Dhakai Jamdani

Dhakai Jamdani sarees are distinguished from other varieties by it's fine texture resembling muslin and the elaborate and ornate workmanship. These sarees have multicolored linear or floral motifs all over the body ans have an exquisitely designed elaborate pallu. The mango motif signifying fertility,growth and martial bliss which is a very popular design in jamdani sarees. The Dhakai jamdani is woven painstakingly by hand on the old fashioned jala loom, and many take even upto one year to weave a single saree. It feels supple to the touch and drapes gently to reveal the contours of wearer.

Tangail Jamdani

These sarees have jamdani motifs on Tangail fabric and hence known as Tangail Jamdani. The traditional tangail borders had a 'paddo' or lotus pattern, 'pradeep' or lamp pattern, apart from the popular 'aansh paar' which was common to Shantipur. From the use of a single color on the border, they began to use two to three colors to give it 'meenakari' effect.

Shantipur Jamdani

The 'Shantipuri' sarees are named after the village 'Shantipur' in Nadia district of West bengal, which is famous for the 'vaishnava' culture propagated by Sri Gaurango Mahaprovu. These sarees have a powder fine texture and display a sophistications and subtlety of temperament. The borders on the sarees of shantipur could be either dyed cotton-silk or art silk or viscose yarns or gold and silver zaris. The background of the sarees has fine and delicate checks, stripes or a texture created by colored threads or a combination of fine and thicker yarn. The pallu of the saree which hangs from the shoulder has butis or jamdani designs beautifully arranged along with stripes of different widths. Some tie and dye designs are also being used for the pallu of shantipur sarees.

Dhaniakhali Jamdani

Having a tighter weave than the ''tangail'' or ''shantipur'' , Dhaniakhali jamdani is more hardy. It's bold body colors and contrasting borders and absurdly low prices make them very affordable.

Various Types of Jamdani Sarees

There are at least six varieties of Jamdani sarees. They are Dhakai jamdani, Tangail jamdani, Shantipur jamdani, Dhaniakhali jamdani, Begumpur jamdani, Silk jamdani and so on.

Varities of Jamdani Work

The main peculiarity of jamdani work is the geometric design.The expert weavers do not need to draw the design on paper.They do it

from their memory.Jamdanis have different names according to their designs. For instance,Panna Hajar,

• A jamdani with small flowers diapered on the fabric is known as 'butidar'.
• If these flowers are arranged in reclined position it is called 'tersa' jamdani.
• It is not necessary that these designs are made of flowers only.There can be designs with peacocks and leaves of creepers . If such designs cover the entire field of the saree, it is called 'jalar naksha'.
• If the field is covered with rows of flowers, it is known as 'fulwar jamdani'.
• 'Duria jamdani' has design of spots all over.
• 'Belwari jamdani' with colorful golden borders used to be made during the mughal period,especially for the women of the inner court.

Silk Jamdani Saree

The silk Jamdani, a technical variety of brocade or the 'figured muslin' ,traditionally woven in Banaras may be considered to be one of the finest products to come out of the Banarasi loom. Here silk fabric is brocaded with cotton and rarely with zari threads. jamdani is woven by transfixing the pattern thread between a varying number of warp threads in proportion to the size of the designed then throwing the shuttle to pass the regular weft. By repeating this process, where in the size and placing of the cut-thread is in accordance with the character of the pattern, the Jamdani weaver produces arrange of intricate designs.

Jamdani For Holud

Nowadays, brides prefer wearing jamdani sarees for 'gaye holud' function.Earlier, brides used to wear only yellow sarees. But now, they choose various colors of jamdani sarees.

Jamdani For Wedding

The demand for jamdani sarees is increasing day by day. Because, now many brides choose jamdani saree as their wedding outfit. For wedding outfit brides choose colorful and gorgeous jamdani saree with the work of golden or silver jari. Brides also like simple jamdani sarees without any zari for their wedding outfit.

Jamdani Palli

Jamdani Palli is a village of Narayanganj district under Tarabo pouroshova of Rupganj Thana, Naraynganj District is very popular and traditional area of Bangladesh. That area is known as a BISIC Nagari. That nagari is the big area for jamdani Shari all over Bangladesh. After crossing the Kanchpur Bridge, by the way of shylhet road, after 3 km. the jamdani palli is situated. The name of that area is noapara under Tarabo pouroshava of Rupganj Thana. There are number of plot is 460 in that palli. And the huge number of Textile mills is running in that area. The environment is very commercial and busy. According to the agreement between BISIC and artisans of jamdani, the period of living is 100 years. People of Jamdani palli weave jamdani and sell them around Bangladesh. They run their lives by weaving jamdani.

Jamdani Collection By Nilanjona palli

Those who are fond of wearing jamdani, love to buy sarees from Nilanjona Palli,which is situated at dhanmondi 27. Nilanjona Palli has a huge collection beautiful jamdani sarees. Nilanjona Palli has varieties of jamdani sarees such as- dhakai jamdani, dhakai silk jamdani, tangail jamdani and so on.In the picture, it is a vibrant golden brown half silk dhakai jamdani saree with all over heavy work with matching color. Endi cotton black and beige vertical stripes with very neat katha stitch on the chest. Another green saree in the picture is the dhakai jamdani saree with all over heavy work with matching color, brightly dotted with golden jari.

Jamdani Collection By Aarong

As part of Aarong's 30th anniversary Exhibition series, an exhibition on jamdani sarees titled 'Story of Pride' was inauguratedat Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy on January 9,2010. The story of pride was expected to create awareness and appreciation among the viewers, so that the jamdani industry and it's precious asset- the weavers can grow and thrive.Besides displaying old heirloom pieces of heritage collection, the exhibition also has sarees for sale, where timeless old motifs were revived. Aarong awarded the six jamdani weavers, who have showcased their excellence in jamdani weaving through this exhibition.

Global Market For Jamdani

The demand for Jamdani sarees has spread worldwide. Not only in Bangladesh, women from all around the world love to wear this saree.Looms constitute the biggest cottage industry of India,engaging millions of looms in weaving the traditional beauty of the country's heritage in cotton, silk and other natural fibres. One can hardly see a village in Bengal, wher weavers do not exist. The region in and around Dhaka is famous for this wonder fabric. This excuisitely woven delicate cotton muslin fabric is admired to be one of the best among the skilled craftsmen of South Asia. Due to the skills and dexterity involved in the making of this fabric, generally, they are of high price. Despite it's expensive price tags, demand for this fabric never declines.

Manufacturing Technique

The fineness of muslin cloth used to depend usually on the art of making yarns. The most appropriate time for making yarns was early morning as the air then carried the highest moisture. For making yarns weavers needed 'taku' , a bamboo basket, a shell and a stone cup. They used popcorn,rice or barely for starch. Before making Jamdani designs they used to dye their yarn and starch it. These days weavers buy fine yarn from the market and use chemical dyes. For making jamdani two weavers sit side by side at a loom. Coarse yarns are used for designs to make the motifs used to be made on gray fabric. Later on fabrics of other colours were also used. In the 1960's , Jamdani work on red fabric became very popular.

Jamdani's Struggle to Survive

Jamdani sarees have a huge popularity among Bangladeshi women. Sadly, th Jamdani industry is a declining one. With a shrinking market and the long hours of labor required to produce the sarees, jamdani weavers are losing interest in the trade, so proudly nurtured by their forefathers. At the jamdani village in Dokhin Ruposhi in Demra, just outside Dhaka, weavers are busy at the looms in spite of the drenching rain outside. Most adult weavers work as long as 18 hours a day with breaks for meals or prayers. The work itself is very laborious and requires extreme concentration. From the middle of the 19 th century, there was a gradual decline in the Jamdani industry. A number of factors contributed to this decline. Use of machinery in the English textile industry, and the subsequent import of lower quality, but cheaper yarn from Europe, started the decline. But, nowadays, people are buying more and more jamdani sarees for various occassions. The demand for jamdani sarees is spread all over the world.

The Current Problems

At present,major problem of the industry is that the weavers do not get adequate wages for their labor. According to a national daily,a senior weaver earns about tk 2,500 to tk 3000 per month. Junior weavers get less than that,around tk 1600. As a result many weavers do not want their children to come to this profession. For many,the garments industry offer a lucrative alternative. A good piece of Jamdani saree needs the labor of one or two months, and the wage paid to the weavers doesn't compensate for their labor. The producers often do not have direct access to saree markets and because of their dependence on the middleman, who often form informal cartels, they are deprived of their shares of profit. Sometimes, the producers fail to recover the cost.

Changes With Time

In the Mughal period, most likely during the reign of either Emperor Akbar or Emperor Jahangir, the figured or flowered muslin came to be known as the Jamdani. The designs and colors have changed with time. Originally the motifs used to be made on gray fabric. Later on fabrics of other colors were also used. In the 1960's, Jamdani work on red fabric became very popular. The Victoria and Albert Museum of London has a fine collection Jamdani with work in white on white fabric. The production methods have also changed. Previously, popcorn,rice or barley was used for starch. Before making Jamdani, the designers used to dye their yarn and starch it. For dye they used flowers and leaves if creepers. For quality Jamdani they used yarn of 200 to 250 counts. These days weavers buy fine yarn from the market and use chemical dyes instead of herbal dyes. Finally, time has also influenced the designs. Keeping up the modern demand, present day Jamdani sarees have on their ground designs of rose,jasmine,lotus, bunches of bananas, bunches of ginger and sago.

Weaver's Story

Mr Jamal(left) comes from a long line of weavers and can always remember fond memories of watching his grandfather teaching his father to weave. In those days he would sometimes sit with his father and grandfather and watch them lovingly. He also used to watch his mother help with weaving by spinning spindles of cotton into yarns for weaving. Back then, women were not encouraged to weave. Nowadays, Jamal loves hearing his father's story of how their forefathers were weavers and how some of the art of weaving precious delicate fabric is slowly regaining popularity. Jamal has since taught his wife Amina(right) how to weave and now they are happily weaving together beautiful special master pieces.

Before Weaving

It is estimated that the production is carried out in over 200 villages in Demra,Rupganj,Sonargaon and Siddhirganj districts in Dhaka. An incredible continuity is visible in production techniques and use of equipment. The main visible change today is that yarn is no longer spun by women in their village homes, but is imported and sold at large yarn markets which are located near the weaving centres. A visit to any weaving village will find women,men and children involved in different stages of the weaving process. Outside the village hut, women are to be seen rolling the yarn onto spindles and prepairing shuttles, while nearby, men wind the yarn onto drums, and then prepare the warp across bamboo sticks, the length generally being equal to that of six sarees. For jamdani weaving, a very elementary pit loom is used and the work is carried on by the weaver.

Weaving Jamdani

Jamdani is an elaborate style in cotton weaving. The object must have been to provide higly decorative garments for the royalty or noblemen. White or coloured designs of great intricacy are created using a method of weaving,somewhat like tapestry work. Small shuttles filled with coloured, gold or silver thread, are passed through the warp as required for the basic weave.The fabric appears lacelike with shadowy figured designs,dreamy and suggestive. A speciality of Dhakai jamdani, the long warp threads are arranged,as in the case of any ordinary cloth. The pattern of the embroidery is drawn on paper and pinned beneath the warp. While weaving the workman has to raise the paper pattern to ascertain if the weft has neared to where a flower or figure had to appear. When the exact spot is reached, he uses a bamboo silver to pass each buti thread through the warp, sewing down the inserted thread. When the embroidered pattern is continous and regular, the weaver usually dispenses with the paper pattern. Two weavers normally work at a loom to accelerate as also simplify the work.

Mughal Era

The Mughals were great admirers and patrons of such elegant artistic handmade fabrics. During the Mughal era Jamdani weaving reach it's golden age as weavers were given the highest regards. Wearing Jamdani fabric was a privilege that only nobility and royalty could afford due to the lengthy and difficult weaving procedures involved in it's manufacturing. The Mughal Emperor Aurangjeb was said to be so fond of the 'Jamdani' that one had to seek royal permission before daring to wear the pracious fabric!

History of Jamdani

The earliest mention of the origin of jamdani and it's development as an industry was found in Kautilya's book of economics ( about 300 AD) where it is stated that this fine cloth used to be made in Bengal and Pundra. Jamdani is also mentioned in the book of Periplus of the Eritrean Sea and in the accounts of Arab, Chinese and italian travellers. Alexander the Great in 327 B.C mentioned ''beautiful printed cottons''. In the 14th century, Ibn Batuta profusedly praised the quality of cotton textiles of Sonargaon. Towards the end of the 16th century the English traveler Ralph Fitch and historian Abul Fazal also praised the muslin made at Sonargaon.

Introduction

Jamdani saree is an elegance of Bangladesh. It is a fabric of fine cotton muslin of bengali origin. In Bangladesh, women love to wear sarees especially, jamdani sarees. Jamdani is world famous for it's eye catching,artistic and expensive ornamental fabric. Not only in Bangladesh, the demand for bangladeshi jamdani can be seen outside Bangladesh also. From this blog, we'll come to know the history, varieties, production of jamdani sarees and so on.