Saree worn by Nirmala Sitharaman on Budget day was hand-woven in Karnataka

HUBBALLI: Karnataka can take pride in the General Budget presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday for at least two reasons. The minister is a Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka and the saree she chose to wear while presenting the Budget was made in the state.

The handwoven Ilkal silk saree, which is 5.5 metres long and weighs about 900 gm, was made by experts using kasuti (embroidery) art in Dharwad. Aarati Hiremath, founder of Aarati Crafts in Dharwad, said the special saree was woven in 10 days. The order was placed by the local office of the ministry of textiles. The saree carries designs of chariots, gopuras, peacocks and lotus.

Aarati said she was only told that the saree is required for the office of the finance minister. “I was thinking it could be for gifting it to someone. But ever since we saw Nirmalaji in that saree while presenting the Budget, my phone has not stopped ringing. The ministry had placed the order for the saree beforehand, giving us enough time to work on it. The bill too was cleared by the ministry before the product was ready,” she said.

Rukaiya Bandunavar, the artist who worked on the saree, says it’s a huge honour for her and many co-artisans. “We carefully weaved the designs on the saree. It takes time to craft each design and complete the saree,” she explained.

“This gesture of the minister will surely encourage rural woman workers,” said Aarati.