In a country like India, where wearing saree comes up as a special affair, you need to know a little bit more about fantastic types of Indian sarees.
India has quite a varied culture. The culture and tradition reflect themselves in the attire of the Indians. No matter how much western wear tries to invade the scenario of Indian fashion world, the ethnic Indian Wear is always the winner. Especially it is the six yard dainty drape, the saree, that wins hearts across the globe.The famous Indian Sarees come from the different regions of the Country. Every state has its own variety of silk saree or cotton saree and sometimes even both. Each of these famous sarees are crafted in a special way using different fabrics and embroidery techniques. There are predominantly two types of sarees in India - the silk and cotton sarees. Within these two wide categories there are numerous variations.The Indian silk sarees are known for their lustrous beauty and incomparable variety of designs and colours. These sarees are known to be the traditional bridal wear for most of the Indian brides. No wedding is complete without the luxurious and expensive sarees made of pure silk.
- The Banarasi silk sarees are among the most expensive and popular sarees woven in Banaras/ Varanasi. It is usually made of gold thread and therefore is very expensive. These sarees are popular as bridal wear and includes four varieties mainly: the katan (silk) , the kora (organza with zari), the sattir and the georgette. They are further divided into Jangla, Tanchoi, Vascat, Tissue, cut work & Butidar. The designs on the Banarasi sarees include designs of animals, floral designs, motifs and nature. Weavers require a month to complete a single saree.
Banarasi Silk Saree - The Kanchipuram silk saree is a type of south Indian sarees that is not only popular in India, but also across the world. 'Kanjeevaram' or Kanchipuram, originally from Tamil Nadu, sarees stands out owing to its gold dipped silver thread that is woven on the silk. Known for their durability, the silk base of these sarees is thicker than any other silk saree. Peacock and parrot is a common design motif found in Kanjeevaram sarees. These sarees are woven from pure mulberry silk yarn which is cultivated in South India and the zari from Gujarat. These sarees are distinguished by their wide contrast borders. Temple borders, checks, stripes and floral (buttas) are traditional designs found in the Kanchipuram sarees. However, some richly designed borders can have paintings showing scenes from the historic epics of Mahabharata and Ramayana.
Kanchipuram Silk Saree - Tussar silk saree is valued for its rich texture and natural deep gold colour. Tussar silk sarees are produced in large quantities in India and a majority of them come from West Bengal. These sarees are very soft in texture and also considered to be very auspicious. Tussar silk sarees with their natural motifs and designs are most favoured with designers. These sarees are also available in vivid range of colours and designs. Traditional Bengal tussar sarees come in the natural shades of beige or cream with a coloured border and pallu, and floral and paisley motifs woven across the body. Contemporary designs with striped or geometric patterns are quite popular as well. Tussar silk also forms a great canvas for kantha embroidery, where the plain fabric is colourfully adorned with embroidered patterns to form the borders and pallu of the saree.
Tussar Silk Saree - Muga Silk is a variety of wild silk geographically tagged to the state of Assam in India. The silk is known for its extreme durability and has a natural yellowish - golden tint (muga means yellowish in Assamese) with a shimmering, glossy texture. It was previously reserved for the use of royalty. The traditional use of this silk has been to make attire for women called 'Mehelka-Sadar' which is ain to a saree in Assam. Since people do not wear Mehelka- Sadar in urban areas, a regular 5 yard Muga silk saree is made to appeal to them. While Melehka-Sadar is essentially a bridal wear in two pieces, another version called 'Reeha' is worn during festivals and religious ceremonies.
Muga Silk Saree 
Bandhani Silk Saree - Bandhani is a type of tie-dye textile decorated by plucking cloth with the fingernail into many tiny bindings that form a figurative design. The term bandhani is derived from the Sanskrit word 'banda'- 'to tie'. Today most Bandhani making centres are situated in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Sindh, Punjab and in Tamil Nadu where it is known as 'Sungudi'. Traditionally, the final products can be classified into 'khombhi', 'Gharchola', "Chandrakhani', 'Shikari', "Chowkidaar' and Ámbadaal'. A single Bandhani dot is called as 'Ék Dali' or 'Bundi', four are called 'chaubundi' and seven are called 'Satbundi'. Small dots with darker centres are called as 'Boond' while tear-drop shaped dots are called as 'Kodi'. Patterns or circles appearing in clusters of three are called as 'Trikunti", while groups of four are called as 'Chaubasi'. Elaborate motifs and designs of leaves, flowers, trees, human figures are made by repeating Bandhani dots and patterns. 'Dungar Shahi' (mountain pattern), Laddu Jalebi (Indian Sweetmeat) and Leheriya (waves) are other popular Bandhani patterns.
Leheriya Saree with Gotta Patti work - Bhagalpuri Silk Sarees are known as 'Queen of all fabrics', are known for their unique and striking resilience and superior quality. Varieties like 'Katia', 'Giccha', 'Eri', 'Mulberry' and various varieties of 'Tussar Silk' yarn facilitate in givig this fabric a pastoral look and provide an essence of delicateness to its texture. These varieties are known to give the fabric a rich and a royal outlook and retaining the enchanting designs and motifs imprinted in them.
Bhagalpuri Silk Sarees - Chanderi Sarees are produced from three kinds of fabric i.e. pure silk, chanderi cotton and silk cotton. Traditional coin, Flora art, Peacocks and geometric are woven into different chanderi patterns. The sarees are among the finest sarees in India and are known for their gold and silver brocade or zari, fine silk and opulent embroidery. Said to be founded by Lord Krishna's cousin Shishupal, the weaving culture of Chanderi started during the 2nd and 7th century and today it is amongst the best known handloom clusters in the Country. Some of the various beautifully striking motifs include 'Nalferma', 'Dandidar', 'Chatai', 'Jangle', 'Mehndi wale haath' etc. The Chanderi Fabric is also well known for its transparency and sheer texture. The transparency is a unique feature, which is not commonly or found in any of the textile products all over the country. The transparency in Chanderi Fabric products is the consequence of Single Flature quality of yarn used. Flature yarn is the quality of yarn when the glue of the raw yarn is not taken out. The none - de-gumming of the raw yearn gives shine and transparency to the finished fabric.
Chanderi Silk Saree - Paithani Saree is named the 'Paithan' town in Aurangabad Maharashtra state where they are woven by hand. Made from very fine silk and gold, it is considered as one of the richest sarees in India. Paithani is characterised by borders of a oblique square design and a pallu with a peacock design. Plain as well as spotted designs are available. Among other varieties, single coloured and kaleidoscope- coloured designs are also popular. The kaleidoscopic effect is achieved by using one colour for weaving length-wise and another for weaving width-wise. Due to proximity to the Ajanta caves, the influence of the Buddhist paintings can be seen in the woven Paithani motifs: the kamal or lotus flower on which Buddha sits or stands, The Hans motif, the Ashraffi motif, the Asawalli (flower vines) that became popular during the Peshwa's period, the Bangadi Mor (peacock in bangle), the Tota-Maina, the Humarparinda (peasant bird), the Amar vell and the Narali motif are very common. The designs on the pallu included Muniya (a kind of parrot used in borders and always found in green colour with an occasional red touch at the mouth), the Panja (a geometrical flower-like motif, most often outlined in red), Barwa (12 strands of a ladder, 3 strands on each side), Lather (design is done in the center to strengthen the zari), Muthada (a geometrical design), Asawali (a flower pot with a flowering plant) and most common Mor (a peacock). The dominant traditional colours of vegetable dyes used included Pophali (yellow), red, lavender, purple, neeligunji (sky blue), magenta, motiya (peach pink), brinjal purple, pearl pink, peacock blue/green, yellowish green, kusumbi (violet red), pasila (red and green), gujri (black and white), mirani (black and red).
Paithani Silk Saree - Patola Saree, means the "Queen of silks" is a double ikat woven silk saree from Gujarat. It can take six months to one year to make one saree due to the long process of dying each strand separately before weaving them together. To create a Patola saree, both warp and weft threads are wrapped to resist the dye according to the desired pattern of the final woven fabric. This tying is repeated for each colour that is to be included in the finished fabric. The technique of dyeing the warp and weft before weaving is called double ikat. The bundles of thread are strategically knotted before dyeing. Depending on the pattern of weaving there are two types of patola sarees - Rajkot Patola and Patan Patola. While the Rajkot variety are single ikkat and vertically resist dyed, the Patan variety is double ikkat pattern and horizontally resist dyed. Designs using vegetable dyes play an important part in the creation of a Patan Patola silk saree. One can see visually enchanting traditional designs like geometrical figurines juxtaposed against plants, birds and animals etc. Traditional designs bear names like chowkadi (square), chhabdi (basket), chokta (box), laheriya (strips), narikunjer, navratna, paan (leaf), phulwadi (floral), panchphul (five flowers) and sarvariya; these patterns don most of the creations.
Patola Silk Saree - The origin of Baluchari Sarees is stated to be in a very small village named Baluchar in the bank of river Bhagirathi in Murshidabad district of West Bengal. The word Baluchari itself means sandy river bank. The artistic designs of Baluchari Sarees are mostly depicting mythological stories similar to that commonly found on the temples of Bishnupur & Bankura of West Bengal. Baluchari Sarees are mainly distinguished for their elaborate borders and fabulous pallus. The borders are ornamental and surround Kalka motifs within it. A series of figures is designed in rows and motifs, which are woven diagonally. Mostly the motif designs are in four alternative colours on a shaded background. The most popular colours of Baluchari saree designs include red, green, white, blue and yellow. Initially these motifs were woven on silver jari, which has subsequently been replaced by various shining threads. The theme of Baluchari weaving remains focused to depict mythological stories and folk tales on the pallus of sarees. Some of the designs include tales of Ramayana & Mahabharata. Motifs are interspersed with flowering bunches, animals, architectural scenes, women riding horse with a rose in one hand, pleasure boat, court scenes of Muslim era, women smoking ‘huccah’ etc.
Baluchari Silk Saree - Mysore Silk Sarees are one of the finest form of sarees that come in vibrant colours and give a rich feel and classic look to the saree. The Mysore silk saree are an innate form of the culture and tradition of the people of Karnataka, where it originates from. It is believed to be one of the purest form of silks. The first Mysore silk factory was started by Maharaja of Mysore province in the year 1912 ad effectively got into production in the year 1932. The Maharaja imported nearly 32 looms from Switzerland which were one of its kind in India. The Mysore silk sarees are intricately worked with zari and golden lace at the edge of the saree which gives it a classic and sleek look. The silk sarees are available in different varieties and patterns and the most wanted variety in the market is Mysore Crepe Silk. The most distinctive feature of the Mysore silk sarees is the use of 100% pure silk and pure gold zari, 65% of silver, and 0.65% of original gold. There are more than 115 varieties of sarees available in more than 300 shades.
Mysore Silk Saree - Tanchoi is one of the weaving techniques involving a single or double warp and two to five colors on the weft which are often of the same shade, on Silk fabric. Famed for the intricate and small weaving patterns over the fabric, the commonly used patterns used are those of flowers, small birds in flight, peacocks and parrot motifs. In fact Tanchoi sarees are one of a kind which have spots all over the surface and are woven with a dual color wrap. Another stand-alone feature of the Tanchoi sarees is that the fabric texture background has a satin finish. Some extra threads are added to give the saris an appearance of being embroidered. Banarasi Tanchoi has several different varieties: Satin Tanchoi – As the name suggests, it is based on a Satin fabric base of a single color and the weft threads of one or more colors. The additional weft colors can also be used as a body weft; Satin Jari Tanchoi – This is an extension of Satin Tanchoi wherein the weft is a combination of either one Silk and one Gold thread or two Silk threads and one Gold thread; Atlas or Gilt – The fabric surface is pure satin. In comparison to other fabrics, Atlas or Gilt is heavier and has more shine because of the extra use of zari; Mushabbar – This version stands out with its net woven design to appear as bushes or branches of a tree. The Mushabbar design is often associated with a jungle or nature’s greenery.
Tanchoi Silk Saree - Dharmavaram pattu sarees are textiles woven by hand with mulberry silk and zari. They are made in Dharmavaram of Anantapur of Andhra Pradesh. Paintings on the roof wall of Lepakshi temple and Latha Mandapam depicts the designs of Dharmavaram Sarees. They carry exclusively designed pallus in zari brocade and commonly broad borders having brocades gold patterns or butta designs. The saree is woven in two colours with bright but sublime field and without much contrast. The borders of these sarees are commonly broad having brocade gold patterns. Simpler patterns for everyday use have the specialty of being woven in two colours which give an effect of muted double shades accentated by the solid colour border and pallu. Though the Dharmavaram sarees are some what similar to Kanchipuram sarees of Tamil Nadu, yet the muted colours, the double shades create a total different effect.
Dharmavaram Pattu Silk Saree - There is a distinct style attached to the Narayanpet sarees, the sarees have a checked surface design with embroidery and the border or pallu have have intricate ethnic designs such as a temple. The borders and pallu of the Narayanpet silk saree are given a contrasted look with small zari designs. These sarees with their strong Maharashtrian influence are quite popular in Maharashtra and are worn during auspicious occasions. They are also used as an offering to their holy deity. In Andhra Pradesh also, Narayanpet silk sarees are sought after along with the Pochampallu ikat sarees and the Uppada silk sarees from the East Godavari region. They are characterised by a rich pallu with a unique pattern of alternating red and white bands. The border is usually a flat expanse of deep maroon red or chocolate red thinly separated by white or coloured lines. These sarees are very light in weight and sometimes the borders are also ornamented with small zari designs.
Narayanpet Silk Saree - Uppada Silk Sarees, also known as Uppada Pattu in Telugu, are names after a small beach town of Uppada in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh. These sarees are made from the age old Jamdani method. Uppada sarees are usually made with cotton warp, using only non-mechanical techniques. Uppada silk sarees are defined by the length and breadth count of threads. The artisans also use a lot of zari work in the exquisite designs of Uppada silk sarees. The weaving process takes nearly 10-60 days time for which at least 2-3 weavers have to spend 10 hours of their day. Weavers use pure lace (silver zari often dipped in melted gold) and also finest silk of Bengaluru area. Weaving of saree involves laying out its design, interweaving silk threads, looming etc. The weavers design in such a way that it can be folded and fits in a matchbox. Different designs include geometric, flowers, leaves etc. Speciality of Jamdani saree is that it gets design on both the sides and is much less weight than that of Kanchi and Dharmavaram.
Uppada Pattu Silk Saree - Mundum Neriyathum is the traditional clothing of women in Kerala. It is the oldest remnant of the ancient form of the saree which covered only the lower part of the body. In the mundum neriyathum, the most basic traditional piece is the mundu or lower garment which is the ancient form of the saree denoted in Malayalam as 'Thuni' meaning cloth, while the neriyathu forms the upper garment the mundu. The mundum neryathum consists of to pieces of cloth, and could be worn in either the traditional style with the neriyathu tucked inside the blouse or in the modern style worn over the left shoulder. It is traditionally white or cream in colour with a golder continuous border.
Mundum Neryathum silk saree - Maheshwari Sarees are mostly woven in cotton and silk, originating in Maheshwar city in Madhya Pradesh. These sarees are characterised by a narrow coloured border embellished with zari and small check, narrow stripes or solid colour in the body. The speciality of Maheshwari sarees is its reversible border, also known as 'bugdi' which can be worn on both sides. The use of zari and 'kinari' is also unique to Maheshwari sarees. These sarees are embellished with leaves and flowers on the border, in 'karnphool' pattern. These sarees are known for their unique pallu which are made of five stripes, three coloured and two white alternating, running along its width. Popular designs include the mat pattern, which is also known as chattai pattern, along with Chameli ka phool — all of which may be traced back to the detailing on the walls of Maheshwar Fort. Through its evolution, the eent (brick) pattern and the heera (diamond) patterns have survived the test of time, and still have a strong presence in these sarees.
Maheshwari silk saree - Woven on a pit loom, Bomkai Saree, which is also known as Sonepuri, is an extraordinary fabric that results from the confluence of two extremely popular components of the Orissa textile industry. In its simplest, Bomkai can be explained as an extra weft technique on a pit loom.It is an outcome of Ikat and embroidery interwoven into each other. The borders are often in contrasting colours and the pallu marked by intricate thread work. The motifs on the Bomkai are inspired from nature and tribal art, giving the saree a fascinating look that makes it perfect for aristocracy. Designs composed in the most outlandish of concepts string together motifs from offerings of the environment including karela (bitter gourd), the atasi flower, the kanthi phul (small flower), macchi (fly), rui macchi (carp-fish), koincha (tortoise), padma (lotus), mayura (peacock), and charai (bird). A significant part of the finishing in Bomkai sarees can be attributed to the borders or pallavs. Some of the sarees feature border motifs that are inspired by tribal art. A few examples include, Mitkta Panjia, Kumbha, Rudraksha and Floral. Colours on the other hand, are inspired by the effect of contrast. So with yellow you might see a nice bright green, and with an orange saree, an equally absorbing yet mesmerising black border. Sometimes, the pallu might be double shaded, giving out a reflection of royal lustre. Lattice work, which creates small diamond like shapes, can also be commonly found on the border of a Bomkai saree.
Bomkai silk saree - Konrad Saree is one of South India’s most well-known sarees. This type of saree originated from Tamil Nadu and has earned fame due to the traditional affluence and the usage of excellent fabrics. The Konrad also known as "Temple Saree" and "Mubbhagam Saree", a hand woven Konrad Saree is expensive. These sarees were originally woven for temple deities. The main attraction of Konrad Sarees is their border which is exclusively designed wide and with exclusive designs of motifs of natural elements and animals with a royal touch. These motifs need not be mythological in nature, but rather, seem to pay homage to natural flora and fauna such as floral motifs including flowers, vines, and creepers, and also animals and birds such as peacocks, elephants, parrots, double headed eagles, and others. Another distinguishing feature which sets a traditional Konrad saree apart from other South Indian sarees, is the fact that it has a distinctive appearance and feel to it, which does not look or feel like silk, although it is very much a silk saree. These sarees are widely famous for their extensive use in marriages and other occasions.
Konrad Silk Saree - Khandua saree is a traditional 'bandha' or ikat saree produced from Orissa, worn by women during wedding and a special type of which is worn by Jagannath. The saree contains texts of Gita Govinda on them. Kenduli Khandua, a special form of Khandua of 12ft and 2 kani (each kani measures the length of a hand) is offered to Jahannath to wear as khandua with stanzas and illustration from Gita Govinda. The word 'Khandua' in Odia translates to the cloth worn in the lower half of the body. Traditionally Kentuli Khandua is offered to Jagannath as lower cloth. Due to the place of origin in Cuttack and Maniabandha, the other two names 'Kataki' and 'Maniabandhi' are originated. khandua is traditionally red or orange in colour. The red colour is prepared naturally from the 'shorea robusta'(sal tree). The design motif has an auspicious elephant that represents Buddha surrunded by trailing vine with peacocks in it, a large many petaled flower, a unique Orissan animal called 'Nabagunjara', a deula kumbha. The elephant in khanuda ikat from Nuapatana usually varies from elephant motives in ikat from Sambalpuri sarees as well as ikat from other parts of Orissa. Khandua has plain borders in contrast to borders with motifs in case of the other ikat of Orissa.
Khandua Silk Saree
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