Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's toast to Andhra on Budget day

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, on Tuesday, opted for an off-white checkered Mangalgiri saree with a contrasting purple and pink-hued blouse for the presentation of the first Budget of the third term of the NDA government led by PM Narendra Modi. Before heading to the Parliament to present her seventh consecutive Union Budget, Sitharaman posed for photo-ops with the traditional bahi khata, a tablet wrapped in a red-coloured cloth embossed with the gold-coloured national emblem. The elegant saree was adorned with a beautiful golden and purple border.

Advertisement

Place of origin

Nirmala Sitharaman’s Mangalagiri saree has its origin in Andhra Pradesh’s Guntur. Registered under the Geographical Indications (GI) Act, 1999, these sarees are produced using traditional pitlooms and undergo a meticulous process of cotton purification, dyeing and weaving.

Notably, the off-white colour of her saree is associated with purity in Indian culture. Sitharaman has stuck to Indian textiles and craftsmanship as seen in her sartorial choices, while presenting the Union Budgets since 2019. Ranging from silk to beautiful handloom, the range of textiles reinforces her staunch support for Indian textiles and has become a rather unusual aspect of the budget.

For the previous six budget presentations as well, the Finance Minister donned traditional sarees. In February 2024, when she presented the interim budget, Sitharaman chose to wear a blue-coloured Tussar silk saree, adorned with Kantha handiwork, which she paired with a golden-hued blouse. Tussar silk is renowned for its distinctive texture and golden lustre. The coarse texture of Tussar silk gives it a particular character. For the presentation of Union Budget in 2023, Sitharaman donned a red and black temple border saree with Kasuti threadwork all over.

In 2022, she sported a rust brown Bomkai saree with off-white border. The rusty brown tone of her saree was a combination of two colours — brown and red. While the brown colour is often associated with resilience, dependability, security and safety, red signifies warmth, love and power. In 2021, Sitharaman wore a red and off-white silk Pochampally saree with Ikkat patterns around the pallu and a green border. Pochampally Ikkat is traditionally made in Bhoodan Pochampally, in Telangana, and is popularly known as the Silk City of India.

In 2020, she opted for a bright yellow-gold silk saree. The yellow colour holds a valuable significance. It is believed to be a sacred colour that stands for prosperity. For her first Budget presentation in 2019, Sitharaman chose to wear a simple pink Mangalagiri saree with a gold border. This year she replaced the leather briefcase, which was in use for decades to carry Budget documents, with a traditional bahi-khata wrapped in a red cloth. — ANI

Dahi-cheeni from President Murmu

Before presenting the Union Budget in Parliament, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhawan on Tuesday. The President fed her dahi-cheeni, a ritual performed by elders in Indian families to bestow good luck before undertaking important tasks. This year’s Budget is the seventh consecutive one for the FM and the Modi government’s 13th straight Budget since 2014. She also makes history as the first Finance Minister to present seven consecutive Budget speeches, surpassing former Prime Minister Morarji Desai’s record of six consecutive Budgets from 1959 to 1964. Earlier in the day, Sitharaman and her team posed for a traditional picture outside the Finance Ministry.