Textile news
HandloomPochampally Ikat products get QR-code tagsHandloomShortage of weavers despite GI tag leaves Kasaragod Saree hanging by a threadWeaversMinistry of Textiles to Celebrate 12th National Handloom Day on August 7WeaversPM Modi calls upon people to celebrate National Handloom Day by showcasing India’s rich handloom heritageHandloomA first look into RmKV’s newest collection at weaves & wonders ’26WeavesMatières Fécales makes history at Paris Fashion Week with 99 models of colour—and a bold Banarasi touchHandloomSiddipet weaver revives five-decade-old Muthyampet sareeWeaversPresident Murmu to grace 12th National Handloom Day celebrations on August 7WeaversHandloom Bazaar Showcases Andhra’s Craft Heritage: NTR District CollectorWeavesUP traditional foods, Banarasi textiles draw buyers at int’l trade showHandloomPochampally Ikat products get QR-code tagsHandloomShortage of weavers despite GI tag leaves Kasaragod Saree hanging by a threadWeaversMinistry of Textiles to Celebrate 12th National Handloom Day on August 7WeaversPM Modi calls upon people to celebrate National Handloom Day by showcasing India’s rich handloom heritageHandloomA first look into RmKV’s newest collection at weaves & wonders ’26WeavesMatières Fécales makes history at Paris Fashion Week with 99 models of colour—and a bold Banarasi touchHandloomSiddipet weaver revives five-decade-old Muthyampet sareeWeaversPresident Murmu to grace 12th National Handloom Day celebrations on August 7WeaversHandloom Bazaar Showcases Andhra’s Craft Heritage: NTR District CollectorWeavesUP traditional foods, Banarasi textiles draw buyers at int’l trade show
Pallu

A free guide to the sarees of the world

Every saree in the world, thread by thread.

Silk, cotton and wild silk; ikat, brocade, jamdani and bandhani: every weave and every drape, filed by region and weaving centre. What it is, who weaves it, how it is worn, and when.

Browse the sareesHow to drape oneSurprise me
123
sarees so far
44
drapes, step by step
67
weaving centres
426
on our list to write
Saree of the day, Sunday 4 OctoberZardoziHeavy gold and silver metal embroidery on silk, satin or velvet, from Iran to India🇮🇳 India and 4 more
Sambalpuri sariTansukh clothUttariyaLeirum PheeBerhampur PattaGopalpur tussar silkShalu sariToda embroideryBhagalpuri silkShantiniketan batikKotpad handloom fabricBandhaniKoorai silk sariChendamangalam sareePhanekMadrasMoirang PheeSarongKandangi sareeKorial sariHabaspuri sariZardoziBomkai sariBalaramapuram handloomChattayum mundumKhitGazzi clothAssam silkPat silkBanarasi sariDhakaiChikankariBagh printMatkaPathinPedana KalamkariOdisha IkatKasavuLongyiChaubandi CholoMangalagiri sariIkatDoreaNakshi kanthaSurat zariSujini embroideryMekhela sadorKachchh shawlBegampuri sareeKani shawlChanderi sariTussar silkDokhonaThai silkLambada embroideryMunduPatola sariGadwal sariEri silkAcheikWoodblock printing on textilesMundum NeriyathumKalamkariPuttapaka sareeKimkhwabBatikBanarasi sariHimrooPochampally sariJamdaniSambalpuri sariTansukh clothUttariyaLeirum PheeBerhampur PattaGopalpur tussar silkShalu sariToda embroideryBhagalpuri silkShantiniketan batikKotpad handloom fabricBandhaniKoorai silk sariChendamangalam sareePhanekMadrasMoirang PheeSarongKandangi sareeKorial sariHabaspuri sariZardoziBomkai sariBalaramapuram handloomChattayum mundumKhitGazzi clothAssam silkPat silkBanarasi sariDhakaiChikankariBagh printMatkaPathinPedana KalamkariOdisha IkatKasavuLongyiChaubandi CholoMangalagiri sariIkatDoreaNakshi kanthaSurat zariSujini embroideryMekhela sadorKachchh shawlBegampuri sareeKani shawlChanderi sariTussar silkDokhonaThai silkLambada embroideryMunduPatola sariGadwal sariEri silkAcheikWoodblock printing on textilesMundum NeriyathumKalamkariPuttapaka sareeKimkhwabBatikBanarasi sariHimrooPochampally sariJamdani

How it is wrapped

Six to nine yards of cloth, and a different way of wearing it in every region. Each drape is drawn here step by step.

All 44 drapes
🇮🇳 A mekhela of about 2 yards and a chador of 2.5 to 3 yardsThe Assamese mekhela chadorAssam's two-piece dress: a wraparound skirt, the mekhela, and a long cloth, the chador, with a blouse.🇮🇳 5.5 to 6 yards of cloth, cut and sewn into one garmentThe pre-stitched sareeA saree with the pleats and often the pallu sewn in place, so it is stepped into and fastened like a skirt instead of being wrapped.🇮🇳 5.5 to 6 yards, with a jacketThe jacket sareeA fashion style in which a short or long jacket is worn over the blouse and under the pallu of a Nivi drape.🇹🇭 a rectangle of cloth, about 2 to 3 metresThe Thai chong krabenA rectangular cloth wrapped round the hips with the ends pulled between the legs and tucked at the back, giving a trouser shape, worn with a chest cloth.🇮🇳 5.5 to 6 yardsThe butterfly drapeA fashion drape in which the pallu is pleated and spread across both shoulders like wings, over an otherwise Nivi lower half.🇮🇳 6 yardsThe Kodava drapeThe saree of the Kodava women of Kodagu, with pleats gathered at the back and the pallu pinned at the shoulder.🇮🇳 9 yardsThe Brahmin kashtaThe nine yard saree as worn by Marathi Brahmin women, with back pleats and a plain, formal arrangement of the pallu.🇮🇳 A mundu of about 2.5 yards and a neriyathu of about 2 yardsThe Kerala mundum neriyathumKerala's two-piece cream and gold dress: a wrapped lower cloth, the mundu, and a shoulder cloth, the neriyathu.

Live, Sunday 4 October

Worn now and next

Sarees follow the calendar: festivals, weddings and weaver days, with what is worn for each.

The full picture for today
In 6 days, 10 to 18 Oct 2026BathukammaTelangana's flower festival: women stack seasonal blooms into a cone, sing around it, and dress in new sarees. In 7 days, 11 to 19 Oct 2026NavratriNine nights of the goddess, with Garba and Dandiya in Gujarat and a chosen colour for each day in many homes. In 7 days, 11 to 19 Oct 2026Navaratri GoluIn Tamil Nadu and neighbouring states, homes set out tiered displays of dolls and women visit each other in silk sarees. In 7 days, 11 to 20 Oct 2026Mysuru DasaraThe ten-day state festival of Karnataka, ending in a palace procession, with Mysore silk the saree of the season.

By region

Six zones of India and the rest of South Asia, each with the motifs it is known for.

All regions
North IndiaBanaras brocade, Lucknow chikankari, Punjab phulkari and Kashmir embroidery: the saree of the Gangetic plain and the hills.12 sareesWest IndiaPatan patola, bandhani, Rajasthani block print and leheriya, Paithani and the nine-yard nauvari of Maharashtra.11 sareesCentral IndiaChanderi and Maheshwari, light cotton-silks with gold borders, and the Kosa silk of Chhattisgarh.3 sareesEast IndiaBengal jamdani, tant and baluchari, Odisha ikat and Bomkai, Bhagalpur silk and Madhubani painting.25 sareesNorth-East IndiaAssam muga, eri and pat silk, mekhela chador, and the backstrap-loom textiles of the hill states.13 sareesSouth IndiaKanchipuram silk, Kerala kasavu, Mysore silk, Pochampally ikat, Gadwal and Kalamkari: temple borders and heavy gold.29 sareesRest of South AsiaDhaka jamdani, the Kandyan osariya, the Nepali haku patasi and the sari-like cloths of its neighbours.18 sareesBeyond South AsiaThe saree in Fiji, the Caribbean, East Africa, Britain and North America, and the wrapped cloths of Southeast Asia.11 sarees
Tamil Nadu 15West Bengal 14Kerala 11Odisha 11Andhra Pradesh 9Assam 9Gujarat 9Manipur 6Punjab 6Karnataka 5Telangana 5Uttar Pradesh 5Bhagalpur 4Dhaka 4Murshidabad 4Puttapaka 4All weaving centres

See a few

A different handful every few minutes.

All sarees, A to Z
🇮🇳 IndiaKotpad handloom fabric Cotton and tussar sarees dyed with aul-root dye, handwoven in Koraput, OdishaCotton · Jamdani 🇮🇳 IndiaTelia Rumal Oil-treated yarn, ikat dyeing and plant colours, from Andhra Pradesh and TelanganaIkat 🇮🇩 Indonesia and 4 moreKebayaꦏꦼꦧꦪ A front-opening blouse worn across Southeast Asia with a sarong or kainCotton · Embroidery · Batik 🇮🇳 IndiaKasta sariनऊवारी साड़ी A nine-yard Maharashtrian sari tucked at the back, worn like a dhotiCotton 🇵🇰 PakistanSindhi embroideryسنڌي ٿرت Needlework and mirror embroidery crafted across the desert communities of SindhEmbroidery · Mirror work 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreHandloom sari Saris woven by hand on pit looms in India and BangladeshSilk · Brocade · Zari work 🇮🇳 IndiaMaheshwari saree A handloom saree from Maheshwar, woven in cotton, silk and zari with local motifsSilk · Zari work 🇮🇳 IndiaDharmavaram silk sari A handwoven mulberry silk sari from Dharmavaram, Andhra Pradesh, woven with zariSilk · Zari work · Tie-dye

Cloth

The fibre decides how a saree falls and feels.

All fibres
Silk sareesMulberry silk: Kanchipuram, Banarasi, Mysore, Paithani and the other great silks, light and bright.75
vertical: warp, across: weft
Cotton sareesHandspun and mill cotton, crisp or soft: the saree of the working day and of the hot months.78
Tussar sareesWild silk with a golden, grainy hand, woven in Bhagalpur, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.11
vertical: warp, across: weft
Muga sareesAssam's golden silk, which gains its sheen with every wash.3
vertical: warp, across: weft
Eri sareesAssam's peace silk, warm and soft, spun from cocoons the moth has left.5
vertical: warp, across: weft
Linen sareesFlax cloth, cool and crisp, woven into sarees in Bengal, Bihar, Tamil Nadu and elsewhere.2

Craft

How the pattern gets into the cloth.

All weaves and crafts
BrocadeGold and silver zari threads woven into the cloth in raised patterns.25
JamdaniMotifs woven in by hand with a supplementary weft, thread by thread, on a fine cotton ground.10
IkatYarn tie-dyed before weaving, so the pattern emerges with a soft, feathered edge.15
Tie-dyeCloth tied in tiny knots or bands and dyed: bandhani, leheriya and their kin.12
Block printPatterns stamped from carved wooden blocks, in natural or chemical dyes.9
KalamkariPen-drawn or block-printed storytelling cloth, coloured with natural dyes.2

Why it is worn

For a wedding, a festival, a day at work, a god, a stage.

All occasions
Wedding sareesFor the bride, the families and the guests: the heavy silks, gold borders and auspicious reds.39Festival wearWorn for Diwali, Pongal, Onam, Durga Puja and the other days of the calendar.26Everyday wearThe cottons and light weaves women wear to work, to market and at home.38Formal and office wearPlain, crisp and quiet: for the workplace, the courtroom and the classroom.23Worship and ritualWorn for pujas, vratas, rites of passage and temple visits, often in a prescribed colour.39Party and evening wearSheer, sequinned and embroidered: made for an evening out.1

Textile news

More headlines

The words

182 terms in plain language.

The glossary
HemGhoonghatLanga voniGaraJamdaniThrow shuttleDiscontinuous weftNoilChanderiThread countNatural dyeChikankariPaisleyMeenakari

The map

The weaving centres and states, drawn on South Asia.

Open the map

Newly added

See what is new
🇮🇳 India and 4 moreWoodblock printing on textiles Patterns pressed onto cloth with hand-carved wooden blocks, the chhapa of South Asia.Linen · Block print 🇮🇩 IndonesiaBalinese textiles The woven cloths of Bali, from sacred double ikat to gold-dusted ceremony wearCotton · Ikat · Brocade 🇮🇩 IndonesiaGeringsingᬕ᭄ᬭᬶᬂᬲᬶᬂ (gringsing) A sacred double ikat cloth woven only in Tenganan, a Bali Aga village in BaliCotton · Ikat 🇲🇲 MyanmarAcheikအချိတ် Myanmar's multi-shuttle silk weave of waves and stripes, made into paso and htameinSilk · Brocade

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

The weekly drape

Every Monday: seven sarees you may not know, what is being worn this week, and one drape explained step by step.