Weavers in Anakaputhur near Chennai create cloth from banana trees
How could Sita ask Ravana, who had kidnapped her, for a change of clothes? So she asked Hanuman, who immediately presented her with a sari made from banana fibre,” says C Sekar, a third-generation weaver in Anakaputhur. “I read this in a weekly newspaper and from that stemmed the idea of creating banana fibre saris,” says the president of the Anakaputhur Weavers’ Association, who has pinned this small town on the international map with his ecologically conscious fabric.
Anakaputhur, a Chennai suburb in Kancheepuram district, was once a thriving handloom region and created the famous ‘Madras handkerchiefs’. During British rule when these handkerchiefs were banned, the weavers resorted to creating cotton and silk saris. “I grew up in this small town watching my grandfather sit in the weaving pit in the early hours and the only sound you could hear across the town was the clacking of the weaving instruments,” says 50-year-old Sekar. “Today, the town has about 300 looms and 50 weavers. I hope to bring it back on the map through these eco-friendly fabric and handicrafts.”
Banana stalk contains long and strong fibres; the outer layer is coarse and the inner layers are fine. After the banana harvest, stalks can be stripped of their fibres using a roller—which is usually done to create sheets of paper—or by using a serrated knife to get the thin fibre for weaving. “Initially, I had no idea about how to get fibre from the stalk. During a wedding in the village, I glided my hand over the tree tied at the entrance of the wedding home and my nails cut through it. That was the first time I saw the fibre and evinced a possibility of turning it into a fabric,” he says.
Bananas are harvested at least three to four times a year, and after being cut down, the stalks are left to rot. India being one of the top producers of bananas in the world, Sekar believes that awareness on the benefits of this tropical fruit needs to be created. “It has medicinal properties,” says Sekar. When the fibre is worn, the skin absorbs the nutrients.
A sari takes five to 10 days to weave and natural dyes work well on banana fibre. “You can play with colours. A sari would cost anywhere from Rs 2,500 and can go up depending on requirements,” he says. Saris that are woven using only banana fibre are more expensive. “Some saris are mixed with cotton and silk for durability, and these can be woven quicker,” he explains, and adds that they do not shrink and the colour does not fade. With water resistance and resilience, banana fibre is an inexpensive fabric that can be woven into anything—from a six-yard sari to a ceiling high tapestry.
Sekar explains that countries such as Japan and the Philippines have been using banana waste and have developed cost-effective tools and techniques to manufacture the cloth. “I would like to send a few weavers from Anakaputhur to the Philippines to learn more about creating this fabric,” he says, and believes that if the government supports the weavers, things will change for the better. “China also creates natural fibre, but you need to check before purchasing. Some of them mix chemicals, so it’s technically not natural,” he says.
For the National Handloom Day on August 7, Anakaputhur weavers wove a shawl using natural fibres for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “We used 23 natural fibres to create it. We are also working on aloe vera and pineapple stalks to create fabric,” says Sekar.