• The main garment was the antariya of white cotton, linen or flowered muslin, sometimes embroidered in gold and precious stones. The antariya was secured at the waist by a sash or kayabandh, often tied in a looped knot at the center front of the waist. The third item of clothing called uttariya was another length of material, usually fine cotton, very rarely silk, which was utilized as a long scarf to drape the top half of the body.
• Kushan costumes may be divided into five types: the costume worn by (I) indigenous people-the antariya, uttariya, and kayabandh, (ii) guardians and attendants of the harem-usually the indigenous and sewn kancuka, red-brown in color, (iii) foreign Kushan rulers and their entourage, and (iv) other foreigners such as grooms, traders, etc. There is a fifth category- a mixture of foreign and indigenous garments. This last category is of great interest as it shows how clothes changed and evolved, how some of the purely draped garments of the Indians were replaced by cut-and –sewn garments, especially in north and north-west where influences were felt more keenly, and where climatically sewn garments were more suitable.

The links to Ancient Indian Costumes above also have a few illustrative examples of costumes and headgear.

It appears that the introduction of sewn clothing in India roughly dates back to the Kushans who came to India in the 1st/2nd century AD. Prior to that a breast band was sometimes worn, though there are a few examples of sewn tops.

Posting a few modern interpretations of the attire of the time (largely I would assume based on India’s abundant statuary and Buddhist frescoes), most of the movies are set in the time of Gautama Buddha.