Kota in Rajasthan, India is the home of the famous Kota Doria saris made in small
villages around the Kota city. "Kota Doria" is a super transparent yet stable cotton or
cotton/silk weave consisting of varied guages of yarn, creating an almost
graph like pattern called khats (squares formed between the different thicknesses
of fibers). The intermittent heavier guage yarns give the fabric enough weight
and lateral stability to fall very gracefully, yet it is incredibly airy and transparent.
Generally, these pieces are worn in the heat of summer.
The chequered weave of a Kota sari is a prized possession of
many women. The gossamer-fine fabric Kota dorias are the finest weaves in
India - so fine that they are almost weightless. The spinning, dyeing and weaving
are done by skilled artisans and it takes many men hours to do so. The Kota region's
craft is exquisite in its perfection. The Kota Doria weave is very special; the warp and
the weft use a combination of threads creating a fine chequered pattern where the
cotton provides firmness while the silk lends the gossamer finish to the fabric.
Besides the chequered pattern, there are other weaves in complicated designs in a combination of silk and cotton. The standard Kota doria yardage, in sari width, is
always woven in white and later dyed in different colours. Some of the weaves
also have a narrow border edged with Zari. In the case of saris with designs, the
threads are dyed prior to weaving. Ideal for hot summer, this is a muslin fabric
woven with alternating threads of silk and cotton in both warp and weft in an
open weave. More than 1200 weavers are involved in this art. These karigars,
however, say that this art form faces a serious threat from technologically
advanced power looms.
For economy, most weavers insist on producing a minimum of three saris of the
same design as their looms can accommodate that many at a time. A weaver
normally takes
a whole day to set up the threads, which is a very complicated process. These
weavers do everything from making the patterns and designs to dyeing the
yarn, by hand. It takes about a week to complete three saris in the basic doria.
Kota Doria Sarees
