What gives Gadwal sarees the fame throughout India?

by Aarushi Reddy studant

Originating from a small town called Gadwal in Mahbubnagar district, Andhra Pradesh, the Gadwal sarees are one of the most popular sarees in the whole country. They are known for the unique mix of fabrics and design. The entire town is known for its saree weaving, and it has a large population of skilled weavers. These sarees are manufactured using silk, cotton or a combination of both.

Gadwal sarees are woven using the interlocked weft technique known as “Kupadam” which also give these sarees their local name. The Kupadam sarees are manufactured from cotton and borders are made with silk.

The Gadwal sarees came into existence in the 1930s along with the spinning looms which were made to help the weavers. In the earlier sarees, the designs used to be of temples and nature. Those sarees used mostly earth colours and vibrant designs. As the time passed and the commercialisation of these sarees occurred, brighter colours were introduced in the designs.

Some features of Gadwal sarees are as follows-

The most common element in these sarees is the body gets manufactured from cotton, and the pallu and borders are made of silk. The silk of these sarees is made from Tussar silk or Mulberry silk. The golden zari work along the length of the boundaries give these sarees an exquisite touch.

Another style of saree originated in Andhra Pradesh are the ikkat pattu sarees. Ikkat is a technique used to pattern the textiles that employ a resist dyeing process like tie-dye on either the warp or weft fibres. A characteristic of ikkat textiles is the blurriness which is found in this design. This blurriness is due to the extreme difficulty the weaver has in lining up the dyed yarns.

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