Silk Sari for Goddess Sita ready, to be adorned on deity in Ayodhya

ANANTAPUR: The Dharmavaram brand of Silk Sari industry boasting a Rs1,000 crore annual business from the 'leaf to cloth' programme gained attention again as the handloom weavers and designers wove a 60 metre-long sari as a present to Goddess Sita, marking the inauguration of the Lord Sriram Temple in Ayodhya on January 22.

The Dharvaram Silk Town in the Satya Sai district is reputed for its decades-old tradition of weaving pure silk saris on the hand-run looms.

It also experimented with use of sandal wood, lights and other material in the silk saris.

The unique silk sari has about 4000 gattams of Epic Ramayana. Further, 13 languages of Jai Sriram slogan were woven in the design.

The Dharmavaram brand is familiar on the lines of the Kanchi saris in many countries for decades.

Master designer Nagaraju initiated the process to present a big sari to the goddess on the occasion of the temple inauguration. He wove the sari with the help of handloom weavers Surendranath and his son S. Teja.

Nagaraju, who wove the sari a few months ago exhibited it at a programme for Dharmavaram Sari and won recognition in Satya Sai district two months ago.

"We worked about four months to attain a clear shape and the design of the Goddess Sita sari and spent more than `5 lakh excluding the man days we spent on it," Nagaraju observed.

The exclusive sari for the goddess weighs 16 kg. It was woven with rich quality Zari. The weavers and the designer told DC they would present the sari for Goddess Sita at Ayodhya and are seeking to decorate the idols with the sari on January 22.

AP stands second in mulberry cocoon production and Dharmavaram stands top in sari production.