Thursday, April 1, 2010

Indian saree variations


The weaving technique and the variation of the sarees have increased the demand of different sarees in this region. Traditionally, full-body sarees are not worn here. The Assamese of Ahom origin wear a `lungi` called a `mekhla` and an upper wrap or shawl (chadar); the Boro (Assam) and Garo (Meghalaya) wear large wraps that cover both legs and upper body that are called `dokhna` and `dakmanda` respectively. The latter is fixed at the waist with a belt. The different tribal communities have different tradition of draping attires, sometimes they resemble with a saree and sometimes a different type of dressing style is seen. Indian-style sarees are often worn by the aristocracies of all these areas as well as by Indian women living in the valleys.

The north east region of India is known for the Moirangfee saree which is woven as a fine cotton fabric. This particular saree of Northeast India is similar to Nepali dhaka cloth and Bengali jamdani saree. This is the earliest textile that the valley tribe first wove and has probably originated in the eastern India. Red borders with either dark blue or white grounds are the traditional colours for these sarees. The textile and dress habits have more in common with those from China, South-East Asia and Tibet, although Bengali muslins had an impact on some upper-class textiles. In the sarees of Northeast India patterning is usually more elaborate. A wider range of traditional supplementary colours are also used with motifs woven throughout the fabric including the borders of the North eastern sarees. Cottons are sometimes dyed in red or black to offer the desired colour to the sarees of this region. In many occasions, wild silk is usually left in its natural colour.

The natural fibres like cotton, muga, tasar and eri silk are indigenous to the north east India. Of the three wild silks, eri silk is too heavy to be made into sarees and is usually woven into chadars. However all four types of fibre are left with their natural colours of off-white and shades of pale brown hence the traditional sarees of Northeast India are not devoid of their natural sheen.

Most weaving of the sarees of Northeast India occurs in villages and towns surrounding Gauhati, with Sualkuchi to the north specializing in silk, and Nuagong, further east, specializing in cotton-weaving. Other smaller centres include Silchar, Karimganj and Uttar Gauhati. The sarees created here follow two distinct styles relating to tribal and mainstream pan-Indian. There is no significant difference in design between sarees woven in cotton, wild silk or even mulberry silk. In general the sarees of Northeast India with tribal designs tend to be abstract and geometric with depictions of natural objects like flowers, leaves and animals in highly stylized forms. The supplementary threads most commonly used in the sarees of Northeast India are red, black, purple, white, yellow, green, and turquoise.

The sarees of north east region have a typical identification as the sarees can be recognized both by their subject matter and by their flowing lines and curves. The sarees of this region are intricately designed with kalga pattern and some expensive silk sarees are also woven keeping in mind the designs of Banaras and Dharmavaram brocades. Yet most are usually still recognizably Assamese from an angularity in many of the motifs, as well as colour schemes. Round-petalled buti and life-like depictions of animals and plants are common in the patterning style of the sarees. For instance, Assam is the only area in South Asia where rhinoceros are woven into its sarees as decorative motifs. The artisans use zari into local textiles and in expensive silk sarees to imitate the mainstream pan-Indian designs.

The north east region is the centre where muga silk, Tussar and other type of silks are cultivated. The weavers and designers of this region create intricate patterns to make the sarees exceptional examples of north east Indian creations. The sarees of north east India are a mixture of hill tribal textiles and fabrics that probably originated in eastern India. Most other ethnic groups who wear sarees tend to use mill-made printed cloth, often in various shades of red. Some women of this region prefer to wear homespun, handwoven fabrics. In recent times, the tribal women have begun to wear Indian sarees draped in the nivi style. As muga silk is popular in Assam, the weavers and the designers of this region dye the cotton sarees with the same colour of the muga silk. The geometric patterns woven into this saree are often associated with the Boro and Garo tribes of western Assam and Meghalaya. The sarees are also hugely preferred and worn by the people of this region.

The patterns and influences of the sarees of north east region are derived from various Tibeto-Burman speaking tribes living in the Brahmaputra valley and surrounding hills. Here, virtually all textile patterning is created through weaving contrasting coloured threads onto a single-coloured ground, usually as supplementary wefts or warps. The designs of the sarees of Northeast India are created keeping in mind the demand of the mainstream market. Bands of geometric, diamond-shaped supplementary-warp patterning are created as this is typical of the Garo. Mainstream Indian designs, in particular those from Bengal and northern India, are also found in Assamese sarees, especially in the modern sarees. The artisans create muga silk saree with large endpiece and narrow borders. Even the artisans have started incorporating zari embroidery and patterns to catch the fancy of the modern and mainstream Indian market. Chequered cotton and wool cloths are found throughout the north-east region and are worn as sarees, lungis, shawls, and other items of everyday clothing. Tripura has the tradition of weaving this particular kind of sarees since the mid-1990s.

The sarees of north east region of India include the sarees that are woven by the tribal women of Tripura. The handloom of Tripura can be classified in two major categories that are Commercial and Non-commercial looms. The weavers of Tripura create items for their regular usage and some are engaged in creating commercial weaving technique. Sarees of low quality material are created along with other items for non commercial purpose. In recent times, the concerned organizations are providing training to the weavers to make them proficient in creating sarees like Tangail, Jamdani, Silk, Tie and Dye and others. Artisans of north east region create sarees like Kota sarees, cotton Jamdani sarees, Buti sarees and have been developing their skills to improve the weaving technique. The tribal communities of Manipuri produce fabrics by loin loom. Including this they create patterns on the created items that are of native culture.

The sarees of north east region amidst their style, design, pattern and motif echoes the tradition and heritage of Northeast India.

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