Reshma / Aligarh

Sherwani, the long coat that’s synonymous with Indian culture, has become a fashion trend in the conservative official circles as well as a mandatory dress for the modern-day bridegrooms.

This attire became popular from Aligarh city of Uttar Pradesh in north India as for some reasons it was worn by students and teachers of the Aligarh Muslim University since its inception, a century ago.

As the AMU alumni moved to higher places – up to Rashtrapati Bhavan – this dress became a trend in Indian fashions and also gained popularity in countries like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, London, USA, Australia.

The credit for making Sherwani an international fashion statement should go to Mehndi Hasan of Aligarh. Born in Rampur, Mehdi Hassan, singlehandedly made the humble Sherwani become haute couture in the official circles and mandatory for celebrations like weddings and parties.

Inside the shop

Mehndi Hasan started stitching Shewani in 1947 at a small shop located in the main market and the shop was named after him.

Those days students and teachers of the AMU would flock to Hasan's shop’ even the professors and the vice-chancellor started wearing Sherwani stitched by Mehndi Hasan.

How Sherwani reached from AMU to Rashtrapati Bhavan is another interesting story.

Mehndi Hasan's son Anwar Mehndi says, “Zakir Hussain was the first President to wear the Sherwani stitched by my father. It seems he had seen my father’s workmanship during his stay in the AMU.”

Sherwanis ready for delivery

Sherwani stitching is all about taking precise measurements of the chest and waist area and making it fit perfectly to each individual.

After Zakir Hussein’s stint in Rashtrapati Bhavan, Sherwani continued to be the favourite attire of his successors like V V Giri, Neelima Sanjeeva Reddy, Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, Giani Zail Singh, Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma, Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, Pranab Mukherjee, Ramnath Kovind, Somnath Chatterjee and even the former Vice-President Hamid Ansari.

“Most Presidents and Vice Presidents of India have worn a sherwani stitched at our shop,” says Anwar, who took charge after her father’s passing away.

Anwar Mehndi explains that Sherwani is an improvised version of the Turkish coat.

He claims Rahul Gandhi also wears the sherwani from him. Besides, a number of celebrities and people belonging to the erstwhile the royalty – the Nawabs – also order their attire from his shop.

In the wedding season, the workshop resembled a factory.

The Shewani workshop

What is special about Mehndi Hasan's Sherwani?

Anwar explains that the attention to minute details while taking measurements, cutting the dress and final stitchind and the endeavour for perfection makes his Sherwani special.

“A stylish Sherwani has to fit perfectly over the chest and on the back; otherwise it is not a Sherwani,” he says.

Artisans doing Sherwani stitching

Khurshid Akram, son-in-law of Mehndi Hasan and one of the old hands in the business says his father-in-law has glorified the name of Aligarh through his skill of making sherwani.

These days Sherwani is popular in a dozen countries including Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and London, the USA. He says that Yahiya Bukhari, brother of Syed Ahmed Bukhari, the royal imam of Jama Masjid of Delhi, had recently got threee sherwani stitched from his shop for a family wedding.