The magic of the Gadwal however lies in its exceptionally mindful design language.
Text & Images: Savitha Suri
This one is more about mindful textile design and how a unique weave became a generic one over the past few decades.
Woven in Telangana, the ‘Gadwal’ is GI tagged and had for many decades represented a specific design language and technique.
The fabric- cotton with a silk border- was suited for the extremely hot weather the region is known for. Its silk and zari borders elevated the textile to a mandatory one in trousseaus and was, more often than not, a replacement for the heavy silk Kanjeevaram for events.
If a textile could make you look like a million bucks and not have you swimming in rivers of sweat, it was this.
If a textile could make you look like a million bucks and not have you swimming in rivers of sweat, it was this.
The magic of the Gadwal however lies in its exceptionally mindful design language.
Do you see the plain border that eases into a thread motif in the first image? That is the bit where one makes a tiny pleat to tuck into the underskirt. Having motifs there makes little sense ( practically or aesthetically speaking) so that portion was left plain.
See the thread borders easing themselves into zari motifs? Extremely thoughtful designing so the wearer does not have the zari pricking the skin ( can lead to rashes in summer).
The zari motifs start where the thread border ends – exactly at the point where your pleats end and the border becomes visible.
The zari motifs start where the thread border ends – exactly at the point where your pleats end and the border becomes visible.
See the feather light structure of the body of the sari? This makes the fabric breathable even when temperatures soar to mid 40’s in peak summer ( as anyone from the South knows, weddings are carefully planned for peak summer and one cannot escape attending because….. summer vacations!)
The kuttu technique of joining borders to body retains the strength of these structures (and makes restoration easier at a later date). It also indicates high level of skills in the cluster.
It is similar to a Patan without ikat or Gharchola without the bandhani.
The motifs of the Gadwal form an integral part of its design language and I am among those who cannot identify or acknowledge a sari as Gadwal in the absence of this design language.
It is similar to a Patan without ikat or Gharchola without the bandhani.
Perhaps what we need, more than anything is mindful designing. Designing that takes into account the complex ecosystem in which a textile is born rather than one that considers the ‘trend’ in the market.