Introduction to Kasavu Saree

Kerala Saree, commonly known as the Kasavu saree, is the traditional wear for women in Kerala. These sarees can be further classified as Kerala Set-Saree, Set-Mundu, Neriyath, Kavani, Kasava etc. These are crafted mainly at Kuthampully of the Thrissur district in Kerala.

Kasavu saree is crafted mainly by the Devanga Chettiar community which belongs to Mysore. The artisans of this community had shifted their looms to Kuthampully years ago, for weaving for the Raja of the Kochi Palace. About 2000 people of this community have continued this traditional craft.

Kerala or Kasavu saree is a single piece of cloth, whereas traditional mundum neriyathum is of a two-piece fabric. It is the cultural costume of the Malayali community, embellished with the beauty and charm of the golden borders and coupled with the plain white mundum neriyathum. It is believed that the mundum neriyathum was draped with the neriyathu that was tucked inside the blouse.

The coloured strip at the border is referred to as Kara. Previously the colour of the blouse determined the age and the marital status of the woman. The young spinster girls wore the green colour, and the married middle-aged mothers adorned red colour.

Kasavu (golden border) is of generally pure gold, copper coated or artificial thread. It is found that mostly the simple line designs adorn the bottom of the saree whereas the small peacock or temple artforms are ornamented on the pallu.

Tools to make Kasavu Sarees:

• Small Bobbins: To wind the zari threads for warping.
• Charaka Equipment: To wind the yarn.
• Scissors: To cut the extra fabric, yarns.
• Measuring Tape: For measuring the length and width of the fabric.
• Rice Kanji: In this liquid, the cotton yarns wound on the pirns are immersed.
• Chalk Powder: Applied to the table for pasting the next set of fabric for printing.
• Sticker Gum: For sticking the fabric firmly during printing.
• A piece of Fabric: Used to stick on the two edges of the printing table.
• Sand Paper: To rub the corners of the fly shuttle for better weaving.
• Safety Pins: To hold the printed fabric for drying.

Kasavu Saree Making Process:

• The cotton yarn is brought from Salem and Zari threads from the Surat, Gujarat in India
• Cotton yarns are wound to prins by the Charaka equipment and immersed in the Kanji liquid for stiffness.
• Cotton yarns are spread on the beam, knotted with previous cotton yarn and fixed to the loom.
• Zari threads are wound to pirns with the Charaka equipment for weft.
• Zari bobbins are fed to the Zari warping beam that has the eyelets moving from one end to other by winding the required length.
• The Zari threads are knotted firmly to the previous threads and applied with wax throughout the length for a better grip.

• After the cotton yarns and zari threads are set on the loom, the weaving is done with the controlled mechanism of the Jacquards for the insertion of the patterns.
• As per the pattern required it is taken for embroidery or printing work. 
• As Kuthampully is famously known for the Kerala saree, sarees woven on the powerloom mostly from Salem and Erode are further finished with the printing work. 
• The Saree is evenly spread on the table with the help of chalk powder and sticker gum.
• As per the required design and colour, the printing paste is made and spread through the screens to the saree pieces. (Read about Block Printing.)
• The saree is then passed through a series of rollers for a smooth finish which is generally referred to as a calendering process.

This is how your favorite Kasavu Saree is made. Each piece is a work of master craftsmanship and finished to perfection – so that you look gorgeous! You may also like to read about the  Maheshwari Saree?

Reference: www.dsource.in