Maheshwari Cotton Silk Anarkali

Details

An anarkali cut from Maheshwari cotton silk, handwoven on the banks of the Narmada at Maheshwar, Madhya Pradesh. Maheshwar Sarees and Fabrics is a registered geographical indication, and this cloth carries that GI along with the Handloom Mark. The warp is mulberry silk and the weft is cotton, which is why 90 GSM of it can hold a four metre sweep without hanging heavy on the shoulders. The border is the bugdi that Maheshwar is known for, and the test for it is free: a real Maheshwari border is reversible, the same pattern reading correctly on both faces, because it is woven into the cloth. Turn the hem over. A stitched-on trim or a printed band shows you a blank or a mirrored mess on the back. The cheat is a power loom, and it runs at scale. Maheshwari is one of the most copied weaves in the country and mill versions sit in every market at a third of the price, which is exactly why the GI and the Handloom Mark exist. The second cheat is the word silk in cotton silk: polyester and viscose take dye brightly, cost a fraction of mulberry filament and are indistinguishable to the eye, so the composition has to be a tested number rather than an adjective. The third is weight, where cloth declared at 90 GSM turns out to be 70.

• GI registered Maheshwar fabric, and Handloom Mark tagged
• 48 percent mulberry silk in the warp and 52 percent cotton in the weft, by weight, tested
• 90 GSM, measured, not estimated
• Reversible woven bugdi border, never a stitched-on trim or a printed band
• Azo-free reactive dye, screened for banned aromatic amines
• Bodice lined in cotton mul, so no polyester slip against the skin
• No glued stones, no plastic sequins, no starch loaded in to fake body The honest part: this is a fine cloth and it wants care. Hand wash cold and alone or dry clean, iron low through a press cloth, and expect a faint tint in the first rinse and up to 2 percent relaxation. It creases when you sit. A crease-resist resin would fix that and would also stiffen the hand and cut the life of the silk, so we have not used one.