Banarasi sari

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sari from Varanasi (Banaras), silk and gold-wrapped silk yarn with supplementary weft brocade (zari)

A Banarasi sari is a

Benares (Banaras). The saris are among the finest saris in India and are known for their gold and silver brocade or zari, fine silk and opulent embroidery. The saris are made of finely woven silk
and are decorated with intricate designs, and, because of these engravings, are relatively heavy.

A man making a handcrafted Banarasi Silk sari

Their special characteristics include intricate intertwining floral and foliate motifs, kalga and bel, a string of upright leaves called jhallar at the outer, edge of border is a characteristic of these saris. Other features are gold work, compact weaving, figures with small details, metallic visual effects, pallus, jal (a net like pattern), and mina work.[1]

The saris are often part of an Indian bride's trousseau.[2][3]

Depending on the intricacy of its designs and patterns, a sari can take from 15 days to a month and sometimes up to six months to complete. Banarasi saris are mostly worn by Indian women on important occasions such as when attending a wedding and are expected to be complemented by the woman's best jewellery.

History

A traditional Banarasi sari with gold brocade

Mughal period, around the 14th century, weaving of brocades with intricate designs using gold and silver threads became the specialty of Banaras.[4][5]

The traditional Banarasi sari is done with cottage industry for about 1.2 million people associated directly or indirectly with the handloom silk industry of the region around Varanasi encompassing

Gorakhpur, Chandauli, Bhadohi, Jaunpur and Azamgarh districts.[6]

In the last few years, a variety of independent, Varanasi-based brands have emerged to revive the Banarasi sari and bring them directly to mainstream consumers, including Ekaya, Tilfi Banaras, HKV Benaras among others. [7] [8]

Geographical indication

handlooms
, Varanasi

Over the years, the Banarasi silk handloom industry has been incurring huge losses because of competition from mechanised units producing the Varanasi silk saris at a faster rate and at cheaper cost, another source of competition has been saris made of cheaper synthetic alternatives to silk.[9]

In 2009, after two years of wait, weaver associations in Uttar Pradesh, secured Geographical Indication (GI) rights for the ‘Banaras Brocades and saris’. GI is an intellectual property right, which identifies a good as originating in a certain region where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of the product is essentially attributable to its geographical origin.

As per the GI certificate, Banarasi products fall under four classes (23–26), namely silk brocades, textile goods, silk sari, dress material and silk embroidery. Most importantly this means that no sari or brocade made outside the six identified districts of

Geographical Indication Registry of the Government of India, in a move that was supported by United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).[11]

Varieties

There are four main varieties of Banarasi sari, which includes pure silk (Katan), Organza (Kora) with Zari and silk; Georgette, and Shattir, and according to design process, they are divided into categories like, Jangla, Tanchoi, Vaskat, Cutwork, Tissue and Butidar

Environmental concern

Since a large number of silk dyeing units in the trade use chemical dyes, which cause pollution in the

palash), madder, marigold and pomegranate (anar) [12]

Threat to traditional Sari weavers

The increasingly errant and erratic electric power supply, which leads to the electric powered looms sitting idle for greater parts of the day, has made it difficult for the weavers to complete the saris in short time; consequently their earnings are affected. Also, increasing quantities of look-alike Banarasi saris are flooding the market. These saris are mass-produced in China on massive looms and therefore retail at very low prices.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Different Types of Sarees from North India, South India and East India". Indiamarks. Archived from the original on 19 March 2016. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  2. ^ Saree saga: Draped for elegance, growth too The Economic Times, 5 Apr 2009.
  3. ^ The religious route The Times of India, 3 April 2003.
  4. ^ "Banarasi Sari – Banarasi Saree, Banarsi Silk Sarees India". lifestyle.iloveindia.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2017. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  5. ^ The rise and fall of Benarasi silk trade Rediff.com, Geetanjal Krishna in Benares, 21 April 2007.
  6. ^ a b Banarasi silk sarees get copyright cover The Times of India, Binay Singh, TNN 18 September 2009.
  7. ^ eShe (23 August 2018). "These Designers Are Changing the Way We Wear Banarasi Weaves". eShe. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  8. ^ "Add A Little Bit Of Banaras To Your Wedding Trousseau With Tilfi". Home. 16 October 2017. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  9. Times of India
    , MAHESH DAGA, TNN 8 February 2002.
  10. ^ Banaras saris and brocades get GI status Mint (newspaper), 17 September 2009.
  11. ^ UNCTAD to support geographical indication registration of Banarasi silk The Economic Times, 19 Aug 2008.
  12. Indian Express
    , Anuraag-Singh, 19 November 2007.

Further reading

  • Banaras brocades, by Anand Krishna, Vijay Krishna, All India Handicrafts Board. Ed. Ajit Mookerjee. Crafts Museum, 1966.

External links

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