Dharmavaram silk sari

What is Dharmavaram silk sari?

Dharmavaram produces both saris and paavadas, and both are woven by hand. The yarn is mulberry silk, and zari thread carries the shine. The work happens in Dharmavaram, a town in Sri Sathya Sai district, Andhra Pradesh. A Dharmavaram sari is a silk cloth, its body coloured with acid dyes and its patterning laid in with zari. Only pit looms are used, so the cloth keeps the small irregularities of hand weaving. Stage dancers of Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi are among its most visible wearers, and it also comes out for functions and in cold weather.

Where does Dharmavaram silk sari come from?

The town's name is tied to a story. Kriya Shakthi Vodavaru Swamy gave Dharmavaram its name, after his mother Dharmambai, in 1153-54 AD. By the 19th century silk handloom weaving had become the main occupation of the place. Old paintings on the roof walls of the Lepakshi temple and the Latha Mandapam carry designs that belong to Dharmavaram saris, which links the craft's patterns to the region's older art.

How is Dharmavaram silk sari made?

Weavers start with raw or yarn-form mulberry silk plus zari, and use acid dyes with soap and soda. Cocoons are steamed open to get yarn, which is twisted and then built into warp and weft. Boiling the yarn with soda ash and soap takes out its natural gum, a step called degumming. The yarn is plied for balance, dyed in hot water, then dried indoors on bamboo sticks. Charka, shift bamboo, bobbin and pirn are used to ready the warp and weft, and rice conjee is sprayed on the stretched warp. Weaving runs on pit looms, with Jacquard and Dobby sometimes standing in, and Kuttu Dharmavaram work adds tie and dye.

Colours, motifs and borders

Dye gives the body its colour, and the article describes acid dyes used for shades across the rainbow. The zari itself is named in red, green, silver and gold. Patterns are woven rather than printed: in Kuttu work the yarn is tied and dyed before it reaches the loom, so the motif sits inside the thread. The article traces the older designs carried on these saris to roof paintings at the Lepakshi temple and the Latha Mandapam.

How Dharmavaram silk sari is worn

The sources do not set out the drape. They note that Dharmavaram silk saris are worn for functions, in winter and in cold weather, and that dancers of Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi are their main wearers. That is all the article says about how the cloth sits on the body.

When Dharmavaram silk sari is worn

Two settings recur: the stage and cold weather. Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi dancers wear Dharmavaram silk, and the sari also goes on for functions, with the article listing winter and cold conditions among the times it is chosen. Weddings, worship and mourning are not mentioned by the sources, so nothing can be said about them here.

Styles of Dharmavaram silk sari

Dharmavaram weaving makes more than the sari. The same looms turn out paavadas, and the article treats sari and paavada as one line of production, sharing the silk, the zari, the dyeing and the plying. Kuttu Dharmavaram sari is described as a tie-and-dye branch of the craft. Some patterning is done on Jacquard or Dobby attachments, but powerlooms are not used; weaving stays on pit looms.

What Dharmavaram silk sari means

Silk handloom weaving has been the main occupation of Dharmavaram since the 19th century, which makes the sari a livelihood as much as a garment. The craft appears on India's geographical indication register, listed among the GIs of Andhra Pradesh, a status that marks the cloth as belonging to this place. Roof paintings at Lepakshi and the Latha Mandapam are cited as evidence that these designs have a long regional life.

Questions people ask about Dharmavaram silk sari

Good reading and sources

• Made in India: a look at some of the latest Indian products that got GI statusThe Indian Express, Article

• Dharmavaram silk sari on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• Wikidata recordOpen data