CONTEMPORARY JACQUARD DESIGNS FOR HANDLOOM BROCADE SARIS OF VARANASI

The world of craft is as valuable as that of the world of science, philosophy or ethics; it reflects the state of human society through an individual. Craft in India is more of a system than a product where aesthetic and function have been an integral part of utility. Creation of any craft never takes place in isolation. It is part of a dense matrix of religious, cultural and social beliefs of historical factors of a body of norms and values (Shali, 1988). Uttar Pradesh has a dynamic potential for keeping safe our years back heritage art and craft. Varanasi is a hub of brocade textiles since ages and their weavers are capable of producing different designs for handloom brocade. Chowkpurana folk art is a religious drawing which is done to decorate the floors and walls of mud house on various occasions by the women. The design and motifs of Chowkpurana floor art has distinctive vocabulary. In this study an effort was made to introduce Chowkpurana floor art motifs for handloom brocade saris. Multivisit approach and observation method was adopted for collecting the data. Three different layouts (1. motifs with border, pallav and all over ground, 2. motifs with pallav and border, 3 Motif with border, pallav and pleats) were sketched. Opinions of experts (master weavers) were taken for selecting the layout, raw materials and weaving technique of sari. Alaipura area of Varanasi and Pheka technique was selected for weaving of sari. The motif was selected from Ahoi Astmi function and was placed over the border and pallav, produced in organza variety. Prototype costing was also calculated for Chowkpurana brocade sari.