page_title: Baluchari Sari
section_title: Motifs: themes and variety
hierarchical_section_title: Baluchari Sari / Motifs: themes and variety
caption_attribution_description: English: Baluchori Saree
context_page_description: Baluchar Sari or Baluchuri Sari is a type of sari, a garment worn by women across India and Bangladesh. This particular type of sari originated in Bengal and is known for depictions of mythological scenes on the pallu of the sari. It was mainly produced in Murshidabad but presently Bishnupur and its surrounding places of West Bengal is the only place where authentic Baluchuri saris are produced. It takes approximately one week to produce one such sari. The Baluchari Sari has been granted the status of geographical indication in India.
context_section_description: Baluchari saris, or locally called Baluchuri saris, today often have depictions from scenes of Mahabharat and Ramayana. During the Mughal and British eras, they had a square design in the pallu with paisley motifs in them, and depicted scenes from the lives of the Nawab of Bengal featuring women smoking hookahs, nawabs driving horse carriages, and even European officers of the East India Company. It would take two craftsmen working for almost a week to produce one sari. The main material used is silk and the sari is polished after weaving. 
  While there isn’t a lot of variation in the method of weaving used today, balucharis can be broadly categorized based on the threads used in weaving the patterns:
  Baluchari (resham): The simplest balucharis have resham threads in a single colour to weave the entire pattern
  Baluchari (meenakari): These balucharis have threads in two or more colours with attractive meenakari work that further brightens the patterns
  Swarnachari (baluchari in gold), also called Swarnachuri: They are the most gorgeous balucharis, woven with gold (swarna) or silver coloured threads (often with meenakari work in another colour) that illuminate the patterns to a much larger extent.
caption: Baluchori saree - Mahabharat motif showing the Pandavas marrying Draupadi.
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