London: Over 700 India-origin women participate in 'Saree Walkathon' to celebrate National Handloom Day
The streets of London turned colourful and vibrant when over 700 Indian-origin women paraded from Trafalgar Square to Parliament Square as part of a 'Saree Walkathon'.
They celebrated National Handloom Day by wearing state-specific sarees.
As the British women in sarees walk down Parliament Street they pass two buskers, one on a guitar and one on an accordion, and they all spontaneously start dancing to their music.....much to the buskers' surprise. Tourists have no idea what is going on. https://t.co/neqM08DJuu pic.twitter.com/31EZnpzPXR
— Naomi Canton (@naomi2009) August 7, 2023
The parade was organized by group named 'British Women In Sarees'.
The founder of the group is Dipti Jain.
According to the group's Facebook page, it is a platform for empowered women to showcase their pride and patriotism by draping ‘saree’.
Jain told India Today: "On August 6, under the radiant sun, 750 of us, joined by 70 marshals, congregated in Central London."
"The streets reverberated with the chants of 'Vande Mataram' and 'Jana Gana Mana,' accompanied by melodies of popular songs," she said.
It was a pleasure attending first Saree Walkathon in London on Sun 6th Aug, marking National Handloom Day & celebrating @SAHM_UK. Organised by British Women in Sarees, 100s of women wore Sarees of different styles & designs, reflecting different parts of South Asia #StoriesToTell pic.twitter.com/OnBcnK1qh6
— Numan Azmi (@numanazmi) August 6, 2023
"The entire area was alive with celebratory voices, commemorating National Handloom Day through the Saree Walkathon. Central London came alive with a sea of colorful sarees, representing diverse Indian states, uniting in joy and revelry," she said.
