The sari has been crafted using zari-embroidery and the repeats of two designing patterns for the field and the ‘palla’ – end-part, and an intricate design with tiny flowers, composed of a roundish zircon in the centre for pistil and the white and grayish beads around it for petals, comprising the central band flowing along the entire length of the border. Strangely, the designer has used just a few articles from among the wide range of material used in textile designing, primarily the gold-wire and miniature-pearls, as also gold-sequins, tiny glass-beads, zircons and gold-lace. Characteristically, the material used, especially the gold-wire and pearls, is genuine and pure. She has used neither any article’s imitation nor its synthetic version. Apart, the gold-thread is a bit ticker suggesting use of pure gold in making it as also enabling creation of bold design-patterns for against a maroon background such patterns alone could subsist. Unless the embroidered patterns were bold and large and the material used had its lustre their effect would have diluted into the vastness of maroon.
As has almost concretised the mode of designing a sari, its more ornate parts, borders and palla – end-part worn variedly over the breast and shoulders, alone have been taken care of. About three inches of breadth on each of the two edges of the length and one, the palla, of the breadth, have been defined as borders with a design-pattern consisting of two parts, the upper – about half of an inch, being a lace composed of gold and silk threads, and the lower, over two inches wide, an intricate design running across the whole length. A course of tiny lustrous flowers comprising zircons and beads defines the central line of the border. Two series of pearls set inside the rings made of gold-wire flank the central flower-line on either side. The band on the upper side and that below the centre, have been identically designed usuing gold-wire for creating linear effects, and sequils, beads and the tiniest pearls for creating various patterns. Though exceptionally fine, entire work has been neatly executed.
In designing the palla the designer has not used a pattern or set of patterns in running course over the entire breadth. Instead, the palla and the bottom-line adjacent to border has been identically designed using repeats of a large size design-pattern, broadly an arabesque-type composition consisting of stylised plant motifs rendered in series, one holding, as if into wide expanded arms, the other according to its size. Its top and the central motifs are more interesting than the rest. While its apex looks more like a crest, the other in its centre, looks like a tribal deity shrine. It is more compact as also the most beautiful part of the larger arabesque. This central motif has been used, independent of the rest, as the motif for adorning the field. It seems to emerge from the main motif to float into the space above. In her choice of net and judiciously laid motifs, each at a reasonable distance, Suman Kumar provides to let the beauty of the wearer’s figure project in full.
This description by Prof. P.C. Jain and Dr. Daljeet. Prof. Jain specializes on the aesthetics of literature and is the author of numerous books on Indian art and culture. Dr. Daljeet is the curator of the Miniature Painting Gallery, National Museum, New Delhi. They have both collaborated together on a number of books.
Primary Color Pantone 19-1650 TPX - Biking Red
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