Tharu women preserving traditional attire

By Santosh Dahit,Dang, Mar. 12: Traditional attire of the Tharu community is gradually disappearing with the growing influence of modernity.

In such a situation, some Tharu women have begun to show active efforts to preserve their indigenous costumes and raise awareness among the younger generation about its importance.

Indira Chaudhary of Jalaura in Ghorahi Sub-Metropolitan City-10, is one of the women actively working to preserve the traditional attire of the Tharu community. 

She participates in various social and cultural programmes in the village wearing traditional Tharu dress, not only during festivals.

According to her, traditional attire is an important aspect that reflects the community’s identity and culture. 

“When I go to the office, I wear the office dress,” she said, “but apart from that, I try to participate in various programmes, village gatherings and cultural activities wearing our traditional attire whenever possible.”

A Female Community Health Volunteer, she said that the younger generation nowadays tends to feel hesitant about wearing traditional attire. 

However, she said that she personally feels a sense of pride when wearing her own dress. “When I wear the attire that carries our identity, I feel proud myself.” she said. “Therefore, it is also our responsibility to preserve it.”

Likewise, Nisha Chaudhary of Ghorahi Sub-Metropolitan City-17, Okhara, is also among the women interested in preserving Tharu attire.

By profession, she works at Rapti Academy of Health Sciences. Outside office hours, she prefers to wear traditional Tharu dresses most of the time. “This attire is the identity of our community,” she said, “so I feel like using our own traditional dress whenever possible.”

She said that traditional attire could now be promoted through social media, and therefore she sometimes appears in Tharu dress on platforms such as TikTok. 

She also added, "I feel proud when participating in various programmes, meetings and cultural activities wearing Tharu attire."

 She emphasised that as the influence of modern clothing continues to increase, the traditional attire of the Tharu community faces the risk of being overshadowed, making its preservation and promotion necessary.

Recently, the active involvement of local women has helped efforts to preserve the traditional Tharu attire.

The Tharu Cultural Museum in Chakhaura has also been contributing to the preservation of the Tharu attire. According to the museum manager, Shanta Chaudhary, visitors to the museum often dress in Tharu attire, make TikTok videos and take photographs.

According to her, the museum has displayed Tharu dresses from the eastern to the western regions. Non-Tharu visitors also wear the attire. However, Chaudhary said that a fee of Rs. 100 per hour is charged for wearing the dress.