Paithani Silk
Paithani dates back to the Satvahana Dynasty that ruled between the second century BC and the second century AD. The fine silk handloom sarees get their name from the town in which they originated ie Paithan in Aurangabad, Maharashtra and truly flourished during the era of the Mughals, particularly during the rule of Aurangzeb.
The Paithani weave was in fact a tapestry weaving technique at first and later came to be used for weaving sarees. Paithani sarees were once upon a time woven from silk threads that came from China and locally made zari that came from real gold and silver thread. Nowadays, however, mulberry silk from Bangalore and zari from Surat are used in the weaving process. A genuine handloom Paithani uses about 500 grams of silk thread and another 250 grams of zari thread for a regular six yard saree. Nine yard sarees obviously use more raw material and can weight upto 900 grams.
Firstly, the raw silk threads are dyed using natural dyes obtained from vegetables, minerals, plants and rocks. They are then transferred to the reels, which are loaded onto the loom. The preparation of the loom, which takes a whole day, is probably the most laborious part about the weaving process, as this will determine the design, colour and finer details of the finished product. The weaver then sits down to create the masterpiece that is the Paithani saree through careful hand, foot and eye coordination – a process that could take him anywhere from a month to two years. A particular colour thread is used length-wise and another colour is used width-wise while weaving. Hence, an original saree also does a play of colour as light reflects off it and the saree appears to change its colour.
Some of the Paithani Silks at our studio...
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