Intricate weaves from Odisha

The Sambalpuri saris of Odisha are most sought-after for those with an eye for fashion. When the fashion-conscious intend to flaunt the heritage weaves of Odisha, Vichitrapuri saris of Sambalpur are the preferred choice.

 Inspired by the game of dice during the epic times of Mahabharata, Vichitrapuri saris are handwoven in silk threads and have replicas of chess board arranged in geometric patterns.

Made from exclusive handloom fabric called pata, Vichitrapuri saris are an essential part of wedding trousseaus in Odisha and mostly appear in traditional black and grey, reflecting the bandhakala or the tie-and-dye craftmanship of Sambalpuri weavers. These are passapalli saris enjoy a traditional craftmanship dating back to 200 years. The saris are brilliantly crafted by the weavers of Sonpur in the Suvarnapur district of Odisha and are locally popular as ‘Bichitrapuri’. 

It was our late prime minister, Indira Gandhi, who had admired the impressive weaves of Vichitrapuri saris that soon made way in her prized collection of saris in the ’80s and thereafter gained popularity outside Odisha. 

The raw materials including silk threads are imported from Bangalore, while vegetable dyes are procured from Kolkata. The process involves tying and dyeing of both warp and weft before weaving into a fabric. Around 4,000 families of weavers in Sonpur, in the vicinity of Bolangir, are involved in the weaving of Vichitrapuri saris. It takes a few weeks to weave one sari. 

The most popular Vichitrapuri saris are in maroon and black combination, but one can look out for other attractive colours too. The saris have a base with chess board weaves in prominent orange and white small squares with alternate black and maroon squares of a bigger size. The double borders are richly woven with motifs and the aanchal or the falling edge of the sari comprises traditional motifs like conch shells, wheels, flowers and animals.

The Vichitrapuri silk saris are tagged at prices that are easy on your pocket. They start at Rs 5,000, and depending on the intricacy of weaves, can go up to Rs 30,000. If you are on a shoestring budget, then look for cotton saris priced between Rs 500 and Rs 5,000. 

The best shopping destination to look out for Vichitrapuri saris are the retail outlets of Utkalika and Boyanika that are in all the leading metros of India. These showrooms are run by an apex body — Odisha State Co-operative Handicrafts Corporation Ltd.