Kanjeevaram

The tale of the Kanjeevaram silk sari traces back to Hindu folklore. Mythology has it that the Kanchi silk weavers are offsprings of Sage Markanda, who was known to be the master weaver for the celestial beings themselves.

Established in the small city of Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu, the celebrated Kanjeevaram sari interlace dates back to around 400 years. It was in the sovereignty of King Krishnadevaraya that the craft really took off when two chief weaving communities of Andhra Pradesh - the Devangas andSaligars - drifted to the settlement of Kanchipuram.

Kanjeevaram silk saris are fashioned from unadulterated mulberry silk. “While the silk comes from South India, the wholesome gold, and silver zari comes from Gujarat. The silk yarn that is used to make the sari is drenched in rice water, and dried in the sun before amplifying its width, and firmness .'' The silk strand is then intertwined with a thin silver cable, and woven through, after which a golden strand is used to complete the process. The warp casing used to weave this material has around 60 holes, in which there are 240 strands in the warp, and around 250 to 3000 threads in the weft, giving it a robust feel.