t is impossible to tell by dress whether a Punjabi woman is a Hindu, Muslim, Sikh or Christian – they all dress in salwar topped by a kameez (a garment that can be fitted like a dress loose like the kurta) and accented by a rectangular scarf about 2.5 meters long called the chunni or duppatta. She’s fond of her sweaters, but she is passionately proud of her collection of woolen shawls. These can be breathtaking. The women of Punjab are responsible for the state’s most famous item of handicraft – the phulkari.
This is a shawl completely covered in dense silk embroidery, folk motifs in jewel-tones on an ochre background. Gold is her weakness – brides are loaded with it. The jewelers of Punjab stock an enormous range of designs in bangles, necklaces, rings and earrings, nose-pins, ornaments to pin in the hair, anklets and toe-rings. A particular kind of bangle is the tip-off in recognizing Sikh men and women.
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