Chanderi, the historic town of warp and weft!

During my heritage tour to Madhya Pradesh last month, I visited the weaver cluster of Chanderi; a small town near the banks of the Betwa river in Ashok Nagar district, and my dream of meeting weavers of saree finally came true! There is something alluring about witnessing a weaver immersed at the loom, transforming cotton/silk pods/threads into one of the most celebrated traditional garments; a handwoven saree! Visiting the Chanderi weaver cluster was an eye-opener for a passionate saree lover and handwoven saree collector like me.

The echoes of sound made by looms from every house of the "bunkar moholla" (weavers' colony) makes one realize that Chanderi is a town of weavers and livelihood of majority of the population is dependent on the centuries-old traditional business of textile weaving. The artisans of Chanderi weaving are predominantly Muslims from Julaha community, Kohlis and a few are from other backward class communities. There are groups within the various weaver clusters of Chanderi that continue to preserve exclusive traditional knowledge of art of weaving passed down upon them through generations. These weavers have great lineage of craft, skill, creativity and experience which is unique and difficult to recreate in power loom versions of Chanderi. 

A Weaver of Chanderi working on his pit loom 

We live in times when the markets are flooded with cheap power loom/machine-made reproductions of almost all the traditional handwoven sarees and textiles, a hazard that has put the survival of traditional hand loom industry on the brink. 

That's me flaunting my Chanderi saree 

Traditionally, Chanderi cloth was woven using hand-spun cotton thread that was brought from other parts of the country. The practice of using hand-spun cotton thread was discontinued when mill spun threads became commercially more viable. The mill spun silk threads were used to keep the sheen of the sarees, its inherent characteristic intact. It is a visual delight to watch a weaver create "butti/butta" manually inserting the motif in the body of the saree, using extra yarn, that reminds one of embroidery.   
  

Chanderi as a town has played a pivotal role in history of Indian handwoven textiles since centuries. Its geographical advantage of being located between the trade route that connected the town to ports of Western India from Gujarat, Mewar, Malwa, central India and many regions from Deccan, opened up great opportunities for the textile weavers to thrive. Chanderi came under rule of various dynasties like Bundela Rajputs, Malwa Sultan, Mughals and Marathas who patronized hand woven textiles of the region. Chanderi thus started being considered an important economic zone flourishing with business, a conglomeration of weaver communities adapting with time, producing one of the finest handwoven textiles of India known world over for its super fine, soft, sheer fabric with gold and silver threads, the world-famous "Chanderi saree". 

History of Chanderi weaving:

Madhya Pradesh was one of the most significant places for hand woven textiles from 7th century and 2nd century BC.Thanks to different rulers; their influence, patronage and promotion from royal families of Baroda, Indore, Gwalior, Kolhapur, Nagpur, and beyond and the boom in finest quality raw cotton, (Gossypium arboreum - Cotton native to Northwest India and Pakistan. It is said this variety of cotton was used by the Harappan civilization of the Indus valley in the production of cotton textiles*) exquisite hand-woven Chanderi reached its zenith earning its due place in world of Indian handwoven textiles. The lustrous weave became renowned outside India and was exported to many parts of the world winning hearts of textile aficionados. Chanderi became part of celebrations and festivities and important mark of nobility. 

Chanderi sarees, fabric and Geographical Indication 

Protected under Geographical Indication of Goods (registration and protection), Chanderi sarees and fabric (its unique design and fine silk yarn used for the weaving) cannot be copied.

Current status of Chanderi weaving  

Unlike a few handwoven sarees/textiles in India, demand of Chanderi has been on decline. There have been instances when due to lack of demand, many weavers were forced to take up other employment options. The high cost of handwoven products and exploitation by the middlemen ruined life of many traditional craftsmen and artisans.  

The central government, the state government of India along with a few NGOs have joined hands and started initiatives to promote this heritage weave. "Bunkar Vikas sangh", "Tana Bana", "Mission Chanderiyaan" not only train the weavers on various aspects like demand estimation, design intervention, marketing, order generation and distribution of finished products  but also aim to bring digital literacy in lives of weaver community to enhance their skills and reach to the wider markets.  

Every time a loom is shut out of desperation of a weaver, significant part of our heritage disappears forever. That one piece of fabric/saree that we admire is a result of decades of practice of special techniques, evolution of design, cultural history and refined aesthetics. If Chanderi weavers don't get our support, it will be one more precious weave fading away with time. Should we allow Chanderi weave to meet such sacrilegious consequence? Let's wake up before it is too late.   

* Information source: Wikipedia