The Red and White bangles worn by the married woman of Bengal are known as Shankh Pola Bangles. The white ones are made of Shankh meaning Conch shell and the red ones I think are of lac. Some say white bangles are made of Ivory. But I think that would have been in the past as these days, there is a ban on ivory and it is costly too. Moreover Shankh means Conch shell.
Here is a glimpse:
This goes well with their traditional white/off white and red sari. I always have a pair of these saris. I love the combination.
These bangles were offered to goddess Kali in Kolkata and after performing Pooja there they were blessed and given to me by my friend. The yellow stains you see on the white bangles is that of turmeric. I always wanted to own one pair of these bangles and now my wish is fulfilled :)......
Keep an eye on my blog......
UPDATE 2-8-2014:
Friends one of the visitors, Ananya has given the link where you can buy these bangles. Here it is:
http://sonababu.com/
Visit the site and see for yourself. I have provided this as update here so that those who visit this post may not miss it. My thanks to Ananya for taking time to leave the message.
Hope you will visit the site. I am also planning to buy some.
a type of CHUDA for north Indian women... they look really beautifull....
ReplyDeleteAwesome!! I jus LOVE those bangles!!! I am a south-indian Girl. I wish to know whether these bangles are available only in Bengal. I wish to wear them :) . Thank you very much for posting this. I've read in books that Bengalis used to give bangles to Kali-ma temple
ReplyDeleteShruthi
Shruthi, They may be available in big cities of South India too. We need to check up with big bangle shops or those situated in those areas where Bengalis and North Indians are residing.
ReplyDeleteIf I come across any I will post the address
https://www.facebook.com/YourBongConnection?ref=ts&fref=ts
ReplyDeleteYou can buy Shakha's in Bangalore Tooo... :)
yourbongconnection@gmail.com
nice posting.
ReplyDeletethank you very much preeti for info of shakha bangles. i had that bangles long back, now a days size of that bangles is too small to me. need to buy new one. now shaaka is in my collection. thank u again..:)
Thank you Gayatri and Preethi
ReplyDeleteYou can buy shakha bangles at -
ReplyDeletehttp://www.sonababu.com
https://www.facebook.com/sonababudotcom
They really have nice collection of original shakhas. I bought from them. It awesome service with strong packaging.
They also have good stock of other traditional bangles.
Thank You Ananya for giving us the source from where we can buy the Bangles.
ReplyDeleteIts really kind of you. Many of us were searching for such a site.