Shop Asian Bridal Dresses with a Pakistani or Indian Look

The top: a short choli or a long shirt

A choli stops at the waist or just above it and leaves the whole lehenga on show, a classic Indian bridal shape. Pakistani bridal wear more often covers the skirt: a kameez to the knee, a long shirt or pishwas to the ankle or floor, or an angrakha with a wrap-style front. A long top also suits a bride who wants more coverage without giving up the full skirt. For that look, see our pishwas over a lehenga.

Underneath: one full skirt or two legs

A lehenga is one full skirt, often held out by a cancan layer, and both traditions wear it. The gharara is most closely tied to Pakistani and Urdu-speaking Muslim weddings: fitted to the knee, then flaring from a gathered band, and in a farshi gharara running on to the floor. A sharara widens from the hip instead. Both give you two separate legs, easier to dance in than a skirt; compare them in our bridal gharara and sharara sets.

Fabric and work

Raw silk and velvet lehengas, in red, maroon, burgundy or navy, can create a rich, deep-coloured look. Organza, tissue silk and net are also used across Pakistani and Indian bridal styles, worked in dabka, zari, nakshi, sequins and pearls, with jamawar, a woven patterned fabric, used for some farshi lehenga skirts. If you want an Indian silhouette with Pakistani work, or the reverse, ask before you order: every bridal design can be ordered as Full Custom Design, with added fabric, embroidery or labour priced first.

Mixing both at a two-family wedding

When the families come from different traditions, you can wear one look per function, for example a lehenga choli for the sangeet and a long shirt or gharara for the nikkah. Our Pakistani bridal outfits and Indian bridal outfits show each tradition on its own, and Punjabi families can compare our Punjabi bridal suit options.

Ordering from Canada

Bridal delivery times start the day after you order, count calendar days and cover stitching and shipping:

• Normal Delivery: up to 3 months, free
• Rush Delivery: up to 30 calendar days, CAD $59
• Super Rush Delivery: up to 14 calendar days, CAD $199

Choose a standard size with our size chart for brides, taking the larger size if you are between two, or Custom Size, stitched exactly to the measurements our team collects after you order. Import charges are normally prepaid by us; if a courier ever asks you for customs, duty or tax, send us the receipt and we refund the verified amount. Cancel a bridal order within 24 hours for a full refund; after that, before dispatch, 35% of the amount paid is deducted. You can pay by PayPal, card or bank transfer. Details: our Canadian delivery terms.

Desi bridal questions

Is “Asian bridal” the same as “desi”?

Yes, on our sites. “Asian bridal” is the British way of saying South Asian bridal wear, and “desi” is the word many South Asian Canadians use for the same thing: Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi and other South Asian weddings, which is why desi bridal dresses and Asian bridal dresses are one range on our site. Neither means East Asian here, and every outfit is made in our own workshops in Pakistan.

Can a lehenga choli have a longer top?

It can be requested; ask before you order. Send us the design and the length you want, from a kameez to the knee to a shirt to the ankle. Under Full Custom Design we check whether the cut and the placement of the embroidery allow it, then price any extra fabric, embroidery or labour for your approval before stitching.

Can I see my outfit while it is being made?

Yes. Ask on WhatsApp for progress photos and close-up videos during production. They are the best way to judge how deep a red runs or how dense the dabka and zari are, details that a product photo taken under studio light cannot fully show.