The 60-Second Saree

How one woman has changed the elegant dresswear to be simpler and still fashion-forward.

by Abhijit Masih

The glamor and elegance of a saree may be unmatched, but the difficult process of draping it and keeping it on has kept it from being a go-to garment for many.

But no longer. Determined to simplify the process, Sasha Revankar created the brand One-Minute Saree, which offers garments that maintain all the essential elements of a saree—its elegant borders, free flowing fabric and draping—but secured it with pre-stitch draping and adjustable sizing. We spoke to her about how she envisioned the product and what it means to her customers of all ages.

Saree stress

I’ve always liked to wear sarees. For my own wedding, we had a big traditional wedding in Goa. Everybody wore sarees and we had to hire people to drape the sarees. After that, I started to wear it on my own, but it was always so stressful. The last time I wore a regular saree by myself, I showed up late for a wedding. I had to keep going back to the bathroom, fixing it and all sorts of stuff. After that I thought, I’m just not going to wear a saree again. It’s not worth the stress for me.

The

Idea Behind The Brand

Fast forward a year, I was discussing this with a colleague while in India and she mentioned that women in India often have their personal tailors stitch parts of the saree, so it’s easier for them to wear. She showed me an example and I was blown away. I saw this and thought, Why isn’t this available for people everywhere? That’s when I thought I have to make this a product and make it available to everyone.

Her favorite styles

Our collections are from regional styles with different craftsmanship, from handmade to machine-made. The Chloe Beige Georgette Floral Sequins saree is one of my favorites. It’s one of the sarees we designed in house. It’s very light and springy saree, even though the colors are not overly bright. But the texture, the likeness, it’s an all-purpose saree for me.

A generational impact

Two elderly women came up to me to thank me for doing this because their kids don’t wear sarees. They don’t know how to wear them, but this is so good and simple that now they can.

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