A DIVINE TEXTILE: KANJEEVARAM

IS IT KANJIVARAM SILK OR KANCHIPURAM SILK ......?

Kanjeevaram is fundamentally a silk saree, which borrows its name from where it originated, Kanchi (Kanchipuram), a South Indian village, in Tamil Nadu. Kanchipuram sarees are also called as Kanjivaramand Kanchi Sarees. The saree goes with many names Kanchi Silk, Kanchipuram Silk, Kanchi Pattu in its regional context.

Kanchipuram also known as temple city for its ornate heritage and vast weaving culture produces luxuriant saris - Kanjeevaram, which is called as "Queen of all Sarees" in India and all over the world. The tradition of silk weaving patterns and designs were inspired by number of finely crafted south Indian temples among them one being the famous- Kamakshi. Kanchipuram is rightly called as 'SILK PARADISE OF SOUTH INDIA'.

 TALES FROM PAST.........

The reputation of Kanchipuram as a silk weaving center dates back to few centuries. According to historical records it was during the dominion of Krishna Deva Raya that silk weaving found its trademark.

Craftsmen living in Kanchi city are weaving communities' descendants of sage Markanda, the master weaver for gods- Devanga and Saligar migrated from Andhra Pradesh, continued their hereditary profession have brought colossal reputation to intricate weaving in Kanjeevaram saris.

 GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION -GI STATUS......!

India is an encyclopedia for exclusive traditional textiles amongst which Kanjeevaram silk continues to holds pride in our country. The Silk Board of India awarded "Silk Mark" for pure Kanjeevaram sarees and this label authentifies the surety of silk.

Kanjeevaram silk sarees received Geographical Indication -GI tags from the Government of India since the year 2005-2006, which gives them distinctive identification and recognition all over the world. Conferring with GI Tag, the trademark should maintain standard weight, quality and Jari mark as mentioned in the norms of the act and thus facilitating build brand name and global significance for these products.

 CREATION OF KANJEEVARAM SARI......!!!

The process of weaving a Kanjeevaram saree is tedious but has an impeccable stamp of splendor and durability.

Kanjeevaram saris are woven from extremely fine and durable mulberry silk. Karnataka provides typical lustrous and durable mulberry silk threads for the making of Kanjeevaram sari. The weaving threads are made by twisting three single threads together and dipping them in rice water later dried in the sun therefore, enhancing strength and guarantee of 30-40 years life.

Metallic look and brightness to saree border and pallu is accomplished by using a gold coated silver thread - Jari or Zari which is basically sourced from Gujrat. The Zari consists of 57% of silver and 0.6% of gold.

A Kanjeevaram saree is distinguished in three portions: body portion, border portion, and pallu portion.

The length of raw silk is first divided in to three segments to make three saris at a time and coloured separately as per the requirement where the border and pallu are dyed in single color but the body of the sari in contrast color.

Weaving is done on fly shuttle pit looms, jacquard looms and in recent days power looms are used for better productivity. These sarees were woven in 9 yards, but today 6 yards saree is the trend.

 INDIVIDUALITY OF KANJIVARAM.................!!!

Distinguishing Kanjeevaram sari from other silk sari is by identifying "korvai". It is nothing but the body and pallu are woven separately and then interlinked together in such manner it cannot be identified from the front view of the sari.

Contrast Jari border is a distinctive feature of this saree, a silk thread which is twisted with the silver thread over it and dipped into pure gold to make Jari border

The standard silk saree is 45 inches whereas the width of typical Kanjeevaram saree is much broader by 3 inches.

 EXCLUSIVITY OF KANCHIPURAM SAREES.......!

Silk known as queen of textiles has very good dye affinity towards any number of vibrant colors from tints to shades, this inherent property enhances the rich ardour of the fabric. 

The Kanjeevaram saris are fashioned in bright scarlet, brilliant red, saffron-orange, emerald, henna green, maroon, black, peacock blue, turquoise and ochre with bright divergent borders.

 Even the color combinations are vivacious. A mango yellow body is set off by deep maroon border and parrot green body complimented by a bright pink border add luxury to the sari. 

In recent trends, silver is also used in addition to gold. The tissue saris are made by using only golden and silver metal threads by the weavers.

The motifs used in this saris' pallu are often temples, palaces and paintings. The traditional design found in the body of sari is pyramidal temple borders, checks, stripes and floral buttas.

 Emblematic motifs such as fresh mango, sweet grapes, flowers, lotus, creeper, the sun, the moon, chariots, swans, elegant peacocks, parrots, elephant, lions and depiction of stories from mythological epics of Ramayana and Mahabharata are very common in Kanjeevaram saris.

 MARKETS........

Kanjeevaram sarees were marketed only through co-operative societies in olden days. Slowly the trend changed and weavers have been selling their products directly to wholesalers and retailers which brought them reasonable profits.

In recent days the new trends in marketing these silk sarees is online marketing, social media marketing etc. have been implemented by the large scale silk saree showrooms. It's price range starts from Rs. 7000 - Rs.2,00,000.

 Silk showrooms are also providing customization of these sarees, by having their own artists, who hand weave the saree according to customer choice. Depending on intricate designs it takes about 15-20 days duration to complete one single saree.

BOLLYWOOD TO WORLD FASHION RAMP........

Indian Bollywood divas have always been enchanted by the magic of unmatched grace and allure of Kanjivaram. 

Yesteryears beauties from Rekha - who has been carrying glistening Kanjivaram saris like a brand ambassador of Kancheepuram to modern day divas like Deepika Padukone, Vidya Balan and Tamannah Bhatiaand also a plenty of Indian designers - Kanjeevaram sarees have charmed one and all. Kanjeevaram seem to be the saree of choice for extremely important occasions - for most Bollywood actresses.

Kancheepuram sarees have crossed the Indian boundaries and have inspired the international run ways. Some of the acclaimed designers like Chanel, Alexander Mc Queen and Louis Vuitton took inspiration from the brocades and silks. Alexander Mc Queen's, 2008 collection was based upon on the theme of 'British Royalty Meeting Indian Reality'. It was noticed as sovereign master piece in the show.

CONCLUSION

Every sari loving woman's eternal favorite is Kanjeevaram Sari. These stunningly gorgeous hand-woven sarees, crafted with singular dedication, are one of the finest silk fabrics - not only in India, but also across world. 

Kanjeevaram are known for the intricate inter-play of silk and Zari yarn are designed in rare color combinations thus becoming an object of luxury. It is an exclusive sari famous for its richness and traditional look. Its superior manufacturing quality and glow makes them expensive. 

Kanjeevaram sari represents the spirit of womankind and they speak of beauty, grace and dignity. To present the traditional Indian heritage Kanjeevaram sarees has been brought under Geographical Indication act. After implementation of (GI) to Kanchipuram sarees sales has been increased all over the world.