How to Style a Kaftan Beyond the Beach

The kaftan has an image problem, and it is entirely undeserved. Ask most wardrobes and the kaftan lives in the "holiday" drawer — worn four days a year over a swimsuit, admired, and put away. Which is a waste, because the kaftan is arguably the most comfortable silhouette ever cut, and with the right styling it works at dinner tables, work-from-home desks and festive lunches just as well as it works on sand. Here is how to set it free.

Why the kaftan earns a bigger role

No other garment gives you this much ease with this much drama. The loose cut means genuine all-day comfort in Indian heat; the wide canvas means a print gets room to breathe — which is exactly why we love printing them. Every kaftan in our kaftan collection is cut from 100% breathable fabric with our anti-bleed, anti-peel, anti-shrink promise, so the print stays gallery-sharp however hard the summer works it.

Look one: the city kaftan

The fastest way to take a kaftan from resort to street is structure at the edges. Slim bottoms — cigarette pants or straight jeans — under a shorter kaftan instantly urbanise it. Add flat metallic sandals and one strong earring. The print stays the hero; the tailored line underneath tells everyone this was a decision, not a beach hangover.

Look two: the dinner kaftan

A long kaftan at night needs only two moves: a waist and a shine. Belt it — a slim tan or metallic belt at the natural waist turns the silhouette from flowing to elegant — and add gold: hoops, stacked bangles, a metallic clutch. Under warm restaurant light, a printed kaftan with a defined waist photographs like occasion-wear that took an hour. It took ninety seconds.

Look three: the WFH kaftan

The kaftan may be the single greatest work-from-home garment ever conceived: completely comfortable for eight seated hours, completely presentable on camera. Keep the neckline tidy, add small earrings, and you have video-call polish with pyjama physics. (More camera styling in The WFH Edit.)

Look four: the festive kaftan

From Raksha Bandhan lunches through Diwali cards, a rich-toned printed kaftan with juttis and traditional jewellery holds its own next to any kurta — with a fraction of the effort and none of the heat. Deep greens, reds and midnight bases from our Festive edit do the celebratory work; you just add the bangles.

The three kaftan rules

One: let it be the only statement — solid accessories, quiet footwear, one metal. Two: mind the length against your plans — ankle-length for evenings, knee-length for errands and stairs. Three: fabric first — a kaftan is only as good as its breathability, which is why ours are pure cotton weaves, never polyester. Find yours in the kaftan collection, in sizes S to 2XL — free shipping across India, COD and easy 7-day returns. And if you're near Kala Ghoda, the whole range is on the rail at our Experience Centre, open daily 11am–8pm.

Read next: The 5-Shirt Capsule Wardrobe, Part 1 — fifteen outfits from five prints, the same less-is-more logic applied to shirts.