Bengali Handlooms
The sultry hot climate of the Ganges river delta is most comfortable in soft airy cottons, so the region's textile reputation is founded on fabric with a lightweight and fine weave. Watching the graceful Bengali ladies in their sheer muslins is so wonderful. They have a reputation all over India for being graceful and cultured and I certainly have to agree. It's absolutely amazing to note how neat these women can appear, even after wearing a cotton sari around all day!
Some weaves have highly evocative names! Jewels ranging from the quintessential shamam (evening dew) to the delicate baft-hana (woven air) to the remarkable abhiravan (that which cannot be distinguished from running water) and the delicate chandra (moon). The shabnam was so fine that if spread on grass, it would not be visible to the untrained eye. In modern times Bengali handloom tradition flourishes as
jamdani, with beautiful extra-weft decorations on a fine airy weave field.
Dhakka muslins are uncannily sheer, Tangail or Jandani sarees have supplementary threadwork, added with needles on the loom. Tant or "handloom" styles have wide intricate figurative borders in multicolored silk threadwork and are a very gauzey guage cotton field. They are usually worn starched to keep the pleats in order for a day of wearing in a humid climate.
The most important weaving centers in W. Bengal are in Samudragarh Tulia, Mugberia, Muradili and Dhatrigram. The pattern of the design drawn on paper, is pinned beneath the warp threads and, as the weaving progressess, the designs are worked in like embroidery. with bamboo needles round. When the pattern is continuous and regular, as in the usual sari border, a master weaver generally dispenses with the aid of paper patterns. Very often, two persons work together on a jamdani sari. In the past, these saris were washed using a very special technique known as kanta dholai, in which a forked instrument is used to maintain the thread spacing uniformity of these intricately patterned saris.
Traditionally, jamdanis were woven in natural cotton colors with one or two supplementary thread colors. This traditional aesthetic continues in the enduring preference for a more understated color pallet for sarees. A very classy look pervades! Men too wear very crisp and billowy dhoties under thigh length kurtas in white.
The mango motif, a very popular design in jamdani saris is said to guard the wearer against the 'evil eye' and other misfortunes. The mango also signifies fertility, growth and marital bliss.
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