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The word 'sari' is believed to derive from the Sanskrit word 'sati',
which means strip of cloth. This evolved into the Prakrit 'sadi' and the
sound later decayed into 'sari'.
Some versions of the history of Indian clothing trace the sari back
to the Indus valley civilization, which flourished in 2800-1800 BCE. One
ancient statue shows a man in a draped robe which some sari researchers
believe to be a precursor of the sari.
Ancient Tamil poetry, such as the Silappadhikaram and the Kadambari
by Banabhatta,  describes women in exquisite drapery. This drapery is
believed to be a sari. In the Natya Shastra (an ancient Indian treatise
describing ancient dance and costumes), the navel of the Supreme Being
is considered to be the source of life and creativity. Hence the stomach
of the dancer is to be left unconcealed, which some take to indicate the
wearing of a sari.
Some costume historians believe that the men's dhoti, which is the
oldest Indian draped garment, is the forerunner of the sari. They say
that until the 14th century, the dhoti was worn by both men and women.
Sculptures from the Gandhara, Mathura and Gupta schools (1st-6th
century CE) show goddesses and dancers wearing what appears to be a
dhoti wrap, in the "fishtail" version which covers the legs
loosely and then flows into a long, decorative drape in front of the
legs. No bodices are shown.
Other sources say that everyday costume consisted of a dhoti or lungi
(sarong), combined with a breast band and a veil or wrap that could be
used to cover the upper body or head. Some argue that the two-piece
Kerala mundum neryathum (mundu in malayalam is the same as dhoti or
sarong and neryath means a cloth to cover the upper body similar to a
shawl) is a survival of ancient Indian clothing styles, and that the
one-piece sari is a modern innovation, created by combining the two
pieces of the mundum neryathum.
It is generally accepted that wrapped sari-like garments, shawls, and
veils have been worn by Indian women for a long time, and that they have
been worn in their current form for hundreds of years.
One point of particular controversy is the history of the choli, or
sari blouse, and the petticoat. Some researchers state that these were
unknown before the British arrived in India, and that they were
introduced to satisfy British ideas of modesty. Previously, women only
wore the one, draped cloth and casually exposed the upper body and
breasts. Other historians point to much textual and artistic evidence
for various forms of breastband and upper-body shawl.
It is possible that the researchers arguing for a recent origin for
the choli and the petticoat are extrapolating from South India, where it
is indeed documented that in some areas, women wore only the sari and
exposed the upper part of the body. Poetic references from works like
Shilappadikaram indicate that during the sangam period in ancient South
India, a single piece of clothing served as both lower garment and head
covering, leaving the bosom and midriff completely uncovered. In Kerala
there are many references to women being topless, including many
pitcures by Raja Ravi Varma. Even today, women in some rural areas do
not wear cholis.
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