Sari in Nepal) and petticoat called "parkar" or "ul-pavadai". In the modern Indian subcontinent, the sari is considered a cultural icon. The word "sari" described in Sanskrit शाटी which means 'strip of cloth' and शाडी or साडी in Pali, and which evolved to in modern Indian languages. The word 'Sattika' is mentioned as describing women's attire in ancient India in Sanskrit literature and Buddhist literature called Jatakas. This could be equivalent to modern day 'Sari'. The term for female bodice, the "choli" evolved from ancient "Stanapatta". Rajatarangini (meaning the 'river of kings'), a tenth-century literary work by Kalhana, states that the
Sari be hanging freely, tucked in at the waist, used to cover the head, or used to cover the neck, by draping it across the right shoulder as well. Some nivi styles are worn with the "pallu" draped from the back towards the front, coming from the back over the right shoulder with one corner tucked by the left hip, covering the torso/waist. The nivi sari was popularised through the paintings of Raja Ravi Varma. In one of his paintings, the Indian subcontinent was shown as a mother wearing a flowing nivi sari. The ornaments generally accepted by the Hindu culture