Andal's Kili

Had to keep myself cool in comfortable cotton and at the same time look bright for the festival Saree4 is a Sambalpuri, and at once noticed the weaver had named this saree Mahalakshmi. The bright orange and yellow this is one grand saree. Next to Mangalgiri, Sambalpuris fill up my wardrobe not only because these two are my favourites, but also because of the Sambalpuri co-operative that was close to my house and later moved to Vashi. #100Sareepact.   The recurring motifs of Odisha come from their temples, specially the wheels of Konark Sun Temple, the sculptures and of course the elephants for which Kalinga was once so famous. I have not kept a track of the saree names, but this one as I said before will always remain in my memory for the golden and pinkish hues of the saree is indeed Mahalakshmi. 

Sambalpuri Bastralaya, I discovered on afternoon in 2005 in the small bylanes of Nerul, in a quarter this is not known for its hip new highrises, but old working class quarter. The corner building opposite Apna Market has a great name "Handloom Haveli" but it is a crumbling old building, with a dusty and paling paint look. There were hardly a handloom of co-operatives that were still working out of that building, a Jaipur store, Priyadarshini from Karnataka, Maharashtra's Indrayani and this one. Rest, APCO, Co-Optex had all moved. A nice concept to promote by Ministry of Textiles, but a wrong location, bad publicity and poorly maintained building all keeps this place unknown to many. Since then Sambalpuri has moved to a swanky new airconditioned showroom at Vashi Odisha Bhavan, and more stocks and better place to shop.