HIRUNI

Handwoven Kanchipuram Silk Sari

Parvai's Promise

Parvai's tribute to the temple town of Kanchipuram is close to the heart. Every Parvai Original is painstakingly designed & custom woven to the precise technical specifications making these sarees a technical wonder. Every Parvai sari is developed, debated, re-calibrated, and delivered just how we would want it woven. Presenting our take on the popular Moobagam format. 

• Recreation of a vintage silk sari
• Opulent and luxurious
• Elegant Occasionwear
• Luxurious comfort
• Soft and smooth texture
• Easy to drape
• Moisture absorbent & hypoallergenic
• Easy to care for and will retain its beauty for years - (Something we are a big believer in).
• Artisans fully paid dignified wages
• Available as a single piece only
• Environmental friendly process and product
• Durable, Sustainable, Biodegradable
• Pure Silk

Product

This elegant handwoven mulberry silk sari in black has the central body filled with check pattern done in yellow lines. The broad rettaipet borders with thin orange bands on their sides elevate the look of this drape. At first glance, the sari looks simple enough, but we wish to draw your attention to the exciting aspects of the sari. 

Firstly the dimensions of Moobagam. When we had worn traditional 3-part saris in the past, we realized the middle portion gets hidden on most body types. Considering this, we re-calibrated our design to make the central part slightly larger than the rest of the body. This ensures all three parts of this sari are visible irrespective of the pleating style or body type.

The second intervention was to ensure the Annapakshi birds along the motifs were all upright. Most sarees with animal and bird motifs used in the border have one side that is always upside down. It took us a while to make the weaver understand why this change was needed, but we got it done. So now the sari features four beautiful motif lines along the two parts with beautifully rounded annapakshis typical to Kanchipuram.

Dimensions:

• Length - 5.5 meters
• Width - 1.27 meters
• Blouse - 1 meter
• Weight - 670 gms
• Woven with: Pure mulberry silk - 2-ply warp, 4-ply weft and gold zari
• Garment care: Take care of your garment, for these are heirloom pieces that can be passed across generations. We recommend gently hand-washing these sarees in cool water with mild detergent. Shade dry these sarees & avoid drying them under direct sunlight. The sari may then be steam pressed for the finish.

Process

Each Parvai saree is woven in Kanchipuram in our looms. All materials, including the zari, are sourced ethically & tested for purity. This allows us to control the quality of our sarees from design to finish. We wish for every Parvai Kanchipuram to help restore the dignity & pride of the highly skilled weavers of this area and, in the process, lead to a better understanding & appreciation of the weave.

• Woven in: Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu
• Woven with: Pure mulberry silk, 2-ply warp/4-ply weft
• Technique: Handwoven on a traditional floor loom with jacquard
• Pre-Loom preparation time: 10 days
• Motif: Ornate mayil motif
• Weaving Process: 12 day

People

"Do you ever wonder who made your clothes? If you don't do it yet, it is about time you did. Often, handmade products are made at the cost of slave labour and inhuman working conditions.

At Parvai, we ensure our process does not directly or indirectly support such practices, pay artisans their due & take pride in ensuring the saree we do not come at the cost of someone else's misery. Each saree is hence truly a labour of love. Our Kanchipuram silks are woven at our looms fully supervised by Parvai's team from design to finish."

• Dyers: Thaygarajan and his team of 2 dyers
• Preloom Preparations: Nearly six people are involved in warping and sizing. 
• Petni: Mala and Shanti
• Designed by: Ane Thomas
• Woven by: Mariyappan

Perspective

To us, Kanchipuram silks are much more than motifs and colour combinations. Parvai's Kanchipuram silks are cleverly constructed to ensure the saree does not weigh down the wearer free but feels like a royal. That is why our sarees focus heavily on texture, structure & construction. With time and age, the saree gets lighter and softer. Our humble attempt is to open your mind to the value of silk, the beauty of constructing a comfortably luxurious heavier ply and appreciate the technical nuances of a highly evolved art form.

We have to admit we started this project to develop a non-korai format which is a pocket friend; however, changing the dimensions of the Moobagam and making just one of each sari meant our dyeing costs went up. We crafted them in 2G zari to keep the sari affordable. We did this because, to us, this sari is not about motifs or zari but about weaving an affordable & classic Moobagam. Similar saris can be incorporated 3 & 5g Zari upon request. What makes a Kanchipuram precious? Is it the dense 44 kunjam reed? The purity of silk? The motifs & korvai? To us, it is a nuanced approach of balancing all these factors and making something true to the tradition & the glorious roots of the weave. Our saris honour the precious heritage that is thriving & prospering in the temple town. Say hello to Hiruni!

Other questions

Note: This product is handwoven, so there might be slight irregularities. Imperfections and variations in the product cannot be termed defects, as these are intrinsic to the handmade process. The product colours may vary due to the light sources or your monitor setting.

Do you want to know more? We are available at +917358550888 (WhatsApp) & happy to speak to you about our creations.