Let Jamdanis be

Nothing is worse than a bouquet of red roses embroidered on an elegant, white jamdani. But what might beat that is your smug smile when someone comments on your fashion sense and you feel happy, not having the slightest clue that a fashion crime has been committed.

What is happening to our jamdani sari, can anyone tell me? Please, consider this an ardent request and fill in the gaps that I have, regarding the current status of our pride, the jamdani weave -- Dhakai sari to be precise.

The other day I heard a friend saying that her two nieces, who are by the way getting married this month, bought very expensive jamdanis and they are now contemplating the idea of embroidering them.

Instantly my head started buzzing and almost made a 360 degree turn. On the one hand the mere fact that jamdanis are part of their trousseaus -- that too ones as expensive as Tk60000 -- is praiseworthy (in fact a plain cotton Tk5000 one is also appreciated), but on the other hand they are all ready to choke the expensive weave to death. I don't understand this hypocrisy. A Tk60000 jamdani is in itself a story, a piece of art. It doesn't need any further accessorising to make it dazzle or stand out; just wearing the right kind of jewellery with it should suffice.

I don't know why these modern day fashionistas cannot leave jamdani as it is. Their overt attention and their keen business acumen is taking the jamdani off on all different tangents except the height it should have achieved. A Tk60000 jamdani that is sold by retailers unfortunately does not bring much profit to the artisans who put their skill and labour to weave that gorgeous sari. Thus his profession remains at stake and on the verge of extinction. Instead of helping and patronising the industry or trying to revive age-old designs, women today are trying to re-invent and re-design it. How sorry is the state of jamdani that people today fail to recognise the elegance of these saris and are all set to gag the prestigious weave?

I am dead sure not one of these women will ever think of re-designing their traditional Indian saris like kanchipurams, sambalpuris, narayanpets, benarasis or mangalgiris and pochampally, by taking them to the embroiderers and asking them to do machine or even hand embroidery with zardosi or zari and buttas on them. I am almost certain they will never, even in their wildest dreams, think of undertaking such a sacrilegious act.

Then please explain to me why are they doing that to their precious jamdanis? Why do they fail to appreciate the beauty of this special garb and why are they so eager to ruin it with their so-called designer's instincts?

Yes, I am being slightly in-your-face regarding this fashion crime. Jamdani should be what it is and was all through these decades. You can only ruin it if you are equally enthusiastic about ruining your Indian traditional saris. Just because it is your country's heirloom piece that doesn't give you the right to re-invent it.

Let traditions be, you have thousands of one colour silks, muslins and chiffons to do your embroidery on. Leave the jamdanis alone.