UDUPI: Sarees are as precious as gold to Indian women. Colourful sarees are worn not just for traditional occasions, but also significant events. In most cases, they are the most-valued possessions.
Udupi sarees stand out amid a heap of varieties as they are woven in handlooms. They are not just gorgeous textiles, but also tell a story about the region’s history and culture.
Udupi sarees started being woven around 150 years ago from the Malabar Frame Looms, introduced by the Basel Mission of Germany. They are woven using fine 40, 60 and 80-count single-ply combed cotton yarns, making them durable.
But with the advent of power looms in the 1980s, the number of weavers declined. Their plight was compounded by a lack of support from people and customers moving to other kinds of sarees, damaging the fame and market prospects of the sarees.
Now, sarees are again back in fashion, with various NGOs working to revive the artform in Udupi and Dakshina Kannada districts, rekindling the hopes of Udupi weavers that the demand for their products would surge.
The NGOs believe that if the youth are trained in using handlooms, Udupi sarees can be resurrected. The Udupi District Primary Weavers’ Services Cooperative Societies and Padmashali Nekara Prathistana, Udupi, with the help from the National Rural Livelihood Mission, started training a batch of 25 members in March this year at the district resource centre in Rajathadri, Manipal.
With three months of training to go, the trainees are confident they will take up the job. The Prathistana has sourced six handlooms from in and around Udupi for training. Jayalakshmi, from Udupi, a trainee, told The New Sunday Express that she had no idea how to operate a handloom, but after undergoing training, she has learnt it to an extent. “I will operate handlooms as my livelihood,” she added.
Manjunath, a weaver from Brahmavara, said his daughter and daughter-in-law are undergoing training. “I have been operating handlooms for over 40 years, and weave Udupi sarees. I am happy that two members of my family are taking the legacy forward,” he said.
Most trainees come from families who have no experience in operating a handloom, but they are confident that they will be able to learn the skills. The trainees also receive a stipend of Rs 10,000 per month and Rs 2,000 as bus fare, provided by the Padmashali Nekara Prathistana.
Prathistana president Rathnakar Indrali said three more batches, with 25 members each, will be trained by the year-end, which will take the total number of trained weavers to 100. “There were about 1,500 handloom weavers in Udupi district 20 years ago. Low income, lack of value addition and support for their products, and the next generation choosing a different profession have led to their numbers plummeting. So, we decided to organise training programmes to revive the tradition,” he said.
Formed in 2018, the Kadike Trust, Karkala was at the vanguard of reviving Udupi sarees. First, the sarees began to be sold with an attractive logo, consisting of the name and picture of the weaver.
The initiative helped the sarees gain back some market space. Trust president Mamatha Rai said they organises several awareness and training programmes.
The Talipady Primary Weavers Service Cooperative Society Ltd, Kinnigoli, became the first authorised user of the GI tag for Udupi sarees in 2020. Four more societies -- Padupanambur Primary Weavers Service Cooperative Society Ltd, Haleyangady; Udupi Primary Weavers Service Cooperative Society Ltd, Udupi; Shivalli Primary Weavers Service Cooperative Society Ltd, Adi-Udupi, and Brahmavara Primary Weavers Service Cooperative Society Ltd, Brahmavara -- obtained the GI authorisation certificates last year.
The trust made enormous efforts to ensure that the GI tag authorisation is obtained by these societies.
It was important to give the weavers better remuneration and recognition. The trust has honoured weavers on various occasions, and also conducts training programmes for budding weavers, with financial assistance from the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development. The result is evident. Many young weavers are entering the profession for the first time in two decades, she said.
Udupi sarees have a history of over 150 years, which was lost to the advent of power looms in the 1980s
Kadike Trust rescued the tradition from extinction. A survey by the trust in 2017 revealed only 42 weavers were making Udupi sarees in Udupi and Dakshina Kannada district
Young weavers are now showing interest to enter the profession