11 / The collection
Gadwal
Gadwal, Telangana
The weave
Cotton at the heart. Silk and gold at the edges.
The traditional sari brings a cotton body together with silk borders and a silk pallu. Today, silk and silk-cotton versions flourish too.
The border and the pallu
Two joins hold the story together. Kuppadam, or tippadamu: interlocked wefts connect body and border. Petni, or kuttu: the body and pallu warps are joined thread by thread, with twisting at the transition.
Rare hallmark
Follow the change in the yarn. At the border, the body meets a new colour and fibre. At the pallu, another transition runs across the width.
The lightness of a cotton body meets the richness of silk at the border. The join is made in the weaving.
The motifs
Kuppadam vaja refers to ornamental extra-warp work. It is decoration, distinct from the joins.
The colours
Cream
Red
Brown
Blue
The contrast belongs at the edge. Cream with red. Brown with blue. An earthy or quiet body can carry a much stronger border. Gacchakaya rangu is a local colour name for a shade between green and grey.
Between two rivers
Gadwal lies in the country between the Krishna and Tungabhadra. Its textile tradition brings a light everyday ground together with a richly ornamented ceremonial edge.
See it in print
Gadwal as it appears in the book — motifs, colours, hallmarks and fold.
Open at page 73