Sungudi cotton saree- Facts & FAQs

Sungudi Cotton Sarees have been an integral part of the women's clothing since 15th Century. Now a days Sungudi cotton sarees are worn by all age group of people. With the wake of supporting weavers, the Sungudi weavers are seeing an increase in demand. New Fashionistas and Designers have come up with various attires to use the Sungudi to design Gowns, repurposing it as stoles, kids wear and so on.

The answer is No. Just like most of the cotton sarees, it should be handwashed in order to maintain the quality of the saree. We recommend to use a little salt to soak the saree in water first for a few minutes before washing separately as it retains the colours and prevents from colours dripping onto each other. 

Sungudi Cotton Sarees are completely handmade. It is done by tie and dye method. Firstly the saree cloth is woven in white sungudi cotton with borders and jari checks according to the design needed. Then the dye is prepared for dipping the saree. The border, pallu and body colours are kept separately and then dipped in dye for vibrant colors.

The dyes are water based and the clothes are dipped multiple times to make sure the vibrant colours are dyed on. After this, the wet sarees are laid on ground to dry under sunlight for 2 to 3 days and then starched. This is why we can find some dried grass, some mud or other impurities stuck to the sarees. Even though some are shaved off,a few gets dried and get stuck to the saree, they can be removed in the first wash. Lastly, the sarees are fed into rollers to be ironed to give it the final grand touch.

Photo Courtesy: THE HINDU

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