![]() |
Models showcase Ritu Kumar’s chiffon saris with Banarasi borders and aari embroidery; (Below) A Kiran Uttam Ghosh net sari inspired by an antique shawl |
![]() |
It’s a sure way to stay one step ahead of the fashion pack. An antique garment straight out from grandma’s steel trunk or from mom’s trousseau has a cache that money can’t always buy. But what happens if you love the old world look but have no access to it? All’s not lost as designers are playing revivalists and are slipping in antique look-alikes into their sari lines.
Given the growing demand from her connoisseur clients for vintage saris, Kiran Uttam Ghosh is playing with techniques in her design studios to ‘create’ antique saris. She’s subjecting sari fabrics to tea-staining processes and dipping the already dyed fabric (zari-work and all) into tea water for an antique look. She’s also going all the way with pitta-work embroidery (or beaten gold thread-work) and dyeing fabrics to replicate the tarnished, aged look.
Ghosh’s current hotsellers are zari-work saris inspired by traditional pashmina shawls from Kashmir. “This look can be achieved on any fabric — cotton, organza or Banarasi silk,” she says. While designing new saris she sometimes stitches the borders of very old saris on them to create an antique look. At other times, she weaves new borders based on the antique patterns.
Designer Ritu Kumar too has a swarm of customers seeking the antique look. “Women today want to wear saris that look as though they have come straight out of their grandmother’s closet,” says Kumar. Her collection of chiffon saris with Banarasi borders and aari embroidery is high on the tarnished gold look. Prices are on request.
Designers like Neeru Kumar, Anju Modi, Abdul Haldar and luxury brand Ravissant are also giving their saris the much sought after antique touch. “We draw inspiration from many old textile techniques and embroidery. For this, we travel around India sourcing old textiles and patterns and set them into contemporary styles,” says Akshay Deep Singh, head designer, Ravissant Fashion.
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
(From top) A model draped in a Ravissant creation with a brocade and zardozi pallu; Designer Neeru Kumar flaunts her collection of Gujarati brocade and Paithani work; Anju Modi sports a net sari with a Rajasthani gota border and booti work.Photographs by Jagan Negi |
With textiles designed in Ravissant’s own weaving units in Varanasi, Pochampalli, Kanchipuram and Chanderi, you can choose from silk crepes, chiffons and Chanderis. Ravissant also has a woven range in fabrics like silk brocade, tissue nets, silk Chanderis, Ikats and Kanjivarams. You can even choose from a hand-painted range in chiffons and georgettes in neutral colours like whites, beiges, rust, khakis and dusty pinks.
You’ll also find saris woven with techniques like jacquard weaving, double Ikat weaving, extra weft insertion technique (where an extra thread is inserted while weaving the fabric) and fine Chanderi weaving with tissue yarn. The inspiration obviously comes from old textiles, techniques and embroideries. “To attain the antique touch we subject our saris to a rigorous process of distressing through dyeing, printing and oxidisation. This gives the piece a patina of age without making it lacklustre,”explains Singh.
Each sari takes up to 20-30 days to complete depending on the intricacies of the embroidery or weave. The printed ones are priced at Rs 9,000 while heavily embroidered pieces at Ravissant come for Rs 60,000 upwards.
Designer Neeru Kumar is also fond of collecting antique saris. “You get to learn so much about antique textures and weaving by studying these saris,” says Kumar.
Kumar has been studying antique wedding saris called Paithanis, woven in Maharashtra. The pallus of these saris come in a tapestry weave, woven on upright tapestry looms that have smaller frames.
Most saris like kanchis, bandhanis and Gujarat brocades come to her through antique dealers and she churns out new saris inspired by them. She has recently done a new collection of Paithani saris with the pallus embellished with silk thread inlay work on zari base. The prices range between Rs 40,000 and Rs 1.5 lakh.
Designer Anju Modi has gone more artistic with her collection of faux antiques inspired by Raja Ravi Varma paintings. Inspired by his work and colour palette, Modi has used pale pinks, greens and blues in her collection contrasted with warm colours of the brocade work.
To give the saris an old look she has used old dabka and zardozi work teamed with brocade weaving patches. The saris are priced upwards of Rs 45,000. To give the gold work a tea-washed look, she burns the zari on a tawa. Meanwhile designer Abdul Haldar, literally hammers a pattern out of the zari using pitta-work. “This is achieved by beating the gold thread with a hammer for a flattish look,” he explains.
Haldar’s pitta-work stands out in dark browns and blacks in net and georgettes. The collection is also high on zari work and semi-precious stones in dark and bright colours. The price range of his saris starts from Rs 16,000 for minimum work around the borders while saris with work all over are priced at Rs 24,000 and above. He has also done some heavily embroidered cholis to complete the ensemble.
So it’s time to give the bling a miss and drape yourself in six yards of classy legacy. u