Brocades of Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh

Earlier known as kasi, Varanasi is a place known asplace are used in the furnishings and sometimes for
one of the most important Hindu pilgrimage. It is saidblouse.
that if a person dies on this land then he/she is freedThe brocades of Varanasi were woven at homes
from the cycle of rebirths. This is one of the mostearlier but now the work is done on large scale in
crowded places in India, with hundreds of small streetskarkhanas(factories). It is a construction of several
full of temples and dharamshalas.rooms in a row and the workers are provided peace
The important thing for which it is famous world widefor complete concentration. The same style is adopted
is the Brocades. The Brocades of Varanasi were firstby the designers who want particular motifs and
woven only in the small city known as Alaipura, butpattern for designer or for the blouse. Generally, they
now it is woven all over Varanasi. The brocades ofbuy the fabric from the place and get the desired
Varanasi, have made a remarkable position in thework on, by the artists.
designer sarees as well. The fabrics that are wovenThe zari thread that is used in the weaving is known
with warps and wefts threads of varied colors, andas kalabattun. One single zari thread is made with
also of varied materials are called the brocades. Thefinely drawn gold, silver and base metal thread, that is
brocades of Varanasi are woven in threads of silk.wound together rounded like a silk thread.
The other region known for the brocades is theOne of the best brocades of Varanasi that is known
Madanpura, which is popular as the most traditionalall over the world is the Kimkhab. It is woven with
style and designed, used on the fabric. The fabric ismukta, a durable silk thread. It is coarse and thick and
woven in a light and transparent fabric. The bestheavy, therefore it can hold the gold and the silk
examples that are also widely used in the designerthreads for weaving easily. It became popular because
sarees are the jamdani, organza and tissue sarees.of the gold used in it and this also led to the higher
The motifs and the designs that are common and stillprice of the saree. The designer sarees are far too
have succeeded to maintain their position in terms ofexpensive. A lot of people just buy the fabric and use
popularity are the kairi (mango), and the moon shape init for making stylish blouse only. The common motif
the body of the saree. The fabric is woven in such aused in this was the ashrafi. Other patterns were jal,
style in the transparent material that it gives anbuta and trellis. The designers have succeeded well in
impression of a double sided pattern. The weavers ofen-cashing the popular and expensive brocades of
Alaipura have easily adopted the new techniques soVaranasi. You can find some wonderful designs in the
the work is not so fine. Hence, the brocades of thiswebsites of online sarees.