Balarampuram Sarees
Kerala's best kept secret
It took saying it about twenty times in a row before I could get it right, but this long long name is a small village on the outskirts of Trivandrum. As the rickshaw brought us deeper and deeper into what looked like a residential area you could see into the houses where cabinets of neatly stacked sarees and dhotis stood, and hear the clack clack of handlooms and the humming of bobbin winders.
Shop for Balarampuram sarees.
 Meticulously ordered goods in Somasundaram's weaving center store, which had a hushed and quiet atmosphere, almost like a temple.
These sarees are woven of a very special soft and very durable cotton, with a finish that's only able to be created here in this climate. If you go a bit north to Madras where the weather is hotter and drier you won't get such smooth finishing on the yarn. This is what makes Balarampuram sarees so wonderfully soft and durable.
The style of these saris is very simple and classic. Mostly they are woven in undyed natural cotton, with very simple borders and sometimes geometrical bhutties woven in the field to match the border color. The special finish and strength of the yarn is important for blending with the heavy zari work the the village is famous for. Which you can see in the bottom of this photo.
 A woman weaving dhoties in a pit loom. She operates the shuttle by a spring action mechanism, and the heddles are lifted by foot pedals. She sits in pit dug into the earth, and the warp threads stretch out to anchors which suspend it just above the earth floor.
Sarees with zari borders being woven in Somasundaram's weaving center. It takes about 3 days to weave one sari. Here in these looms the weavers pass the shuttle through by hand. The zari yarn itself is the biggest cost factor in the price of these pieces.
Real zari thread is made by coiling gold plated silver wire around a cotton core. High quality zari thread keeps its golden finish for years, whereas cheaper quality or artificial zari will turn black after a few washings. Each spool of zari thread costs about $7 - some of the fancy sarees they weave here go for almost a thousand dollars wholesale! The fancy Balarampuram sarees are so heavy with zari work, you wonder how the bride could stand up for hours wearing it!
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