BALARAMAPURAM SAREES

ORIGIN

The history of handloom weaving in Balaramapuram dates back to about 200 years ago and is
associated with the royal family of Travancore. A major handloom cluster, Balaramapuram is a small
village in Thiruvananthapuram district of south Kerala, which is famous for fine cotton sarees and
dress materials. During the regime of His Highness Maharaja Balaramavarma, from 1798 to 1810,
handloom weaving was first introduced at Balaramapuram. Seven weaver families belonging to the
Saliya community were migrated from Nagarcoil and Thirunelveli of the present Tamil Nadu. They
produced super fine 'Mundum Neriyathum’ for the need of the Travancore royal family. The
technique of producing the superfine fabric spread from them to the local weavers in
Balaramapuram and the surrounding places of the Thiruvananthapuram district. Even before 100
years the Zari from Surat were brought to Balaramapuram and 'Kasavu Sarees' production was
started.

EVOLUTION

Balaramapuram is famous as the centre for the production of traditional varieties of handloom
textiles meant for the contemporary cloth wearing style of Kerala. Its unique craftsmanship makes it
an ideal heirloom.

The weavers use a primitive type of throw-shuttle pit looms for the production of exclusively cotton
fabrics with pure zari. They do not use any type of improved appliances such as Dobby, Jacquard,
Jala, etc. for the production of designs for cloth with extra warp and extra weft. Identical appearance
of designs, including warp and weft stripes on the face and backside of the fabric is obtained by this
technique of weaving.

No change has so far been taken place in the type of loom or technology of weaving in producing
such varieties. The variety known as "Pudava and Kavani" (veshti and upper cloth with pure zari) still
remains as a prestigious bridal gift in marriages. The designs with zari or coloured yarn, using the
age-old technique still has unparallel appeal which can attract even the most sophisticated
customers. The uniqueness about Balaramapuram’s weaves is the identical appearance of the design
on both sides of the fabric.

SOCIO-CULTURAL CONTEXT

No one can date when these weaves started. Lore goes that during the reign of demon king Bali the
locals encouraged this form of weaving gold and cotton to make it a trademark of the people of his
kingdom. So every family in Kerala owned and wore only clothes that were made here and one
could easily differentiate outsiders and invaders into our lands. More over the king would always
bless the family that would weave cloth not only for members of the royal family but also for the
gods in our local temples that they patronized. Even to this day, when we celebrate Onam, our
biggest festival, we all have to wear this traditional costume because our great emperor Bali returns
to bless the people of his land and everyone seen in this dress invites auspiciousness and good luck
into their lives.

PURPOSE

The Balaramapuram saree weaving is unique as it has identical appearance on the front and the
back, using the special laced weaving. The weavers use the old and trustworthy throw-shuttle pit
looms. The weavers used a unique technique by which each thread was separately controlled by
hand to interlace with weft, wound in small pins. Vegetable colours were used. The saree is known
as “Pudava and Kavani. During Onam, the Keralite festival, women of all ages wear the mundum
neryathum and take part in folk dance meant only for women called kaikottikalli. The Mundum
Neryathum for festive occasion has golden coloured borders or a broad zari border known as
Kasavu, lending the costume another name of “Kasavu Saree”. The colour for the blouse of the
mundum neryathum for this occasion is determined by the age and marital status of the woman.
Young unmarried girls wear green coloured blouse, while married middle aged mothers wear red
blouses.

MATERIAL CULTURE

The speciality of balaramapuram sarees is it’s extra warp and extra weft design on fine or superfine
natural grey cotton yarn. Saree is woven with 100’s cotton warps and weft in 88’s reed in 84-88p ppi,
width 48” and length varies from 5.5m to 6.25 metres. Extra weft and warp threads are mostly half
fine or fine zari threads for designing with sometimes decorated with coloured cotton yarn. The
peculiar interlacement structure gives designs in face and back equal appearance which is the
uniqueness of the balaramapuram sarees in the design world. The Balaramapuram sari woven in
Thiruvananthapuram district has use of pure zari for border designs. These saris are processed on
the traditional looms with the yarn count of 100 for the wrap and weft is also used. Recently,
experiments have been done with the patterns, such as weaving the same designs using coloured
yarn for the weft, and the increasingly popular mural painting sarees – where fabric paints are used
to recreate traditional Kerala temple art on the pallu of the saree. Given the light weight and coarse
texture of the cotton fabric, these textiles are ideal for the warm and humid climate in Kerala.
SPECIALITY OF BALARAMAPURAM SAREES

-Natural colours made out of rice and tapioca are used.

-Best for Kerala's tropical climate (Our ancestors seldom used coloured clothing)

- Looks identical on both sides

- An original handloom sari will have identical designs on both sides

- Its kasavu will have a better glow compared to the fake ones

- The kasavu portion will be thicker

- The fabric would be softer

PRESENT STATUS

The prestigious Balaramapuram Sarees has become the first handloom product in Kerala to receive
the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) protection through Geographical Indications Act (GI Act). This is
the 35th textile product in the country to receive the most sought-after registration under the
Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act 1999 from the Chennai based
Geographical Indications Registry of the Government of India.

In the recent times there has been an urgent and growing need seen amongst the young designers
who are wanting to retain the tradition of Kasavu along with subtle changes that are not completely
deviated from their original patterns and motifs seen in Kerala sarees- and thus emerged the Hand
painted Kerala sarees. While the usage of silk and heavier zari too has been an innovation, there has
been an eager usage of brightly colored paintings on the border and the pallu of sarees. The art form
that has managed to amalgamate itself in the true meaning of the world with Kerala kasavu is the
paintings of murals on sarees. The depiction of Vishnu, Krishna, Ganesha are the most popular as are
the lotus motifs and the Krishna Radha paintings. Ultimately, it is in the simplicity of the
Balaramapuram sarees wherein lies its beauty which is why apart from some amount of
experimentation there is very little that is done to tamper with its ethereal beauty. It’s ultimately in
its simple beauty wherein lies the charisma of the Balaramapuram sarees, and every effort should be
made to keep this tradition alive.