New Delhi, May 5 -- A Garment That Evokes Summers Past

A recent social media post by a leading Bengali film actress, shared on the occasion of Poila Baisakh-the Bengali New Year-featured a simple yet evocative image: a little girl's summer dress known as the 'pinny' or 'tape-jama'. The photograph triggered a wave of nostalgia, transporting many back to childhood summers shaped by heat, simplicity, and cultural continuity.

Celebrated in mid-April, Poila Baisakh heralds not just a new year but also the onset of Bengal's sweltering summer. Temperatures often climb rapidly, sometimes touching 40degC. Before the widespread use of air conditioning, households relied on modest yet effective cooling practices-earthen pitchers for chilled water ...