Festivals like Dussehra, Durga Puja and Navaratri are the time to flaunt your traditional wear while you get busy with pandal hopping and garba nights. “As garba nights are quite popular among youngsters and especially with  the Gujarati community, my first suggestion is to wrap your saree like a gujju (with a front pallu), and to give it a twist you can pair it with your crop peplum top” suggests designer Pankhuri Jain, as she adds, “To look trendy, instead of draping the saree around your waist before pleating you can straight away do the pleating and tuck in with a pair of contrast jeggings. To don an elegant look, you can even pick a ruffled saree which can make it easy for you to play dandiya and dance all night.”

Designer Suruchi Khanna also thinks that a saree is surely one of the best attire to embrace this season. She says, “You can ditch the conventional way to drape a saree and experiment a little with the looks. Pair it with capes, belts or a dupatta to create new styles. Add a stylish belt that cinches your pallu at the waist, or use a kamarbhandh if you want a more traditional look. The other modern approach is to drape a long pallu around the neck like a scarf and with a high hair bun, you can recreate the retro look from the 70s. Layering a saree is also quite in — wear it over brocade pants or denim to create a semi-Indian look.”

This festive season while you hop from one pandal to another with your pals, opt for cool jewellery and accessories to complete the look. Designer Megah Malik, says, “Try and keep it simple, accessories should be minimal if you are opting for a heavy outfit. Wear statement chandbalis with an embellished saree or anarkali suit. If you are going for plain or a solid colour (or a pastel hue) you can pick some heavy junk jewellery like a long chain oxidised piece with similar jhumkas and matching ring.”

While anarkali suits and kurta pyjamas are most common, to play around with a saree is the most interesting way to create new looks every day of the 10-day-long
festival.

Celebrity stylist Nidhi Sharma gives some more tips and adds, “Opt for a neck drape saree and wear it with a traditional Bengali twist when you fix the pallu. Jacket over a saree is one of the hottest trends right now and you can go for a brocade or silk full sleeve collar jacket instead of a blouse, and pair it with long earrings. A simple cotton saree with ruffled sleeve blouse can look very sophisticated and chic. Apart from that, one can also wear sharara pants or frilled pants with gota work. Peplum tops and dhoti pants is another fabulous option for festive season and pair it with juttis and smart earrings to get it on point.”