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When we think of India’s royal past, it’s often the men who dominate the frame, the maharajas with their grand palaces, elephant processions, and military titles. But there’s another world, more intimate and intricate, that lived within the zenanas of these palaces. It belonged to the maharanis, raanis, begums, and princesses who carried within their folds not just personal elegance, but the essence of India’s artistic and sartorial legacy.
Their stories are slowly coming to light- in photographs, memoirs, museum collections, and exhibitions like Maharani: Women of Royal India by Tasveer. But even more telling than their portraits are the crafts they wore. The weaves, embroideries, and jewels these women adorned were more than just adornments. They were quiet affirmations of identity, lineage, patronage, and regional pride.
Let’s take a closer look at some of these incredible women and the crafts that surrounded their lives.
Rani Yashoda Devi of Patiala
Photographed in the 1930s at Vandyk Studios in London, Rani Yashoda Devi was elegance personified. Patiala was known for its bold sartorial choices- luxurious silks, opulent jewellery, and traditional Phulkari work that held stories stitched in every thread. The queens of Punjab often wore heavily brocaded Banarasi silks and chandbali-style earrings set in gold and enamel.
Jewels weren’t mere accessories in her world. They were legacy pieces- each emerald or diamond passed down with history and emotion. At WeaverStory, we continue to celebrate that spirit with handcrafted Banarasi sarees and traditional silver and gold-plated jewellery that echo the timelessness of pieces once worn in Patiala’s durbars.
Indira Devi of Cooch Behar and Baroda
The princess of Cooch Behar and later the Maharani of Baroda, Indira Devi was one of the most influential royal women of her time. A fashion-forward icon who combined Indian textiles with Western silhouettes, she was known to drape luxurious Bandhani sarees from Gujarat, Paithanis from Maharashtra, and Chanderis for her more understated public appearances.
She wore her sarees with grace and often paired them with pearls and multi-strand necklaces, setting the tone for Indo-Western elegance long before it became mainstream. Her legacy lives on in the way WeaverStory curates heirloom weaves- combining age-old techniques with styles that modern Indian women can wear from festivities to quiet family gatherings.
Rani Prem Kaur Sahiba of Kapurthala
Originally Anita Delgado Briones from Spain, Rani Prem Kaur’s life sounds like a fairytale. Married into Indian royalty, she brought a fresh aesthetic sensibility that merged European style with Indian grandeur. Kapurthala itself was a melting pot of French-inspired architecture and Punjabi royalty, and the clothes reflected that cross-cultural identity.
Prem Kaur often wore handwoven silk sarees with intricate zari borders, sometimes layered with delicate lace, a blend of Spanish romance and Indian tradition. Her look reminds us that Indian crafts are fluid and adaptable. WeaverStory honors that adaptability with sarees that travel across continents while holding onto their roots.
Princess Rafat Zamani Begum of Rampur
Also known as Bari Begum Sahiba of Rampur, she came from the Najiabad family and was photographed in 1960. The royal household of Rampur was known for its refined Nawabi culture- soft-spoken power, patronage of music and poetry, and understated luxury.
Her choice of textiles was likely elegant and rich, muslin jamdani, fine mulmul, and chikan embroidery from Lucknow, all worn with pearls and heritage polkis. The Begums of Awadh and Rampur didn’t dress to dazzle, they dressed to preserve a legacy. Their quiet elegance inspires many of WeaverStory’s pieces today, especially in our Ghazal collections, where refinement meets reverence.
More Than Just Sarees and Jewels
What these royal women wore was never random. Every saree, every necklace, and every motif carried meaning-of origin, belief, status, even rebellion. These crafts were not just bought; they were commissioned, revived, protected, and passed on. They were part of a larger ecosystem where artisans and weavers thrived under royal patronage.
As India evolved, so did its fashion. But in the corridors of memory, the elegance of maharanis and princesses continues to linger in sepia-toned photographs, in trunks filled with handwoven textiles, and in the hearts of the craftsmen who still remember their patronage.
Continuing the Legacy with WeaverStory
At WeaverStory, we see ourselves as a bridge between eras. The sarees we offer aren’t replicas of royal wardrobes; they are their spiritual successors. Whether it’s a Banarasi saree woven with real zari, a Kanjeevaram dipped in temple traditions, or silver jewellery that echoes ancient forms, each piece is created with the same care and reverence once shown in the royal karkhanas.
We believe every woman deserves to feel like a queen not because of a title, but because of the stories she carries and the heritage she chooses to wear.
Let your wardrobe be a living archive. Let your saree speak of legacies. Let your jewellery echo generations. Because when you wear a craft that has been touched by time, you wear history and you make it your own.
Author: Pallavi Rohatgi Gupta
