If you are born an Indian and live in India, what is it that you like about the country? The people? The food? The culture and craft? The textiles? Maybe “yes” is the answer to all these questions, if you belong to Gen Y or Gen Z, or the millennials. You are the future of India, the youngsters who have taken the baton from us. Are you aware of our heritage and traditional handlooms?
I am sure that this generation is well informed, and know what kanchipuram silks are like. Mothers wear them; grandmothers used to wear them, but do you wear them? During the course of my research, I find that young women in their 20s or 30s are not drawn to saris the way we were. We were glad to inherit our mother’s traditional kanchipuram sari, which she wore at her wedding.
I would like to introduce you to the historicity, the legends that surround this exotic fabric. Kanchipuram silk saris were woven in the villages surrounding the Silk City some 300-400 years ago. Kanchipuram is also called the Temple City. The motifs were inspired by temple sculptures and the silk woven in mulberry silk taken from the silk worm which fed on mulberry leaves.
Lord Vishnu was said to wear silk, so silk looms flourished around Vishnu temples. Lord Shiva, the ascetic, wore only cotton, so cotton looms mushroomed around Shiva temples. The saris produced from these looms were bought by the respective temples to adorn the idols, and they were woven with fervour and bhakthi and only the best was reserved for the Gods. Religion and textiles are interminably melded in the Hindu tradition.
Legend has it that Sage Markandeya was the weaver of the Gods, and that he drew a lotus fibre from Lord Vishnu’s navel to create the first fabric.
A trip to Kanchipuram is a must before any wedding as there is a firm but misplaced belief that a sari bought from Kanchipuram is way cheaper and the best selections can be found there.
I can understand that wearing any sari is a cumbersome process, and more challenging, trying to drape a heavy silk along with the matching jewellery and keeping it on for several hours at a stretch! But a serious attempt can be made to include at least one kanchipuram sari in your wardrobe.
And lucky for all the discerning young people, there are delightful variations! Now you get soft silk saris easier to wear, in designs both contemporary and traditional. There are different ways to drape a sari. You can wear a sari over pants or wear it with pleats in front, which gets tucked in at the back affording you easy movement.
There is a death knell sounding for handlooms when we women do not wear them. The experts in weaving, namely the artisans are abandoning their vocation and the craft is going into oblivion.
We want to preserve our traditions, skills, so my message to young women is to keep a little bit of heritage in your wardrobe and be proud of the fact that you are helping to preserve it in your own way.
— Sabita Radhakrishna, Textile Scholar