Dhakai sarees

Today a saree seller from Bangladesh came by to show us his collection. Dhaka is very famous for fine cotton (and some silk), beautifully handwoven - some sarees fine enough to go through a small ring. These days, business is hard and these people travel to India, visiting different cities, connecting with people by word of mouth and going from house to house to sell their hand woven creations. The sarees were indeed beautiful; everyone who came home to see them was enchanted and several of us bought more than one.

Blues, pinks, blacks, greens and the traditional yellows, oranges, off whites, reds. Sarees with different shades of the same colour, sarees with little coloured motifs on pale backgrounds, sarees with gold or silver threadwork, sarees with subtle and bold contrasts. And the motifs and weaves- each with its own name; the traditional ones based on scenes of everyday life- temple recreations, fish, birds, flowers, leaves, ripples of water glinting in the sun - all these and more as seen through the weavers' eyes translated into patterns on the finest, softest cotton and silk- it was a real treat!