Vidarbha: Part 2

 

Even before I went to India I was looking up information about weaves from Vidarbha and found this national award winning saree and reached out to its weaver. It is called the Sausar saree, named after the town where it comes from in the Chhindwara district of Madhya Pradesh . This place is about 75 miles from Nagpur and is a base for several weaver families. This particular award winning weaver’s name is Chandrashekhar Kolhe. He is a winner of the prestigious Sant Kabir award for weaving.

It is a very simple saree in cotton. And just like the joth saree it is cool, comfortable and easy on the pocket. Unlike the joth saree, it has more elaborate design on its pallu. It is available in many beautiful colors. I picked one in dark coffee brown and one in maroon. A couple of friends also got some for themselves. He was more than happy and grateful for the business during Covid times.

There is more to Vidarbha, I realized, above and beyond the Karvati Kinar  tussar ,and my curiosity was aroused even before I flew into Nagpur.