Making a headway with headgear

Purva traces the evolution of headgear down the ages.

ARCHAEOLOGISTS have discovered hairpins and hair ornaments with a number of seals depicting the use of head-dresses from the new Stone Age, which began about 8000 B.C. People painted and tattooed their bodies during pre-historic times and they probably arranged their hair in varied ways. In ancient Egypt, both men and women wore long wings made of braids or spiral curls stitched to a woven foundation. These curls were made of human hair, palm-leaf and fibres of wool.

The very first evidence of head-dresses came from the Indus Valley sites of Mohenjodaro and Harappa. Certain seals recovered from the Mohenjodaro sites show the various types of head-dresses worn during those times which also depicted their ranks at times. The excavations revealed a large horned head-dress, whose shape suggest the trident symbol of Shiva. Also, the famous terracotta "mother goddess" figurine from Mohenjodaro displays a huge flared head-dress, which in some cases, provided cavities for valve lamps.

There are also proofs of head-dresses during the late 2nd century A.D. A lovely Gandharva sculpture reflecting a western subject is the figure of Athena or Roma at Lahore, which shows a woman wearing a helmet. The figure represents a city or a river goddess, and the foreign female bodyguard represents an Indian king. Another famous wall painting is that of "Bodhisattva Padmapani" in Ajanta, probably of the late 5th century. It depicts Buddha, who stands languidly in the tribhanga pose, holding blue lotus, wearing a few rich pieces of jewellery on an elaborate pointed crown.

Head-dresses of different styles, shapes and made of different materials, and belonging to the 3rd century B.C. period have been found. They reveal different fashions — richly ornamented with a sound top above the forehead, fan-like arrangements, some with heavy systematic folds, and some decorated by jewels.

Coins, paintings and other evidence of sorts depict the changes head-dresses went through. Helmets — indicating military uniforms of the times — gold brocade caps, that generally kings wore, turbans, topi etc have also been found. The mishai influence on various parts of India tried to improvise old Indian head-dresses. The common people amused themselves with freshly folded pugrees which developed into sapha or patka.

The ancient Sanskrit literature referred to head-dress as ushnisha, patta, vestana, kirtia, vestonapatta, and sirovestana. In the 13th century the term pugree became popular. The word ‘turban’ appeared in the 15th and 16th centuries. The name ‘turban’ comes from the Persian language, where it is known as dulband, which means a scarf wound around the head. Later the word ‘turban’ formed part of the English language.

The first turbans were scarfs which men in the hot countries of the Asia and the Middle East wrapped around their heads to provide protection against the sun. Gradually, turbans came to show the difference in rank among the men of Asian countries. A white muslin scarf wound around a small cap on the head was the head-dress of the priests in India, and the native princes of the country wore showy silky scarfs. Mitre is another form of pointed head-dress of bishops and abbots.

At one time the Sultan of Turkey wore a turban that was decorated with three heron feathers and many precious stones. The country’s grand vizir (high official) wore two heron feathers in his turban, and a turban with one heron feather marked the less important officers of Turkey’s government.

During the 19th century, the topi in different colours got common in northern India. The Sindhi pugree, cylindrical in shape, is about one foot in height with a flat round rim, and called ‘serai topi’ or serai tope’.

Hats differ from all kinds of head covering, such as bonnets, caps, helmets, and hoods. Hats can also communicate various things about the people who wear them. A Russian farmer wears a snug fur hat to protect himself from cold. A South American Cowboy wears a felt hat as a part of his traditional costume, and a North American Cowboy wears a wide-brimmed hat for protection from the sun. The members of a country’s armed services wear a different type of hat as part of their uniform.

People also wear hats as an accessory to their clothing. Fashion often determines hat-styles. The hat of coal-miners, fire-fighters and matadors (bullfighters) indicate the wearer’s occupation. Even caps of police officers and military personnel are designed to improve the wearer’s appearance. Certain decoratives are also worn as a tradition.

During the 13th and 14th century, for example, women in Europe wore a type of hat that resembled a turban.

In contemporary India turbans are more common in Rajasthan and Punjab. During the 17th century, Rajasthan became the legendary land of colourful head-dresses. In and around Jaipur, middle class Rajputs wore a cotton pugree called chivra and phenta. Some of the headgears were of dyed and printed cotton fabric, mostly being 25 metres long and 20 centimetres wide.

The Rajput pugree remained the typical head-dress for both Muslims and Hindus as represented in the paintings of the 17th and 18th century.

Head-dresses are also symbols of honour and valour. The exchange of turbans signify the beginning of a relationship while stamping a turban is considered as a grave insult. The removal of one’s head-dress is viewed as a mark of respect and veneration, in different forms. Whereas, if a person removes his turban, it is considered as a gesture of seeking forgiveness, or favour. The varied colours of the turbans in Rajasthan denote a special significance.

The Mughal nobility, too, flaunted various kinds of pugrees. However, despite the Mughal cultural influence, traditional head-dresses in India never became outdated.

The sentiments of the Mughal era were prominently expressed by two rival head-dresses that were then prevalent. One high estimation of the turban as a Mughal ideal was largely conditioned by its sizeable and flamboyant appearance relatively to the lighter portable cap. The turban was universally prized as a symbol of dignity and learning; whereas the cap was flouted as a pathetic travesty of dandyism.

Smart and oblique caps are prominently mentioned by the poet Nazir. The sentimental bias against the cap is very clearly indicated in an early 17th century picture of Prince Krishna welcoming his pauper-friend Sudama, in which, while the former is dressed in the full Indo-Mogul costume as befitting his rank, the latter is clothed merely in a dhoti, a plain scarf on the shoulders and conch shaped turban. Destitute as he is, he still puts on a turban, evidently to make a pretence of dignity. Loin-cloth (langoti) and turban (pug) show that the turban in those days was as common an article as a loin-cloth.

In the Dogra hill states, the brightest colours were reserved for the turbans, which were also, almost always decorated with fresh flowers. In Kashmir where the use of turban had been prohibited to the Hindus under the Afghan rule, a Hindu courtier in the reign of Muhammad Shah Chughta (17th century) obtained, from the king the grant of a turban, 100 yards long on the occasion of his son’s marriage, and from that time the Kashmiri Hindus began to wear long turbans with pride. The use of long and pompous turbans in Marwar and Punjab might have originated in the same way.

In Punjab the turban has a different and great significance for the Sikhs because it is related with their religious identity. During the Mughal period, the kings then passed a law which enabled only the state and the related persons (people) to wear a turban and keep a weapon with them. The Sikh Gurus revolted against such a law and they started wearing a turban and also kept weapon with them. Then, in 1699, Guru Gobind Singh organised his followers in to a new Panth called ‘Khalsa’ (Pure). Sikh men and women were initiated into the Khalsa by sharing a nectar called amrit, a symbol of loyalty to the Guru and hope for a higher spiritual existence.

The original style of the turbans in the time of Guru Gobind Singh was that of the Nihangs, but with time, the turbans changed forms and styles. The Sikh turban of the previous century is totally different from what is now worn in contemporary Punjab.

More commonly known pug (turban), it is not a mere wrapping around of a piece of cloth to cover the head. The turban in Punjab has a religious sentiment attached to it, and is rightly known as dastar. There’s even a ceremony that is held when a young boy starts wearing a turban called dastarband. Earlier, the turban was small in size — 5 metres long and approximately 35 inches wide. Later, that is now the length has increased to 8 metres, which is generally cut into half and then joined together to increase the width. Maya (starch) is applied to the turban, which is not much in practice these days.

The general belief amongst the non-Sikhs or non-Punjabis is that all Sikhs wear a similar kind of turban. But the turban has different styles, variations and they also change with fashion. It varies with time and differs with age. In certain villages of Punjab, people used to wear turban in a traditional desi style with a fan-like end protruding above the turban known as turla, which had another end striking out on one of the shoulders. This sort of turban is more identified with the Punjabi folk singer Yamla Jat.