On National Handloom Day, 700 saree-clad PIO women dance to 'Naatu Naatu' on London streets

The streets of London came to life on Sunday when 700 Indian-origin women - dressed in their best drapes - in the UK took part in a Saree Walkathon on National Handloom Day.

Organised by a not-for-profit group called 'British Women in Sarees', a report by The Times of India said that 700 persons of Indian origin (PIO) marched past the iconic landmarks from Trafalgar Square to Mahatma Gandhi statue at Parliament Square. The saree-clad women put up a mesmerising spectacle as the sang and danced along the way on Whitehall near Downing Street.




From garba and dandiya to Bollywood beats, many passers-by joined the ladies in their celebration. Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone-starrer 2017 hit 'Chennai Express''s famous song 'Kashmir Main, Tu Kanyakumari' was echoing outside India-origin UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Downing Street residence. The ladies didn't shy away from showing their dance moves to the mega-blockbuster song of the year 'Naatu Naatu' from director SS Rajamouli's 'RRR'.

The dazzling women represented different states of the country such as Gujarat, Rajasthan, Bihar, Maharashtra, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Assam and Kerala, among others, through their sarees.

The saree walkathon saw the women exhibit their traditional attire - Kerala's cream settu mundu (white saree with zari border), Uttarakhand's distinctive naths (nose rings), Maharashtra's nauvari (nine-yard) sarees, Himachal Pradesh's kullu print pashmina and Himachali blingy topi (cap), and Bihar's tussar silk hand-painted saree with Madhubani design.



They also chanted patriotic slogans like 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai' and 'Vande Mataram' along the kilometre-long route and ended their walkathon with the National Anthem.

A sea of PIO women dressed in brightly-coloured traditional drapes attracted the attention of tourists and onlookers.


The saree walkathon's organiser, Dr Dipti Jain, told TOI that she was amazed to see the lively atmosphere. Meanwhile, she told news agency PTI that the women who marched took pride in flaunting their handloom sarees.

"The British Women in Sarees is a group of empowered women who take pride in flaunting handloom sarees and representing the unique cultural melting pot that is India. It is a not-for-profit organisation which likes to organise events to promote our national heritage and make everyone around the world aware of the toil, handwork and artistry which goes behind weaving each of these masterpieces," Jain was quoted as saying to PTI.

National Handloom Day is marked annually on August 7 as a tribute to the handloom-weaving community of India and highlights the contribution of this sector to the socio-economic development of the country. The day is celebrated just a week before Independence Day when Mahatma Gandhi launched the Swadeshi Movement in 1905 to encourage indigenous industries and in particular handloom weavers.