The sarees of Kullu
The valley of Kullu shawls, woven wool wraps with bright geometric borders, worn in the hills as a wrapped dress and as a shawl.
Motifs of Kullu
Woven here
Best time: October for Dussehra; April to June and September to November for the weather.
GI: Kullu shawl is registered as a Geographical Indication.
Kullu is a hill town in Himachal Pradesh where woollen weaving is a part of everyday life. The shawls are woven in bands of geometric pattern, in bright colours. Women in the valley traditionally wear a woollen wrap called a pattu, which is draped and pinned, and this is the nearest local garment to the saree.
What is woven here
The loom-woven woollen shawl is the main product, in plain bodies with patterned borders of diamonds, stripes and bands. Wool is carded, spun and dyed, and then woven on handlooms and pit looms. Pattu is a longer wrap woven in two panels that is worn draped around the body and fastened at the shoulders, rather than a sewn dress. Patterns are geometric, as the loom suits straight lines.
The craft and its people
Weaving is done by families and by cooperatives in the valley, and many villages have looms. Wool comes from sheep reared in the hills. The Kullu shawl was one of the first Himachal products to be protected by a Geographical Indication. The weavers have also adapted the border patterns for stoles, caps and jackets, which are easier to sell to visitors.
Seeing it
Bhuntar, near the airport, and the villages along the Beas river have weavers' cooperatives and shops. The Kullu Dussehra, in October, brings people from many villages to the town in local dress and is a good time to see the pattu worn. Look at the weave and the border: a hand-woven shawl has small irregularities that machine work does not.
A trail idea for Kullu
- A weaving cooperative at Bhuntar Visit a weavers' society to see wool spun and woven, and ask about the border patterns.
- Villages along the Beas Drive up the valley to look for home looms and see how wool is dyed and carded.
- Kullu town market Compare shawls, stoles and pattu cloth, and look for the geometric borders.
Written by the EveryPallu desk with AI assistance. Background: "Kullu" on Wikipedia. Opening hours, markets and workshops change; check locally before travelling. If something is wrong, tell us.
No sarees here yet. New pages are added every day.