వారకాంత కట్టిన చీర వారణాసిపట్టు, పేదరాలు కట్టిన చీర పిచ్చిపట్టు.

This proverb is used to describe a situation where someone is forced to use their most expensive or valued items out of sheer necessity because their everyday essentials are unavailable or exhausted. It highlights a state of extreme poverty or a situation where things have reached a critical point, leaving one with no choice but to utilize their final, reserved resources.

This expression describes a situation where someone is forced to use an expensive or precious resource for a mundane task simply because they lack a basic or ordinary alternative. It highlights a lack of preparedness or the irony of using something luxury out of necessity rather than choice.

This proverb describes a situation where something cheap, ugly, or low-quality is decorated with something expensive and elegant. It is used to mock a mismatch in status or quality, often referring to an unattractive person wearing expensive jewelry or an unworthy person being given high honors.

This expression is used to describe someone who goes to extremes or becomes obsessively persistent in whatever task they undertake. It can also refer to someone who consistently encounters bad luck or complications in every endeavor they start, as if it were cursed or jinxed.

This expression is used to describe an absurd or mismatched combination where something very beautiful, expensive, or high-quality is wasted on or attached to something lowly, ugly, or insignificant. It highlights the incongruity and pointlessness of such an arrangement.

The grand appearance of a worthless person. A leaden sword in an ivory scabbard.

This proverb is used to criticize someone who lacks merit or status but acts with excessive pride or vanity compared to someone who is genuinely dignified. It highlights the irony of someone with very little acting more arrogant than someone who is well-off or naturally graceful.

This expression describes items or individuals that are in their most effective or dangerous state. Just as a knife is most useful when sharpened (tari), a person (historically used in the context of a captive woman or 'kutthi' meaning a young woman/slave) is most vulnerable or completely under someone's control. In modern usage, it highlights the peak state of readiness or the absolute influence one holds over something.

This proverb is used to mock people who have very little but show off excessively. It compares someone wearing a beautiful saree (who has a right to be graceful) to someone wearing a mere piece of cloth or a rag but acting overly proud or vain. It highlights the irony of arrogance in those with meager means or status.

This proverb is used to describe a situation where someone tries to benefit from another person's misfortune or death, only to find that the benefit brings unforeseen troubles or burdens. It highlights that ill-gotten gains or taking advantage of a situation can lead to haunting consequences.

This expression is used to describe a person who is overly optimistic, foolishly assumes ownership or authority over things that don't belong to them, or makes broad, illogical generalizations based on a single commonality.