22 May, 2011

Different types of Indian saris







Saris from East India

1. Baluchari Sarees 
This saree from Murshidabad district of West Bengal, comes in bright colors like flame red, purple and occasionally in deep blue. These sarees are made of silk and woven on looms. These are about 200 year old. The sarees look similar to Banarasi sarees. There is only one difference between the two sarees, Baluchari sarees use only silk threads and Banarasi sarees do use zari threads. The borders of the sarees depict stories from Mahabharata and Ramayana. The field of the saree is covered with small butis and a beautiful floral design runs across the edges.
Image credit: http://www.dollsofindia.com/dollsofindiaimages/saris/baluchari_saree_SA14_l.jpg




2. Tanta/Taant Cotton
The Tant sarees are another very popular types of saree not only famous in Bengal but across India. These sarees have a very unique appearance and colors. The word Taant literally means ‘Made On The Loom’. This is a traditional saree worn by Bangali Women. Taant sarees are popularly known as Bengal cotton and is hand-woven in various districts of West Bengal. These sarees come in a huge variety of colors with simple and beautiful designs. A must have for all cotton lover women.
Image credit: http://www.iwishtohaveit.com/images/taant_trio.jpg


3. Kantha Sari 
Kantha, the name is associated not with the fabric used in saree but with the embroidery. It is actually the name of the embroidery. Any saree embroidered with Kantha embroidery is a Kantha saree. The typical Kantha embroidery is the decorative motifs with running stitch. The cloth is entirely covered with running stitches and has beautiful folk, floral, animal and bird motifs. This art of Kantha is practiced by rural women in West Bengal in spare time and each Kantha sari is a result of hard work and labor.

Image credit: http://www.iwishtohaveit.com/images/kantha_sample_1.bmp



Dhakai

A Dhakai is a type of sari (traditional cloth for women of South Asia) made with cotton. The name comes from the Dhaka city, capital of Bangladesh, where this type of sari is usually made.




Patt silk (Mulberry) Mekhala Chadar from Assam



4 comments:

  1. Wow i love Baluchari sarees <3 Thanks for sharing :D

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  2. I love this series---you're really knowledgeable on this subject!

    PS: of the types of saris mentioned above, I own all but a dhakai. My favorite is my balachauri!

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  3. I love Bengal cottons and Dhakai too. The Dhakai sari dsplayed is very attractive.

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  4. so many to chose from too! that's good to know the differences.

    ReplyDelete