Dhoti

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Similar to sarongs, lungis are commonly worn with western-style oxford shirts by the farmer men of India.

The pancha in Telugu, called dhoti or doti in Hindi, Laacha in Punjabi, mundu in Malayalam, dhuti in Bangla, veshti in Tamil, ' dhotar in Marathi and panche in Kannada, is the traditional garment of men's wear in India. It is a rectangular piece of unstitched cloth, usually around 5 yards long, wrapped about the waist and the legs, and knotted at the waist.

In northern India, the garment is worn with a Kurta on top, the combination known simply as "dhoti kurta", or a "dhuti panjabi" in the East. In southern India, it is worn with an angavastram (another unstitched cloth draped over the shoulders) in Tamil Nadu or else with a "chokka"(shirt) in Andhra Pradesh or "jubba" (a local version of kurta). The lungi is a similar piece of cloth worn in similar manner, though only on informal occasions. The lungi is not as long and is basically a bigger version of a towel worn to fight the extremely hot weather in India. The sarong is another similar item of clothing.

[edit] Custom and usage

A Chakravati wears a pancha in an ancient style. First century BCE/CE. Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh. Musee Guimet

The dhoti is considered formal wear all over the country. It is eminently acceptable wherever "formal wear" is bespoken or enjoined in India. Apart from all government and traditional family functions, the dhoti is also deemed acceptable at posh country clubs and at other establishments that enforce strict formal dress codes. The garment enjoys a similar, eminent status across the Indian subcontinent, particularly in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives. In many of these countries, the garment has become something of a mascot of cultural assertion, being greatly favoured by politicians and cultural icons such as classical musicians, poets and literatteurs. Thus, the dhoti for many has taken on a more cultural nuance while the 'suit-and-tie' or, in less formal occasions, the ubiquitous shirt and pants, are seen as standard formal and semi-formal wear.

Styles of dhoti seen in Amaravati sculptures of the Satavahana dynasty (from 2nd century BC to 3rd century AD). The draped waistbands are known as kamarbands, and are sometimes accompagnied by a buckle at the waist (Fig 10).

In southern India, the garment is worn at all cultural occasions and traditional ceremonies. The bride-groom in a south Indian wedding and the host/main male participant of other rituals and ceremonies have necessarily to be dressed in the traditional pancha while performing the ceremonies.

Unspoken rules of etiquette govern the way the pancha is worn. In south India, men will occasionally fold the garment in half to resemble a short skirt when working, cycling, etc., and this reveals the legs from the knee downwards. However, it is considered disrespectful to speak to men or to one's social inferiors with the pancha folded up in this manner. When faced with such a social situation, the fold of the package is loosened with an imperceptible yank of the hand and allowed to cover the legs completely.

Pancha are worn by western adherents of the Hare Krishna sect, which is known for promoting a distinctive dress code amongst its practitioners, with followers wearing saffron or white coloured cloth, folded in the traditional style. Mahatma Gandhi invariably wore a pancha on public occasions^{[citation needed]}, but he was well aware that it was considered "indecent" in other countries and was shocked when a friend wore one in London. (See The Story of My Experiments with Truth/Part I/Narayan Hemchandra.)

The genteel Bengali man is stereotyped in popular culture as wearing expensive perf