Born in the most ancient city of Kashi or Varanasi, the complex and intricate weaving of these artisanal masterpieces emerged from the golden era of the Mughal rule. To date, a Benarasi sari is considered to be the queen of all types of silks. The weaving of these saris requires a highly complex technique accomplished by only expert weavers who have a history of generations involved closely with this art. Not only do weavers have the knowledge of this weaving technique, but they also constantly keep experimenting and evolving new technologies, which makes them come up with new, more advanced forms of Benarasi textiles.
The main techniques to weave a Benarasi fabric are Kadhua, Kadhiyal, Vaskat or Ektara, Tanchoi, and Dumpanch, to name a few. Getting a sari ready involves anywhere between a few days to many months depending on the complexity and intricacy of the design.
Presently only about 20,000 handloom weavers are left in this cluster, which is quite alarming for one of the highest forms of handwoven art.
