Dhonekahli Saree - the weave for daily comfort
Dhonekhali saree is a splendid mixture of subtlety and complexity, woven in the Dhaniakhali region also known as Dhania Khali in the Hooghly district of West Bengal, thus the name Dhonekhali. If we look back to the deep roots of Indian weaving history Dhonekhali saree is quite a bit new which emerged out of a crisis in late 19th century.
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Dhaniakhali used to be well-known for its superfine cotton dhotis but as the demand decreased in late 19th century, the weavers took up weaving sarees which underwent a gradual change from narrow borders and jalchuri of dhotis to a more modern dobby and jacquard system to incorporate contemporary themes, motifs and patterns.
Dhanakhali saree use to be basically of off-white or White body with narrow border just as we see in our traditional dhotis from the eastern part of India. But the craftsmen quickly adopted the swing of time along with roots of past. The border was gradually broadened to add a dobby or jacquard pattern which has become a signature of the weave. Now, it is dyed in numerous colours and adorned with combinations of peacocks, stripes, checks and others. Weavers have also started experimenting with different fabrics but Cotton still steals the heart.
With time Dhaniakhali saree gained a place for itself often known as the ‘golden crop’ of handloom sarees from West Bengal. It is extremely popular for its rich colourful combination, compactness, design, colour fastness and long-lasting wearing the Dhonekhali saree. But due to its subtlety with elegance along with being quite pocket friendly handloom saree, its most loved among the professionals like Lawyers, Teachers, Doctor, Politicians in their everyday life. The popularity can be measured by the fact that the Chief Minister of Bengal has unofficial turned herself as a Brand ambassador for the weave as she is mostly spotted in this comfortable fabric in hot and humid weather of Eastern India, apart from her other prominent leaders such Smiti Irani, Priyanka Gandhi and also celebrities like Vidya Balan, Konkona Sharma, Rani Mukherjee and others have embrace the Dhonekhali saree as it brings a lot of dignity to the stature .
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The sari is crafted from pure cotton with a yarn count of 100S both the warp and weft portions, which gives it its paper-thin texture just like Dhoti. While most saris constitute a 5.5 metre drape, Dhonekhali saris have a drape that goes up to six metres. Another distinguishing factor of the sari is that it is starched rather profusely, with a mixture of sago seeds, wheat, puffed paddy rice, and more. A bamboo reed, colloquially known as ”sar” reed, is a crucial component in the weaving of the sari, and is used to control and direct the threads, thus helping the weave attain the required texture.
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Ramyata brings to you the finest Dhonekhali saree from the village of the Dhonekhali in the banks of Hoogly river. though the lifestyle and the craft itself has evolved with time making it a great example of crafts adapting with time but still the younger generations have been losing interest in the craft and the number of weavers is falling sharply from 733 in 2008 to merly 333 in 2014 and after the pandemic it’s in the lowest point. Team of Ramyata is trying up to revive the interest of the weavers but for the craft to be alive we need to be aware and value it. Please to visit our website – www.ramyata.in and also our social media : Instagram - @ramyata_indianfabrics , Facebook - Ramyata