A wardrobe of every Indian girl is a perfect example of a lavish affair of colours, rich texture and intricate craftsmanship. From the sleepy countrysides, the Indian handloom heritage has adorned the ramps of the world fashion industry.
Some of the most adored age-old traditional textiles in India are:
Punjab Phulkari
A true folk art of Punjab, the phulkari literally means 'flower work'. The whole work is done with white or yellow silk floss on cotton khaddarh and starts from the center on the fabric called "chashm-e-bulbul" and spreads to the whole fabric. A companion of every Punjabi woman in her celebrations, the Phulkari adds joyous colours to her life and Punjabi culture.
Bengal Jamdani
The textile finds its mention in texts as old as Arthashastra itself. From the Bengal, it travelled across regions and the craftsmen of Lucknow became equally proficient in making the jamdani. The method of weaving resembles tapestry work in which small shuttles of coloured, gold and silver threads are passed through the weft. The jamdani dexterously combines intricate surface designs with delicate floral sprays. The aanchal or pallu is often decorated with dangling, tassel like corner motifs, known as jhallar.
Ikkat
The finest and the most popular being of Gujarat's Patola of the Salvi community and Pochampali in Nalgonda. The latter is the first to receive the country's first status of Geographical indication (GI) protection. The warp is tie-dyed in numerous colours before weaving to create designs on the finished fabric. When finished and wrapped, with great precision threads are placed in a fashion to produce the characteristic feathered edge.
Kotatadoria
The fabric is made up of cotton and silk yarn in different combinations in warp and weft, woven in a fashion to produce square checks (khat). It is made so skillfully that it acquires the characteristic transparency of a hand woven cloth.
Chanderi
In the heart of India, the state of Madhya Pradesh's Chanderi sarees are renowned world over. Made with a mix of cotton and silk now, originally, Chanderi was woven using handspun cotton warps and wefts. The sheer texture, light weight and glossy transparency make it stand in good repute amongst the finest fabrics of the world.
Maheshwari
Again from Madhya Pradesh, the colourful Maheshwari sarees are woven with distinctive designs involving stripes, checks and floral borders. These sarees can be worn either side due to their reversible borders (bugdi).
Ikkal
From Karnataka comes the ancient weaving practice named after the place of its origin. Using local materials, the weavers weave the sarees using cotton warp on the body and silk warp for the border and the pallu.
Paithani
Maharashtra's Paithani silk sarees are of the richest gold brocade. It has an ornamental zari border and pallu, and little designs all over. The influence of nearby Ajanta caves paintings is clear on the designs. A kaleidoscopic effect is achieved by using two different colours, lengthwise and widthwise.
Jamawar
From the land of Persia, it travelled and flourished in the picturesque land of Kashmir. Along with the woven designs, embroidery amplifies the beauty of the fabric.
Benarasi
The holy land of Varanasi is famous for brocade sarees and dress material. Weaving of brocades with intricate designs using gold and silver threads is the specialty. Exclusive varieties are Jangla, Tanchoi, Vaskat, Tissue and Butidar.
Kancheepuram
The temple town of South Indian state of Tamil Nadu is a thriving handloom industry due to which it earned the title of the 'Silk City'. The lustrous, heavy silk sarees with contrasting borders of gold work, a sure thing in every Indian bride's trousseau.
Woolen fabrics
The colder climes of the country produce an exquisite range of shawls of very fine wool with intricate designs. The Pashmina and dorukha (double sided) shawls of Kashmir, the Kulu shawls with motifs inspired from Buddhism, Panchachuli of Uttarakhand are some of the most sought after shawls.