat), the burqa and hijab
were renamed chitragupta ( covering the face) and the shal (shawl) became the
paramnaram ( extremely soft)
Akbar also wore the 6-pointed chakdar jama in muslin, dyed with various colours like
yellow, orange and purple. He also adopted the ready tied turbans of the Rajputs. This
almost resembled a crown, being studded with precious jewels. The sarpech (turban
ornament) was exquisitely designed and studded with diamonds and kundan work. The
patka ( the sash) that secured the waist was generally of brocade with squares and
crosses (geometric patterns). The paijama was nearly similar to the Rajasthani
churidhar. The shoe was horn shaped at the back and embroidered with zari work.

JEHANGIR was a lover of lavishness and had certain textiles woven specifically for his
use. One such garment was the Nadiri, (meaning rare). This was a type of overcoat
worn over the jama. The Shahtoosh shawl was restricted to the royalty. Occasionally
they were bestowed as gifts to esteemed people. Jehangir’s jama was probably made of
Safavid silk and brocade in the winter and of the finest muslins in summer. The colours
 2

too became more pleasant and pastel like. The churidhar paijama was in striped silks,
sometimes in green. The headdress became more opulent and taller, with pearls and
plumes of rare birds being used to decorate it. The nobles wore the tied turban in plain
pastel colours. The horns at the back of shoes disappeared, and they took on the
appearance of decorated slippers. The patkas was like a shawl, with two printed borders
and end pieces of foliage or kalka motifs. The body of the fabric had flower motifs
arranged in a geometric fashion. It was folded twice over and precisely tied in place. The
pouch thus formed was used to keep the short dagger in place.
There is also a short riding coat with chain stitch embroidery, of animals, birds and
individual flowering plants such as poppies and daffodils.

SHAHJAHAN: The jamas became longer during this period, extending to the mid calf.
They were decorated with all over floral designs. These motifs were most likely outlined
in gold thread and inlaid with pearls and precious stones. The turban also became much
elongated, the upper flap almost taking on the appearance of a cap. The Emperor had
workshops of brocades expressly set up near Chandni Chowk.
The patkas too became more decorative with the endpieces becoming more intricate in
their use of floral motifs.

AURANGZEB was an austere person, who expressly forbade the use of silk or lavish
costumes. He preferred the colour green as it was holy to the Islamic religion. His jama
was floor length but made of coarser cloth than his father’s. The turban looks like the fez
cap worn by Muslims. He still wore jewellery on state occasions, and has been described
as wearing a long white satin robe, delicately embroidered with floral motifs in gold. The
turban of gold cloth was adorned with the aigrette (sarpech) of diamonds and topazes. A
long necklace of pearls reached his navel. This probably refers to the panch ladi, five
rows of pearl chains with a central pendant each.

MUGHAL WOMEN: In the early period of Mughal rule in India, there was not much
difference between the costumes of the male and females in India. They wore long, loose
jama like robes, which had full sleeves and opened in the front. Underneath, an ankle
length vest and trousers (churidhar) was worn and the ensemble was completed with a
veil. During winter, a qaba (coats made of Kashmiri shawl cloth) were worn. Outside
the harem, they usually wore the burqa.

The Peshwaz was the term given to the women’s jama. It was highly embellished. It is
thought that the art of chikankari, may have originated in the Mughal court. They also
wore an elaborate fan shaped headgear.