If you’ve ever wondered how your sari was made, you may want to drop in at Cooptex’s Egmore showroom between Wednesday and Saturday. As part of Daan Utsav — the festival of giving’s celebrations — six weavers from Kancheepuram are in town to showcase their talents.
G. Rajkumar from Chinna Kancheepuram is at his loom, weaving a sari in maroon and gold. It takes an average of about a week to make one, he says, and the ones with elaborate designs take longer — up to 10 days. At a table nearby with displays of silk cocoons, J. Mariappan, deputy manager (design and production), Cooptex, Kancheepuram, explains the process of silk extraction. Rajkumar has been weaving for 25 years, just as his father and grandfather did. But he may be the last in his family to continue the tradition. “I started learning when I was about 10 years old. But my two daughters are not very interested. They are still in school but I don’t think they will come into this profession,” he said.
“It just doesn’t generate enough income any more and involves extremely hard work,” says D. Padma, a national-award winning weaver.
