CG medal winners to adorned by Chanderi fabrics

Medal winners of the approaching Commonwealth Games to be held in Delhi would be adorned with the outfits, made of popular Chanderi fabric, named Angvastram.

The Madhya Pradesh Handloom and Handicrafts Development Corporation is producing this special apparel as it has bagged the contract of supplying 1,375 specially designed Angvastrams, informed the officials.

The winners of the Commonwealth games, to be organized in the month of October, will be presented Angvastram with Commonwealth Games Mono and Mascot Shera, along with the medals.

For the past one year, officials of the corporation had been in contact with the organizers of Commonwealth games and about six months ago the Games Committee had approved a sample of Angvastram.

The committee had given a deadline of September 15 to the corporation to supply the decided amount of specially designed apparel.

Chanderi is a settlement in Ashok Nagar district and is about 300 km from Bhopal and weaves a a specific handloom textile known by its place of origin. Chanderi fabric has been woven since many centuries by a group of weaver communities and is widely known for producing high quality sarees.

Beside sarees, chanderi weavers now also produce various textile items such as fabric for ladies suits, running fabric, tops, stools, home furnishing items such as table cover, runner, napkin, cushion cover and curtains.

Chanderi cloths are available in silk, cotton and silk-cotton blend. Embroidery work is done as part of weaving; giving tenacity to the embroidery that is unique to chanderi fabrics.

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Textiles & handicrafts recipients of govt largesse

Today, the Government of India extended incentives amounting to Rs 10.52 billion to exporters, mainly for labour intensive sectors like leather, handicrafts and textiles.

These sops will help these industries to survive through the still-fragile global economic recovery.

The benefits which have been extended are through the various schemes like DEPB, under which taxes are reimbursed to exporters, subsidized interest and incentives for import of capital goods.

However the government made it clear that this would be the last time that incentives would be available on the DEPB scheme and it would not be extended again, since it is against WTO rules.Handloom, handicrafts, carpets and SMEs have been availing the facility of two percent interest subvention scheme, now additional products from sectors like leather, textiles, engineering, and jute have also been added to the scheme.

The zero-duty Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG) scheme too has been extended by a period of one year to March 31, 2012, which was originally set to expire on March 31, 2011.

Transactions costs were a bane for exporters and which totaled to around 7-8 percent of the export value. Steps to reduce these costs too were announced, which has been welcomed by one and all.

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Bijnore Cluster

With around 7000 looms and 13000 weavers operating here, Bijnore cluster is the prime nucleus for products like Duster cloths, Home furnishing, and Dress materials. The Bijnore handloom cluster is stretched across a length of 60 km and breadth of 40 km. About 20% of the total production is supplied to Delhi based exporters like Fab India, All India Handloom Board & other major exporters through middle-men. The rest is sold in the domestic market at Naogaon, Sadat, Nahtore, Sheohara, Dhampur and Kath etc.

Fibre2fashion.com had an exclusive interview with Mr. Raman Shiv Kumar, CDP Officer of Bijnore Handloom Cluster, in which he threw light on Initiatives of Government by saying that, The IHCDP is being implemented in 20 handloom clusters across the country. This is a project of DCHL and started in the year 2006. Various implementing agencies have been appointed by DCHL for implementing this project. At the first instance an extensive baseline survey was conducted in all these clusters by the individual implementing agencies. This was followed by SWOT analysis based on which action plans are prepared for each cluster. The government has allocated rupees two crore for each cluster. The implementing agency gets the action plan approved by the APEX committee and the funds are sanctioned accordingly. This is a four year project and every year a fresh action plan is prepared and implemented. The important elements of the action plan are Marketing, Design development, and training, Technology up gradation, Infrastructure development and strengthening of association."

The weavers are taken to various tours to make them learn to work in groups. Trips to textiles fairs give them a detailed idea of variety of fabrics and products in the market, lot of finished products are developed from existing fabrics, and new fabrics & designs are also developed from which finished products are developed again. The weavers took part in various retail exhibitions where these products were displayed and sold. There was a good response for these products. The weavers participated in more number of exhibitions in various metros and their product knowledge and understanding of market requirement developed. The fabrics when converted into finished products attracted many bulk buyers during the exhibitions, which resulted in getting bulk orders.

Talking about the facilities provided to the weavers Mr. Raman Shiv Kumar says,"There has been development of Common Facility center with facilities like Information center with internet, Show rooms, yarn depot, Testing laboratories and pilot production units. Modern Dye house for yarn dyeing with latest Cabinet dyeing machines, Boiler, Gensests and other equipments, exposure visits to various textile production centers, participation in National and International Textile Expos are some important steps taken for the weavers betterment."

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Implementation of Handloom Cluster & Role of WSC

Govt. of India, Development Commissioner for Handloom, New Delhi has sanctioned 419 Handloom clusters. Among that 9 handloom clusters in Gujarat State has been sanctioned during the 2008-09 to the Weavers Service Centre, Ahmedabad. Rest was allotted to Gujarat State Handloom & Handicraft Corporation,Gandhinagar; namely Junagarh, Amreli, Porbandar, Surendranagar, Limbdi, Palanpur, Vadgam (Banaskantha), and Bhuj.

Ahmedabad cluster (Amraivadi, Geetamandir) has been sanctioned to Weavers Service Centre, Ahmedabad to cover up 490 Handloom Weavers under various components.Under this project, Weavers Service Centre, Ahmedabad has undertaken the work to uplift the weavers of the Amraiwadi and Gitamandir and given benefit to the 218 weavers under various components.

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Smiling Face of Chanderi Weavers(A Full Circle)

The Government of India has adopted a Cluster approach for a focused development of Handloom weavers. Office of Development Commissioner Handlooms, Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, took imperative step to nurture, promote and develop the exclusiveness of the handloom sector. In the first phase 20 Pilot clusters were selected across 12 States of the country. Several innovative strategic approaches brought the success to its credit under the four year programme. The turn around story of the Chanderi Cluster was one of them. For the development of Chanderi Cluster, the weavers of Chanderi were organized into small Self Help Groups which further formed a federation i.e.; Chanderi Handlooms Cluster Development Company Limited, ensuring the participation and transparency for realizing the benefits to its weaver members.

With focused intervention activities past 3 years in the areas of raw material procurement, design development, process up-gradation, dying & coloring, direct marketing & Exports through Building/Strengthening of institutions, up scaling the facilities available infrastructure was strengthened by ensuring quality dyeing the in house dye houses using VAT, Acid and Vegetable Dyes. A fully equipped Common Facility Centre was constructed in an area of 3000 sq. ft. to provide facilities for operating colour & yarn bank; testing of yarn & fabric; showcasing new designs; sample development and other facilities to local weavers at nominal operating charges, with the help of Public & Commercial service providers, Chanderi cluster achieved positive growth thereby improving well being of more than 2500 Handloom weavers & their families through social security by way of Health Insurance cover worth Rs.15000/- to the weaver and his family and life insurance cover to the Handloom weavers & families.

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Gadag handloom cluster transforming with changing times

Gadag cluster is a famous cotton trading centre for Jayadhar variety of cotton. It has also occupied a significant place in the handloom industry of Karnataka. There are about 3,600 active working handlooms in the cluster. A round 10,000 people are depending in this industry for their livelihood. The cluster is also very much popular for its traditional product called Gaadi Dhadi Sarees .

History of the Gadag handloom cluster shows the rise and fall of products and goods manufactured in the past years. Even the products manufactured here have been changed from ordinary cotton sarees to mercerized cotton saris and high quality of silk saris. Today more than 50% of the production is only of cotton saris. Though the profit margin is meager in cotton saris, but it enjoys better demand compared to silk saris.

These "Gaadi dhadi" traditional saris are largely worn by women of north Karnataka and some parts of Masharastra. These people prefer these saris for almost all their cultural and traditional functions because of its combination of harmonious colours, quality and richness.

The core cluster actors are small weavers, weavers who are job workers, businessmen weavers, and small handloom production units, KHDC Ltd and the Handloom cooperative societies. Apart from weavers, skilled designers are also available in the cluster. The local designer needs adequate training for the up-gradation of design development to meet the present market needs.

Majority of the handlooms in the cluster are working under the patronage of the KHDC. The handloom weavers who work for KHDC produce furnishing fabrics, terry towels, bedsheets, suiting, shirtings, floor coverings, tablemats, etc. The other weavers in the cluster limit themselves to producing silk, silk blends and cotton traditional saris.

Almost all the weavers in the cluster are depending on job work. The weaver working under KHDC will get raw materials from KHDC and they after weaving the materials hand it back to the KHDC. The weavers, who get the raw materials from cooperative societies, produce for the respective cooperative societies.

The weavers under the master weavers to their master weavers, the weavers of khadi board to their respective khadi board. These weavers are paid the conversion charges on piece rate basis. Only the small weavers do their business on their own. The KHDC and Khadi Board market their products through their chain of sales outlet and directly to different govt institutions. The cooperatives and the small manufacturer weavers will supply their goods to local retailers and wholesalers.

The small weavers sell their products in the local market directly to the consumer or to the local trader. It has been observed in the value-chain analysis that the local traders enjoy greater margin than the others. But after proper intervention for cost reduction in inputs through bulk purchase, improved processing methods, upgrading designs and introduction of direct selling mechanism, instead of the trader, this has helped increase the earnings and margins of the weavers.

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A company by the weavers, for the weavers and of the weavers

Kishen Lal is a happy man today. Toiling on his looms for years, he had never dreamt that one day he would be owner (shareholder) of a company. There are 249 weavers like him in Chanderi in Madhya Pradesh who are now proud shareholders in a private limited company formed by them. For them, July 30, 2010 will always be a day of reckoning as they received their first dividend certificates at a function held here on Friday.

This company is a result of Union government's effort to revive the handloom sector. With Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDI), Ahmedabad, as the implementing agency, ministry of textiles launched four-year Integrated Handlooms Cluster Development Scheme in Chanderi in 2006 to help handloom weavers meet the challenges of globalised environment.

Chanderi Handlooms Cluster Development Producers' Company Limited was registered initially with 10 members on May 29, 2008. Today, the firm has 249 shareholders (237 weavers and 12 weaver SHGs).

"It's a story of empowering weavers at grassroots level. Weavers were first organised in self-help groups (SHGs) and given exposure to exhibitions and sales to help them understand the production-to-marketing cycle. They realised that pooling of resources of SHGs is more fruitful than going solo with similar designs and limited means," says Tarun Bedi, faculty (EDI) & CDE, Chanderi/Gwalior.

"Weavers had their doubts though about availability of working capital, wage sustainability, availability of reliable market linkages, potential for conflicts in the distribution of profit and in their own capacity," says Mangilal, a weaver and in-charge of production planning, monitoring and quality control. To allay their fears, weavers were taken to Bunkar Vikas Sanstha to see how a federation worked.

"When the project was initiated, nobody was ready to accept that designs can be simplified and newer patterns can be introduced. Two months of training and a visit to an exhibition later, they began to create new designs as per the market requirements," says Sanjay Garg, a designer from NIFT, Delhi, whose services have been hired for design development and forming linkages with buyers.

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Handloom Cluster project opens in Imphal

A Handloom Development Cluster Project has recently been launched, under the Integrated Handloom Cluster Development Scheme. The District Industries Centre (DIC) of Imphal East organized the inaugural ceremony of the project in association with the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India.

The government offered this cluster development project to the Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and weavers to boost the economic conditions of the state of Manipur, informed Thongju MLA and Deputy Chairman of the Manipur State Planning Board, Mr. Bijoy Koijam, who was present at the event as a Chief Guest.

Citing this project as a big project, he stated that the state is still lagging behind in handloom production, though it has done a remarkable endeavor in sports, horticulture
and agriculture sector. Therefore, he appealed the SHGs and the weavers of the state to avail the benefits offered by the Central government.

This Handloom Development Cluster Project will provide assistance to around 500 families of Uchekon. Beneficiaries of the project received cheques towards the end of the function.

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Genuine Kancheepuram sarees face stiff competition

The Kancheepuram silk saree, churned out by the Department of Handlooms and Textiles in Tamil Nadu is witnessing a demand fall of sorts, never seen before, mainly due to competition from the private sector.

The department has organised a sale in the capital of Tamil Nadu; Chennai, where it is giving discounts as high as 45 percent, in a bid to clear the high inventory levels and to maintain flow of working capital.

The main reason for this condition is that the private sector weavers and traders use artificial silk zari sarees and pass off the sarees as pure Kancheepuram silk sarees, which the government agency is unable to do.

These private sector players are able to sell these counterfeit silk sarees at a rate which is far lower than the prices quoted at the stores run by the department, since the cost of a genuine silk saree vastly exceeds the prices of sarees made from art silk.

Experts, whom fibre2fashion spoke to, are of the opinion that the department should initiate a consumer awareness campaign to educate the customer, to know the difference between an art silk and genuine silk Kancheepuram saree.

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Handloom & handicraft clusters should apply for IPR – expert

Not having patents for their handloom and handicraft products, whether handed down traditionally since centuries or developed with years of sweat and research, is proving costly for artisans and small manufacturing units from these two high employment generating sectors.

The cost of seeking patents is also too high. In India it costs between Rs 100,000 and 150,000, while in the developed countries like the US, it is prohibitively expensive. The cost could range between Rs 0.5 million and Rs 1.5 million, which is not affordable to the hundreds of thousands of units in these two sectors.

To get around the prohibitive costs, handloom and handicrafts clusters should apply for the patents and contain the duplication of their products and at the same time they can also do away with the traditional middle-men, who earn excessive profits by buying these products cheaply from the manufacturers, says a copyright expert.

Fibre2fashion spoke to Mr Jiten Talwar of Talwar and Talwar Consultants, a firm which is mainly involved in providing consultancy services on intellectual property rights (IPR) to SMEs and learnt as to how it would benefit the marginalized handloom and handicraft exporting sectors in the country.

Mr Jiten said, “Adequate IP protection is absolutely essential in the international market as there are several important issues that confront exporters in general and handicraft exporters in particular. Some of the issues are - Copyright violation, Trademark violation, Trade dress violation and Design patent violation.”

He added by saying, “It is important that in case, any manufacturer has an original idea or design, adequate protection is taken by registering the same and it can be a great marketing tool as well as a good tool against copying by others, thus handloom manufacturers can especially benefit by getting a better value for their innovative designs, brands and processes.”

It would be interesting for our readers to know that your website; Fibre2fashion is also involved in promotion of handloom silk cluster like the Bhagalpur silk handloom cluster, which we promote through an on-line website and by holding reverse buyer-seller meets involving Indian and overseas buyers at the doorsteps of these clusters.

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Bargarh Handloom Cluster - A caption for every motif or design

Bargarh Handloom cluster is spread over the entire Block of Bargarh, Attabira, Bijepur and Sohella. The cluster has 7158 numbers of looms as per the survey report of the zonal Handloom office taken up during the year 2004 out of which 5102 looms are working in 299 different villages.

The main products of the cluster are cotton sarees of tie and dye and small amount of dress materials, lungis and napkins etc. The annual production is around 10 Crores rupees. The products of this area are mostly marketed in Orissa and National market. The cluster so to say represents Orissa in quantitative and qualitative Tie and Dye Cotton Sarees as no other clusters of other districts in Orissa produces such sarees.

Bargarh is one of the major revenue generating district, situated in western part of Orissa. It is 380 Kms far from state capital, Bhubaneswar and around 50 Kms far from Sambalpur Town. The town is well connected with road and railways. it is on the Road side of National Highway number 5 (Mumbai - Kolkata). The nearest Air port is Raipur, state capital of Chhatisgarh.

The weaving in the cluster by the traditional weavers’ community popularly known as "Bhulia" came in to existence during mid of 17th century and with increase in their population, they spread to other nearby places. They initially belong to Rajasthan and were presented during the 14th century to the ruler of Patna State, a king of Chouhan dynasty "Ramai Deb". Later on they were presented to the king of Sonepur during the 16th century and scattered to the nearby district i.e., Bargarh in the next century.

The cluster consists sizable number of professional weavers (Non traditional) from Schedule Caste and Schedule Tribe (Kuli caste) weavers, which in total accounts for 60 %. Generally these weavers are less skilled and engaged in production of Napkin, Lungi, Sarees, Dhotis, etc.

Weaving with Tie dye in the cluster prior to 40”s was done with 40''/42'' looms operated with hanging slay and engaged in producing Kapta, Lungi and Napkins made of 12's/16's/20's cotton yarn. The yarns were dyed with vegetable colours. The main colours were Yellow (from Turmeric), Maroon (From bark of Aal tree), Blue form Nile and Black (From Hirakasi and Chakda Seeds).

Fabrics of vegetable colours were sometimes not fast and ranges of colours were also limited, forcing the Tie-Dye production in to limited colours and so also the design. Such practice was on vogue till the mid of 40s when vat colour was first substituted for in place of some vegetable colours.

The next major changes in the cluster took place with the introduction of twisted cotton mercerized yarn and synthetic colours in the early 60's. The looms started widening mainly to 52" width for normal sarees and other production and 90" for double bed sheet production. There were also few 60'' / 72" looms to accommodate weaving of middle-sized bed sheets.

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Burdwan keeps Mughal era handloom tradition alive

'Jamdani' and 'Tangail' are two pioneer sarees in the field of heritage handloom products of Bengal handloom and Burdwan handloom cluster in particular.

'Jamdani' - the great characteristic of fine art in hand weaving derived from a Persian word 'Jam' meaning a 'cup' and 'Dani' denotes the 'container'. Jamdani style of weaving flourished under the benign, rich and enlightened patronage of kings and emperors.

It may be considered as a textile of excellence for its super fine qualities in the fifteenth & sixteenth centuries. Excellence in weaving lies in the virtuosity of forms drawn from the social, religious and natural environment and translated through a particular technique and the weaver's sensitivity to create a new art form.

The figured muslin with delicate motifs worked on by deft fingers, needed besides skill, unlimited patience, a length of cloth sometimes taking months to weave.

The "Mughals" recognized this excellence, acknowledged its rarity. During the region of Emperor Jahangir and Aurangzeb, the manufacturer of finer Jamdani was a rare product and a royal monopoly. After the Mughalera, Jamdanis continued to be developed under the patronage of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah of Tanda and Nawab of Dhaka (Bangladesh).

The weavers of Dhaka were expert in Jamdani known as 'Daccai Jamdani' for producing mainly sarees and dress materials. While the weavers of "Tanda" and "Varanasi" in Awadh were experts in weaving of 'Awadh Jamdani' for producing mainly sarees, dress materials, handkerchiefs, Ornas, caps, table cover etc.

Both "Dacca" & "Tanda" Jamdanis, the ground warp and weft threads are commonly of fine nature grey cotton yarn of counts, ranging from 60s to 150s. However, mulberry silk (13/15 Den filature) yarn were also used. The warp yarn used for selvedge at normally 1/4th width are either grey or bleached cotton in both the styles.

In case of indigo dyed Nilambari Jamdani sarees of Bengal, the selvedge yarn dyed with madder colour is beautifully matched. Bleached cotton, indigo and black dyed cotton, silver and gold zari, munga threads are used as extra weft for figured motif in Dacca whereas, bleached cotton and gold zari are in vogue in "Tanda" as extra weft. The small cut piece of 3-5 ply of these extra yarns are used for the desired effect of each motif using the same count as that of warp yarn.

8' x 8' pit looms were generally used for producing figured Jamdani. Like other sarees, hank sizing is largely followed for Jamdani from hank form yarn available in market.

The motion of layout of Jamdani fabrics are directly woven on loom by traditional master weavers from their hereditary skill, experience and talent. Traditional Jamdani motifs are geometric in concept, adopted from local flowers, birds, leaves, zig-zag lines, and so on by the weavers who improved and evolved a directory of design of "Dacca Gharana" These designs have its nomenclature in Hazar-buti, Chand, Tara-buti, Dora-kata' Dabutar- khop, Rose-leaf etc.

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Barabanki handloom cluster exports 95% of goods

Barabanki Handloom Cluster in Uttar Pradesh is famous for weaving since the Nawab period of Lucknow. About 95% of the turnover of this handloom cluster is exported. Most of the facilities are outsourced by cluster actors as the demands of the export market are heavy and time bound.

The cluster is a good destination for stoles and scarves and some of the world famous designs are being exported to various Middle East and European countries. The cluster has brought about improvements in its dyeing quality with installation of dyeing facilities and up-gradation of the existing dye houses.

The weavers can be categorized into 2 types, based on their skill:
- Weavers who produce higher end products such as stoles, scarves & shawls for the export market.
- Weavers who produce low quality products such as Gamcha for the local market.

Financing for the Barabanki district cluster is covered by Rashtriya Sam Vikas Yojana Scheme under backward district initiative. Under the scheme, infrastructure facilities like roads can be developed. Besides the scheme also provides training and other facilities.

Amongst other financing facilities available are the common financing to facilitate cheaper institutional finances like Mutual Credit Guarantee Scheme and common finance to facilitate common facility centers and common raw material purchase.

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Bhagalpur cluster silk output next only to Karnataka

Bhagalpur is a divisional town of historical importance situated on the southern bank of the Ganga river. The Bhagalpur handloom weaver’s history traces back to over 100 years. It was a family tradition among the lower income group of people to take up the weaving job.

There are about approximately 70,000 handloom weavers in Bhagalpur handloom cluster. The major products produced here are Silk Dress material, Sarees, Salwar Suits, Dupattas, Kurta Pajamas, Cushion Covers, Bed Sheets, Shawls, Scarves, Curtains, Throws, Table Covers, and Napkins & Runners.

The total value of trade from Bhagalpur Silk cluster is around Rs 100 crore annually. 50 percent of the turnover is from the domestic market and the balance 50 percent is from export market. The Bhagalpur cluster is the second highest in silk fabric production and exports, after Karnataka.

Bhagalpur silk home furnishing made ups are gradually becoming popular in the domestic as well as overseas markets as well.

In Bhagalpur the weavers service centre (GOI) was established in the year 1974 with a view to developing handloom silk industry in the state of Bihar. There has been partially successful in providing training to weavers and in the area of designing, printing and dyeing.

The production of handloom tassar silk in the form of fabric is 200 metric tons annually. 50 percent of the silk tassar fabric is being exported and the balance 50 percent of the fabric is converted into Sarees and other dress materials.

The Bhagalpur handloom cluster has some very good inherent opportunities like; very good export potential for home furnishing value added made ups in the selected overseas countries, brand building for handloom silk value added products in the domestic and international market.

Other opportunities include product diversification like that of home furnishing value added made ups and it has access to a very large Indian market for branded silk products due to the present high growth of retail sales in India.

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Handloom cluster scheme to take off

Work on establishing 10 handloom clusters in the state is all set to commence soon with the Tamil Nadu government sanctioning Rs 1.43 crore. These would be taken up under the Centrally-sponsored integrated handloom cluster development scheme. The Centre has given its nod for setting up 25 handloom clusters totally and of them 10 are coming up this year and the remaining 15, in the next phase.

The scheme focuses on cluster approach and comes in four components: Clusters having handlooms in the range of 300–500 per cluster, group approach to be implemented in project mode outside the cluster in adjacent geographical areas, assistance for handloom organisations and supplementary works.

About Rs 5.97 crore would be spent for promoting the 10 clusters and another Rs 8.76 crore for the 15 other clusters. Nilayur, Palani, Veeravanallur, Padirivedu, Jayankondam, Kandachipuram, Appakudal, Sholinghur, Sirumugai and Thandampalayam are the 10 places that have been identified. The remaining clusters will, among other places, cover Karur, Gobi, Chennimalai, Palliyadi, Tirupur, Kumbakonam, Chinnalapatti and Gudiyattam. According to sources, the Centre has already released Rs 4.02 crore towards the first instalment of grant component for implementation of the scheme in 25 handloom clusters.

This cluster scheme is in addition to the three major clusters coming up at a cost of Rs 6 crore at Trichy, Thiruvannamalai and Kurinjipadi apart from 37 mini-clusters.

Under this scheme, financial assistance of Rs 60 lakh will be provided to each cluster for three years.

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Indian Handloom Sarees

Baluchari sari is the most well-known Bengal Silk sari.It is a product of exquisite design and fabulous weaving technique.Produced in the town of Baluchar in Murshidabad district of West Bengal, Baluchari sarees are nation and world wide popular because of their artistic and unique design.'Baluchari' is one of the most popular weaving techniques of Bengal.Silk weaving of Baluchar continues to be an important landmark of Bengal's handloom tradition. Balucharisarees are woven in Bengal silks which are much acclaimed in the world over, since ancient times. Like silk, cotton baluchari sarees are also woven in a fascinating andexquisite range. The cloth is very fine and transparent with a soft drape.The sari has large flowing kalka motifs in the centre surrounded by narrow ornamental borders. Theseare framed by a series of figural motifs worked in rows around the kalkas. These motifs are woven diagonally and are worked in four alternating colours, white, blue, yellow, redand green on a shaded background. The motifs are entirely in silver zari. The most distinctive feature of Baluchari sarees is their elaborate borders and pallu. The Famous Handloom sarees of India are as follows. Baluchari is usually five yards in length. These sarees have colors, which harmonize with one another. You will not find any contrasting colors in it. Even if the sari is red, you will find intricate golden work on it, which will give it an elegant and royal look.Mostly nature designs like flowers, shrubs etc. are woven into the silk base of these sarees. Narrative designs such as people on horses, musicians playing, men and women in various poses are also popular Baluchari designs. Baluchari sarees are rich and sophisticated. They can be worn by young girls, middle-aged women as well as elder women; such is the beauty of the Baluchari.It takes a lot of time and hard labor to weave a Baluchari. Firstly, the silk worms are reared. When they turn into cocoons, the silk thread is extracted from the cocoon. Then the silk threads are processed and dyed in various colors. Then patterns are woven onto the silk, using various threads. Now when you see a Baluchari in a shop, you will know how much time and labor goes into making a single piece.The history of the Baluchari goes back centuries. During the rule of the Mughals, Baluchari was in high demand. It was mostly reserved for the elite class due to its high quality. Only royal families and members of the royal court used to wear Baluchari.Orissa Sambalpuri sarees are some of the most beautiful sarees in India. These Sambalpuri sarees are an unparalleled one. The sarees come in a variety of designs and colours to suit every taste and pocket. In the 1980s, the Sambalpuri sari became an international brand, thanks to substantial non-governmental support and the setting up of weavers' cooperatives. Late Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi became a sort of 'brand ambassador' of the Sambalpuri saree -- it was her favourite attire. Newsreaders on India's national television channel, Doordarshan, turned this saree into an unofficial uniform.Sambalpuri textile is essentially handloom. It is fabricated using tie and dye method. The craftsman conceptualizes the design, draws it and according to the design, he colors the yarn, all by hand. It represents the life and gives a message "Your body may wear but they soul lives for ever". The fabrics once colored cannot be bleached. The fabric may get thin and gradually damage but the colour still does not fade. The fabric is both silk and cotton. Sambalpuri sarees are famous for their unique designs and for their beautiful, effulgent colors. Sambalpuri cotton sarees have a smooth finish and have a distinctly original border and pallu. Fish, conch shell and flower motifs are woven into the fabric. Sometimes floral and animal motifs are also used to decorate the borders and pallu. Silk Sambalpuri sarees from Orissa are also in single and double ikat. In contrast to the ikats of Gujarat, these sarees are sober in color and decorated with curved forms.

Bomkai Sarees:Another variety of saree avaible in Orissa is the Bomkai saree. Produced in a small town called Bomkai in Orissa, these sarees also have touches of ikat work, like the Sambalpuri sarees.Both cotton and silk fabric are used in making Bomkai sarees. For regular wear, cotton bomkai is favoured. A Bomkai Cotton Saree is also an excellent choice for any religious function. Bomkai Silk Sarees are generally worn in formal and semi formal occasions. There are Bomkai sarees with elegant designs, enchanting colors for the exclusive women. Some Bomkai saree have small fishes woven onto the border. Fish symbolizes prosperity and good health. Bomkai sarees feature threadwork ornament borders and pallu. East Indian ladies love to wear Bomkai sarees for their traditional tribal look, as well as their understated and elegant color pallette. A combination of ikat and Bomkai is very unique.Kanjeevaram silk sarees are perhaps the most well known of Indian silk sarees. They are the famous sarees of Tamil Nadu. They are world famous for their royal look and rich feel. The Kanjeevaram sari gets its name from the town it originated in - Kanchipuram, a little temple town in Tamil Nadu. The Kanjeevaram sari is not only the choice for weddings in South India and elsewhere but also worn at all other auspicious and religious occasions. The Kanjeevaramsari is a tradition often passed on from mother to daughter over several generations as an heirloom in much the same way they might pass on jewellery or diamonds. A Kanjeevaram sari is made to last a lifetime.The Kanjeevaram sari is made of a heavy silk called Kanjivaram silk, so durable that it can be washed in water at home. It is one of the most finest and most popular forms of silk in Tamilnadu. Kanjee silk is thicker than almost all other silks, and is therefore more expensive. The heavier the silk, the better the quality. While there are light weight Kanjee sarees made from Korean and Chinese silk, only mulberry silk produced in Karnataka and few parts of Tamil Nadu, is right silk for the classic Kanjeevaram sari.The creation of a Kanjeevaram sari is no easy task. The process begins with the the silk thread being twisted, then dyed and dried in the sun after which it is ready for the weaver's loom. The weaver creates the border, body and pallu separately and then interlocks them together in an impossible to detach joint. A weaver takes about 10-12 days to weave a simple Kanjeevaram sari while decorative ones could take up to 20 days. Kanjeevarams are favoured for their durability.Kanjeevaram silk sarees are always of bold and bright colour contrasts, favoured by almost every Indian woman. the silk; the 'zari' work in the border and the Pallu are generally woven in gold-dipped silver threads. The more the Zari the more expensive you can expect the sari to be.Mysore silk sarees are very popular sarees of South India. Rich Mysore silk sarees can be selected in a variety of color combinations and prints. The traditional Mysore silk sarees may soon be the next product which would put Karnataka on the world map. It will soon become as good as a patented product.Mysore silk is one of the most popular and finest and purest forms of silk. Mysore silk is a famous variety of silk made in Mysore and Bangalore in Karnataka. Known for its extraordinary quality and permanence of luster, it is an integral part of the Karnataka's culture. In this region, people always wear some kind of silk while participating in a ritual. Mysore silk draws its fame from the purity of the silk, its lustre, softness and richness of its natural colour which gave it precedence over all other silks.The weight and the content of gold or silver thread used mainly in the intricate border and the pallau or the headpiece determine the price of the sarees. A saree usually weighs between 400 and 600 grams (15-21 ounces). The silk is dyed using natural pigments and woven into intricate but, subtle patterns featuring motfis of birds or fruits. The painstaking production process by the weavers ensures that every aspect of the saree is perfect.Mysore silk saree with its extraordinary sheen of the fabric, purity of the zari, the distinctive drape, a wonderful non-crush quality, and a butter-soft feel gives a elegant look to anyone who wears it.These classy sarees are not only washable, but also durable. The zari too rarely fades because the yarn used has the maximum gold and silver compared to any silk saree in the country. The intricate zari work on the borders and pallu set them apart. Mysore silk saree is undergoing a makeover with new kasuti embroidery, bandhini designs, rich woven pallus, and with a palette of exciting vibrant colors lilac, ecru, coffee-brown and elephant-grey, and contemporary designs, all inspired by traditional Indian architecture and ancient Indian jewellery. This saree exhibiting a range of rich colors, with golden threads interwoven in it for an enhanced effect, has almost acquired a legendary status due to its sheer beauty and demand.Banarasi sarees are world famous for their royal look and rich feel. This saree is a combination of style, beautiful craftwork and good quality. 'Banarasi Saree' is considered to be the Indian 'SUN' in the world of fashion and has been a subject of great inspiration and appreciation world-wide. It was in the Mughal era Baranasi saree came into popularity and got fashion currency. Today, this Indian fashion sari has witnessed a continuous growth in demand in both Indian and International markets.There are mainly four varieties of Benarasi saree available today. They are Pure silk (katan),Organza (kora) with zari and silk ,Georgette ,Shattir.The Banarasi silk saree is popular for its rich and intricate weave and zari work. Banarasi Sarees have designs with original gold and silver thread. Some of the designs on the body of a banaresi sarees are as follows: Benarasi sarees often depict scenes of villages, fairs, flowers, dancing monkeys and clouds. Traditional designs remain the base appeal for Benarasi sarees. There are also temple and mosque designs. They come up in all shades. Most brocades usually have designs that exhibit Mughal patterns such as intricate intertwining floral and foliate motifs, kalga and bel.A distinct feature found along the inner, and sometimes outer, edge of borders in this saree is a narrow fringe like pattern that often looks like a string of upright leaves called jhallr.The pallus of these sarees have elaborate pure gold and silver designs densely woven with gold and multicolor thread which lend the saree its elegance. Its major attraction lies in colorful dying of silk fabric. The brocade that is used in producing these sarees are Amru silk brocades which are world famous. Jamvar, Navrangi (nine colors), Jamdani etc. are other brocade types from the range of Banarasi sarees. Owing to its beautiful designs and colors, a banarasi silk sari always has come to occupy a special place among buyers, throughout the world. The people with rich taste love the beauty and intricate design of the Banarasi sarees as these are very elegant and gorgeous.

Bandhani and bandhej sarees are typical of the states of Rajasthan and Gujarat. Bandhani sarees created by dyeing the cloth in such a manner that the tied 'spots' produce elaborate patterns over the fabric. Bandhani sarees have won lot of appreciation in the fashion market.Simple bandhani sarees are basically in cottons and are ideal for the Indian summers. There are also silk or chiffon bandhani sarees with sequins or zari work. Bandhani is a handwork, which involves tying and dying of cloth. To create the Bandhani designs, the Bandhej process involves tightly tying a string or "dori" around certain areas of the fabric and then dipping it in to a dye. After a short while, the fabric is taken out of the dye and the string is removed. On opening the fabric, you will see that the areas covered by the string have retained their original color while the rest of the fabric has been dyed. Bandhani work, after the processing is over, results into a variety of symbols including, dots, squares, waves and strips. The tying of cloth with thread and then dying it is the simplest and perhaps the oldest form of creating patterns on a plain piece of cloth.The dominant colors in Bandhani sarees are bright like yellow, red, green and pink. Maroon is also popular. But with changing times, as Bandhani has become a part of fashion, various pastel colors and shades are being used. Single colour sarees with white spots are also common. There are bandhani sarees with contrast colours, with zori borders. The various tye and dye designs on bandhani sarees are Bandhej, Lehriya, Batik, Mothra, Ekdali, Shikari, Cheent.

The Chikan Saree of Lucknow is perhaps one of the most popular embroidered saree in India. It has a certain grace and elegance, which ensures that it never goes out of style.Chikan is a traditional embroidery style. It is a form of hand embroidery with pattern, of predominantly different designs, stitched using untwisted white cotton or silk (and now rayon) threads on the surface of the fabric. It is said to have been originally introduced by Nur Jahan, the beautiful wife of the Mughal emperor, Jahangir. It has since evolved and attained its glory and perfection in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. Chikan Sarees are perfect for any kind of regular occasion. Chikan sarees are simple but give a classy look to anyone who wears it. Generally, the sarees are light earth colours and pastel shades. Traditionally, the threads used are in the same colour as the fabric. The self color embroidery looks rich on every age group and color. Nowadays, you also have chikan sarees with contrast colours in the body and the embroidery. Patterns and effects created depend on types of stitches used and the thickness of the threads used in embroidery. The variety of stitches used are back-stitch, chain stitch and hemstitch. The major type of Chikan work done today are Taipchi, Bakhia, Phanda, Murri, Jali, Hatkati, Pechni, Ghas Patti, Chaana Pati etc. The chikan embroidered sarees with their incredible embroidered patterns are collector's items.

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