Jamdani Sarees of the South

Motif on an Uppada Jamdani Saree

Uppada Jamdani Sarees from coastal Andhra Pradesh tell a tale of lost know-how and revivalism. These sarees, which date back to the 17th century were once made of fine cotton with pure gold and silver zari. They were worn only by royal women – weavers (patronised by the houses of Venkatagiri, Pithapuram, and Bobili) were apparently not allowed to sell the sarees to anyone outside the royal households.

In their heyday, reputedly woven so fine that they could fit into matchboxes, Uppada Jamdani sarees are now woven of silk, tussar and cotton, or some combination of them, and feature flora and fauna (which, in effect, means that they primarily feature motifs of flowers, peacocks, parrots and elephants). These ‘new’ Uppada sarees are a result of a revival of the art in the mid-1980s. The motifs, which don't necessarily have geometrical hard angles, are woven ‘within’ the fabric; they are clearly visible on both sides of the fabric and are rarely discernible by touch alone.

Although zari is still used on Uppada Jamdani sarees, it is no longer pure gold or silver, and motifs woven into the fabric are often of silk or cotton. The sarees themselves come in a variety of colours, and true to the South Indian aesthetic, the colours can often be rather saturated (in contrast to the more muted aesthetic of the East).

In addition to Uppada Jamdani sarees, 'Uppada-type' Venkatagiri Jamdani sarees are also made; these sarees are often of silk (possibly diaphanous) and may either be plain or feature bold motifs of flora and fauna, usually without geometrical angles and almost invariably in bright colours. Plain Venkatagiri Jamdani sarees tend to have a plain body with zari in the border and the endpiece; the zari may not be woven into patterns: it may simply be a thick stripe comprising the border and a block comprising the endpiece or, alternatively, another stripe on the endpiece if the field of the endpiece is of a colour which contrasts with the main body of the saree.