The Glory of Mangalgiri Sarees

Introduction: Mangalgiri Sarees

Mangalagiri sarees from the traditional town of Mangalgiri in Guntur District, Andhra Pradesh are unique variety of sarees that are woven in silk and cotton. While Mangalgiri cotton sarees are characterized thin zari borders and plain body, Mangalgiri silk sarees feature simple enchanting designs throughout the sari in attractive color combinations. The town whose name translates to ‘The auspicious hill’ is the abode of Lord Narsimha temple and the saris that get made here are also considered auspicious and used by devotees for religious ceremonies.

History of Mangalgiri Sarees

The ancient town of Mangalgiri is known to exist since 225 B.C as it gets its name from goddess Lakshmi who is said to have done tapas in this hill town and hence considered auspicious. As per some inscriptions found in this region, the weaving occupation here too is as old as 500 years. While Mangalgiri was mainly considered a pilgrimage town because of Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple, the pilgrims had to purchase a sari from the local weavers to offer reverence to the lord, thus giving the weaving industry a boost and a means of creating options for livelihood to the local weavers. Thus Mangalgiri handloom sarees became popular. However, during the Qutub Shahi Dynasty in 1593, due to increase in taxes, most of the weavers fled from the town serving severe blow to the flourishing handloom industry of the town. This situation forced the rulers to relax the taxes again.

Steps involved in making of Mangalgiri Sarees : The various stages involved in making Mangalagiri sarees include:

• Procuring Raw materials - The first and foremost step in making of Mangalgiri sarees include procuring of appropriate raw material including pure cotton yarn, silken threads, silver and gold zari, natural dyes and chemicals.

• Purification of Cotton - The process of purifying of cotton includes boiling of hank cotton to remove impurities which is then soaked overnight and rinsed to make it suitable for dyeing.

• Winding of yarn - Winding of yarn is done manually on charka and bobbin to form warp while, the weft is woven on a prin.

• Process of weaving- The making of Mangalgiri sarees involves the warp and weft method of weaving using the Jaquard weaving process. The weaving of these sarees is done only on pit looms

• Process of Dyeing - The process of dyeing includes bleaching in case of white sarees and for colored sarees, vat dyes are used.

Mangalgiri which is renowned for its temples that are a testament to its brilliant architecture, the sarees that get made here are a testament to its glorious weaving experience.