Research Essay Outline
Title: Archiving the Saree
Introduction
How does the saree—as a diverse yet unified craft tradition spanning
multiple regions—survive and resist colonial systems of categorization,
extraction, and display in archival documentation like Watson’s
catalogue?
Research Questions
1. How does the multiplicity of regional saree styles complicate colonial and
nationalist narratives of a singular Indian identity?
2. In what ways do saree-wearing and saree-weaving perform regional, caste,
gender, and ecological identities simultaneously?
3. What do the omissions in Watson’s catalogue—like the absence of
weavers’ names or cultural context—reveal about colonial priorities in
textile documentation?
4. How did colonial visual documentation the saree while commodifying its
aesthetic?
5. How do saree weavers and designers today draw upon precolonial craft
knowledge as a form of resistance against homogenizing modern fashion
industries? (merge with question 4)
6. Can the saree be read as a form of ‘embodied archive’? What kinds of
knowledge are stored in saree-making that escape written
documentation?
-how museums view sarees now
-visual culture- where does saree stand and how it is connected to the identity of
sub continent or exotism.
Theoretical Framework
Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak – "Can the Subaltern Speak?"
Addresses the silencing of indigenous voices in colonial discourse. Helps critique
how Watson’s catalogue speaks about saree makers but never with them.
Arjun Appadurai – The Social Life of Things
Proposes that objects (like sarees) have social lives and meaning through contexts
of production, circulation, and consumption.
Tim Ingold – Making: Anthropology, Archaeology, Art and Architecture
Talks about “making” as a form of thinking and knowing, not just doing.
The Saree as a Craft
● The saree is a complex craft system involving design, fiber production
(cotton, silk, zari), dyeing, spinning, and handloom weaving. Each region in
South Asia contributes distinct techniques (e.g., Banarasi brocade,
Kanjeevaram silk, Jamdani from Bengal, and Pochampally Ikat).
● Craft knowledge is often oral, intergenerational, and site-specific—passed
down in familial looms and community clusters. These practices resist
standardization, which colonial documentation sought to impose.
● The saree craft embodies a relationship with land (natural dyes, local flora),
time (seasonal rhythms), and the body (lengths, drapes, and sensuality). It is
embedded in rituals, everyday life, and regional identity.
● Contemporary saree revival movements (e.g., Raw Mango, Dastkar, FabIndia)
re-emphasize the handcrafted element as a site of slow fashion,
sustainability, and cultural resistance.
● Historically, the saree's form and function have evolved. Earlier draping styles
(e.g., nivi, Bengali athpoure, Maharashtrian nauvari) were tailored to
movement, labor, and regional climate. Today, modern fashion continues to
adapt sarees—incorporating hybrid fabrics, stitched versions, and runway
reinterpretations—without necessarily discarding their artisanal roots.
Saree Craft and Cultural Identity
● The saree became politicized during the Swadeshi movement, when
indigenous handloom replaced imported mill cloth as a symbol of
self-reliance.
● Post-independence, the Indian state also positioned handloom sarees as
symbols of national culture, thereby both protecting and institutionalizing the
craft.
Contemporary Relevance
● Many saree weaving communities today (e.g., in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil
Nadu, Odisha) face exploitation, underpayment, and loss of markets.
● Reviving saree craft requires ethical platforms, equitable visibility, and
revaluation of the knowledge carried in hands—not just archives.
Bibliography
1. Bhabha, H.K. (1994). The Location of Culture. Routledge.
2. Crill, R. (1998). Indian Ikat Textiles. V&A Publications.
3. Dhamija, J., & Jain, J. (1989). Handwoven Fabrics of India. Mapin Publishing.
4. Jain, J. (2009). Textile Traditions of India: Contemporary Practices of Craft.
5. Kawlra, A. (2014). “Sari and the Narrative of Nation in 20th Century India.” In
Global Textile Encounters, Oxbow Books.
6. Mathur, S. (2007). India by Design: Colonial History and Cultural Display.
University of California Press.
7. Mukherjee, S. (2010). Saris of India: Tradition and Beyond. Roli Books.
8. Roy, T. (2004). Traditional Industry in the Economy of Colonial India.
Cambridge University Press.
9. Watson, J.F. (1866). The Textile Manufactures and the Costumes of the
People of India. G.E. Eyre and W. Spottiswoode.
