CHENNAI: Intricate details, interwoven copper, gold, or silver zaris, a unique weaving technique, and hours and days of labour that goes behind a Kancheepuram silk sari — these drapes of beauty are a statement in themselves. They continue to be part of bridal trousseaus even as fashion evolves. As years passed, the art of weaving the saris thrived, but it also saw its doom.
There was a time when these saris were thrown away or burnt to extract the metals if torn, frayed, or faded. With it, we started losing the techniques and knowledge behind the making of the silk saris. Realising that at this rate, the art and the handloom will start losing their existence, Santosh Parekh, a textile expert and founder of Tulsi Weaves, started collecting saris from his family and friends, twenty years back, to preserve these vanishing designs, weaving methodology, motifs, and handloom itself. “The thought was to document the saris and in this process, I realised that I have hit gold,” says Santosh who has a collection of almost 2,000 saris that tell a story.
Displaying a hundred at the ongoing exhibition at the Tulsi Weaves showroom in Eldams Road, Teynampet, Santosh shares tales of saris dating back 40 to 100 years. A few designs used in the making of the sari were the iruthalai pakshi (two-headed bird), thazhampoo temple — a motif created by triangles resembling a temple gopuram — and korvai technique — where the sari and the border are woven separately and then woven together to make it one complete sari.
“Nobody has this wide collection of saris, especially those that date back to 100 years,” he adds. Mentioning the lack of accessibility to such old saris now, Santosh plans to recreate those saris upon request. There is a team of designers who work for the same.
To give visitors a glimpse into his novel idea, a recreated sari was also put on display and had used similar elements. The original saris carried five to six grams of gold, and the recreated ones had two to three grams because of the quality of purity. The team has tried to restore more than 90 per cent of the originality.
One of the visitors to the exhibition, Kalyani Pramod, a textile designer and a fibre artist, says, “This collection is very rare, and is something that will help preserve the Indian Handloom sector.” Talking about the importance of preserving handlooms, she suggests that such collections and exhibitions should be carried on for the art form of every region.
A number of visitors including experts, fashion enthusiasts, sari lovers, and art students, were inspired by the collection and promised to contribute to this drive. To take this initiative across the country, Santosh also plans to conduct similar exhibitions in other cities starting from Delhi and Mumbai. Tulsi Weaves, a brand specialising in Kancheepuram silk saris, is set to open its doors for customers on October 18.
The ongoing exhibition begins every day at 10 AM. Entry free.