At the Silk and Cotton exhibition, at the Marine Drive, Kochi, there is a wide variety of saris and dress material.
So, there are Kupwara silks, Shahi silks, Pashmina and garden designs from Kashmir, as well as cotton Khadi saris from Andhra Pradesh, Udupa from Karnataka, Tanchoi, Banarasi Jamdani, Jamavar, and Lakhnavi from Uttar Pradesh, along with other traditional styles.
Shahid and his brother from Kashmir has two stalls for saris. “We have all the traditional sarees from Kashmir,” he says. The highlight at his stall is saris in original mulberry silk and chiffon. “There is also a demand for printed Kashmiri saris,” he says.
Another stall from Gujarat has a collection of gagra choli, kurta pyjamas and children’s wear, with traditional hand embroidery and stone works. Children’s dresses are available from ` 300 to 1200.
The Jharkhand stall features an extensive range of duppattas and salwar materials, both printed as well as hand-embroidery works. The prices of printed duppattas in Khadi cotton starts from `300.
The Rajasthan stall has a wide range of door and window curtains of various sizes, bed sheets, sofa and cushion covers, all made in handloom materials.
The show also includes a range of brass sculptures, dry flowers, handicrafts, home-made sweets, leather and ceramic items and an extensive collection of bangles, chains and hand bags and shopping bags for women.
More than 100 weavers and artisans from around the country are participating in the exhibition which features traditional as well as contemporary styles in handloom.
Organsied by the Agra-based Poorvi Arts and Crafts organisation, the exhibition will conclude on November 29.