One-day showcase of antique saris in Bengaluru

Bengaluru-based antiques collector and textile aficionado Uma Rao’s personal collection of handwoven heirloom saris will be on display as part of ‘Pracheen’, a showcase by Aadyam Handwoven, an initiative by the Aditya Birla Group.

A total of 23 saris will be showcased at Sabha Blr, Kamaraj Road on August 23. 79-year-old Uma has been collecting saris for over 60 years. Some of the pieces in her collection are over a century old. “I started my collection in my 20s and I hope to give it to a museum one day,” she says.  

She recalls how she chanced upon a Patan patola, the oldest piece in the collection. “While visiting Patan, Gujarat, I met a man who had a museum. In the museum I came across this double ikat piece. It was made with natural dyes. It is around 150 years old,” she shares. 

Some of the other weaves one can view include a Gadwal cotton sari (they do not make cotton saris in Gadwal anymore, she notes), a Sirpur sari (which belonged to her mother), a Mysore brocade with the gandaberunda motif (Mysore royal insignia, as the loom it was made in was set up by the Mysore royal family), and a Molakalmuru (which was made on a loom set up by her mother, Sudha Reddy, in 1954). “I have always loved saris and I find the beauty of naturally dyed handwoven saris so appealing,” states Uma. 

August 23, 11 am. At Sabha Blr, Kamaraj Road. For details, call 98450 24823.