Baluchari

Baluchari dates to around 1704, when Murshid Quli Khan, the first Nawab of Bengal, moved his capital and brought skilled weavers with him; they settled in a village called Baluchar, which gave the saree its name. As the original centre declined, the craft moved to Bishnupur, where it is chiefly woven today. Swarnachari is the same weave worked entirely in gold zari.

Region: Originally Baluchar village near Murshidabad, West Bengal; woven mainly in Bishnupur today
GI status: GI tagged for West Bengal since 2011.

1. 01Fine silk yarn is dyed, typically in a strong single colour for the body.
2. 02The pallu's scenes are built as the cloth is woven, using a supplementary weft technique so each figure and border panel is worked directly into the fabric, closed off in its own rectangular box so the design does not smear into the next one.
3. 03The rest of the saree is usually left plainer, with a simple woven border, so the pallu carries the full weight of the design.
4. 04A detailed mythological pallu can take a skilled weaver several weeks to a few months, depending on how many figures the scene holds.

• Turn the pallu over: a woven Baluchari scene shows the construction of carried and cut threads on the back; an embroidered or printed imitation looks flat and identical on both sides.
• The figures sit in clean, closed rectangular panels; a smeared or bleeding scene usually means a print, not a weave.
• Swarnachari, the all-gold version, should show real zari that catches light unevenly; a uniform, flat gold sheen usually means a synthetic substitute.

WEIGHT

Medium to heavy, depending on how much of the body carries silk versus plain weave.

WARMTH

Warm; better for cooler weather or an indoor function.

BREATHABILITY

Moderate to low.

DRAPE

Has enough body to hold a pleat and show the pallu scene clearly when worn over the shoulder.

WRINKLING

Resists wrinkling reasonably well for a silk.

Best season: Winter. Indoor, air-conditioned settings

WASHING

Dry clean only.

IRONING

Low heat, cloth between iron and fabric, and avoid pressing directly over the woven pallu scene.

STORAGE

Store flat or loosely rolled in muslin; fold so the crease line does not run straight through a figure in the pallu, and refold periodically.

STAINS

Take to a specialist dry cleaner promptly; do not attempt to treat a stain near the woven scene yourself.

PERFUME AND DEODORANT

Do not spray perfume or deodorant on the saree, especially near the pallu; scent skin and let it dry first.

Drape so the mythological pallu falls fully visible over the left shoulder rather than bunched, which is the whole point of the weave; a plain silk blouse keeps attention on the scene.