Wrapped in Shakti

There is something about a sari that has always felt bigger than clothing to me.

Perhaps it is because I grew up understanding that the things we wear can carry stories.

Stories of where we come from.
Stories of who we are.
Stories of the women who came before us.

And during Durga Puja, few saris carry as much meaning as those inspired by Maa Durga.

The traditional Bengali red-and-white sari is perhaps one of the most recognisable images of Durga Puja. The simplicity of the white, edged with powerful red, is beautiful in its own right.

But to me, the symbolism goes much deeper.

White speaks of purity, peace and devotion.

Red speaks of Shakti — power, strength, passion and the divine feminine.

Together, they remind me of something I have come to understand more deeply as I have grown older:

A woman can be gentle without being weak.
She can be loving without surrendering herself.
She can be soft and still be a warrior.

And that is Maa Durga.

The woman who became a warrior

The story of Maa Durga's battle with Mahishasura is one many of us grew up hearing.

Mahishasura, the buffalo demon, had become so powerful that the gods were unable to defeat him. And so, the divine feminine was called upon.

Maa Durga was created from the combined divine energies of the gods.

And she was not sent into battle empty-handed.

She was given weapons.

A trident.
A discus.
A sword.
A bow and arrows.
A mace.
A thunderbolt.

Each weapon represented the power and strength needed to face what stood before her.

And I love this part of the story because Maa Durga's victory wasn't simply about having weapons.

It was about having the courage to use them.

Sometimes the weapon we need is knowledge.

Sometimes it is boundaries.

Sometimes it is speaking the truth.

Sometimes it is walking away.

Sometimes it is simply finding the strength to say, enough.

We often imagine strength as something loud and dramatic.

But some of the strongest battles a woman will ever fight happen quietly.

Inside her own heart.

Behind closed doors.

In the moments when nobody sees what she is carrying.

And that is why Maa Durga has always felt so deeply relevant to me.

Because her story isn't just an ancient story about a demon and a goddess.

It is a reminder that Shakti lives within us too.

And then there is the sari.

Maybe that is why I love bringing Maa Durga into the saris in our Navarathri collection.

Some are inspired by the traditional red and white associated with Durga Puja.

Others are much more elaborate — adorned with images of Maa Durga, sacred mantras and symbols of the divine feminine.

Because sometimes, I don't want my clothing to simply be pretty.

I want it to mean something.

I want to look at a sari and see a reminder of strength.

I want to see Maa Durga surrounded by the words and symbols that have carried generations of devotion.

I want the woman wearing it to feel that she isn't simply putting on a beautiful sari.

She is wrapping herself in a story.

A story of courage.

Of resilience.

Of faith.

Of feminine power.

Perhaps that is what I love most about our culture.

We don't always need words to tell our stories.

Sometimes we wear them.

We drape them around our bodies.

We pass them from mother to daughter.

We take ancient stories and carry them into modern lives.

And perhaps every woman has her own Mahishasuras.

Not literally, of course.

But the battles.

The disappointments.

The people who underestimate her.

The moments that make her question herself.

The seasons that force her to become stronger than she ever imagined.

And perhaps, somewhere along the way, she discovers that she has been carrying her own weapons all along.

Her voice.

Her intuition.

Her courage.

Her resilience.

Her ability to begin again.

Her Shakti.

So when I look at a red-and-white sari during Durga Puja, or one covered in images of Maa Durga and sacred mantras, I don't just see beautiful fabric.

I see a celebration of women.

I see a reminder of where our strength comes from.

And I see a little piece of that ancient warrior goddess in every woman who chooses to wear it.

Because Maa Durga didn't teach us that women don't have battles.

She taught us that we have the power to face them.

And perhaps that is the most beautiful thing we can wrap ourselves in.

Jai Mata Di