Kausheyam from Hyderabad comes to town, with an eclectic range of tussars

With weavers based across the country, Kausheyam from Hyderabad brings an eclectic range of handloom drapes for the annual Tussar Festival at the Silkworm Boutique in Chennai
Saris from Kausheyam
Saris from Kausheyam

With lush palm fronds waving at us from the large glass windows on one side, Silkworm Boutique has relocated to a new space in Gems Court down Khader Nawaz Khan Road, and is bustling with activity as their annual Tussar Festival is back after a two year break. This time, showcasing exquisite handwoven weaves by Kausheyam, we soon find out that the Hyderabad-based brand, a manufacturer of handloom silks, was started in 1988 and has its own clusters ofweavers across the country. “We are bringing tussars made at our Chhattisgarh unit for the festival in Chennai,” says Priyamvad Kabra, head of operations of the brand, who adds that they have looms in Maheshwar, Bengal, Orissa and Benares, among other places.

Drape drama

Showcasing a repertoire of saris, dupattas and fabrics in Chennai for the first time, Priyamvad admits that the tussar material is close to his heart. “In fact Kausheyam means tussar silk in Sanskrit and our brand had started with tussars in the beginning.” Priyamvad tells us to look out for the ‘value-added’ saris — gorgeous tussars that have ajrakh, bandhini or kalamkari, adding some craft-rich oomph to the drapes. What got us excited is that one can place an order for a bespoke sari where you can pick the weave, the shade, the design and any other value-added craftwork to your dream drape!

Weave wonder

One can look forward to interesting blends in the weave like tussar-matka, tussar-khadi and tussar-cotton, where the latter promises an impressive thread count andstands apart from other silk-cotton variants. We learn that it is basically silk blended with very fine gassed mercerised cotton. “We use a very fine quality that is 2/140 quality cotton. We have developed fabrics, dupattas and saris of this material (Sico), and we have changed the market's mindset about the fabric. There has been a major paradigm shift in the seasonality of the fabric that was always conceived to be a summer fabric, but is now in demand all year long, owing to its light weight, and the fall that the fabric offers.”

Colour me pastel

Priyamvad further adds that we can also expect a collection of Maheshwari dupattas (`900 onward) that are his personal favourites. “These dupattas have a more contemporary palette — you will find cheerful summery pastel shades and the drape is light and easy to wear with any ensemble. Another modern series is our range of dyed dupattas and saris that are very versatile.” Meanwhile, the tussar collection leans towards evening wear with warm shades of deep greens and wine along with earthy hues.

Tussars from INR 7,000 (including bespoke options). November 19 - 21. At Silkworm Boutique.

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