Dressing in the Deccan

Abstract

In the Deccan region of India between the mid-sixteenth and the mid-seventeenth centuries, this chapter argues, textiles from a variety of both foreign and domestic sources were an integral part of social life. Deccani portraits of this period document the astonishing variety of fabrics available to the local elite, and carefully differentiate the costume of the figures depicted, in a manner that reflects the sitters’ range in social status, ethnic background, and political aspirations. This chapter examines the extent to which such novel engagement with clothing mobilised what Bhabha calls the “identity effects” of dressing. In the courtly world of the Deccan, characterised by cultural diversity, textiles could serve the purpose of encoding notions of origin, belonging, and affiliations, as well as a broader repertoire of possible identifications. Dress was thus an intricate part of establishing identity in the Deccani political milieu.