Kantha Stitch Saree: an Old-Age Technique of Telling Stories Through Threads

If you walk into a Bengali Grandma’s house and start digging, you will surely get many treasures. 

From chatpata pickle to an old, faded saree, grandma’s things have their own story to tell. 

If you dig more, there is a high chance you can find a ‘kantha’ as well. A multilayered piece of cloth held together with millions of tiny stitches.

This cloth may not be premium silk with golden zari work or heavily done motifs. But the extraordinary beauty of Kantha lies in its attractive stitchwork, which is done by Grandma’s own hand.

When this same kind of stitches are done upon the saree, the aesthetics of the saree reaches another level. These sarees are called Kantha Stich Sarees. 

How a Kantha stitch Saree is made

 

Kantha embroidery is far more interesting than it looks.

Such stitches are done on ages-old, used cotton sarees, which losts its beauty centuries ago. The stitches are done upon it to give it back its lost charm. 

No, it doesn’t carry any royal legacy or fancy fashion week status, but it carries the centuries-old village art with grace. 

The hallmark of the Kantha stitch saree is in its running embroidery. The stitches are simple, yet very hypnotic. 

The stitch starts from one corner of the saree and moves across the whole body with a repetitive pattern.

Village women embroidered birds, animals,  flowers, temples, village scenes, and mythological stories in their old sarees to make them look even cooler than before. 

Sometimes, they also stitch their own stories into the saree, pouring out their hearts through the intricate patterns of the threads.

So  Kantha stitch saree is not just a saree, it is a village girl’s private diary, where she talks about her dreams and aspirations through her stitching art.

History and evaluation of Kantha stitch saree 

Previously, the kantha was usually made for the newborn baby of the daughter,  symbolising a token of affection from grandparent. 

Even today, making a ’ memory quilt ’ is one of the most trending businesses on Instagram.

But this centuries-old stitching technique was previously not so popular. It came to the limelight during the 1970s. 

Shantiniketan was considered one of the most prominent hubs of this heritage. During the development projects, ‘Sriniketan’carried by Rabindranath Tagore himself,  thousands of villagers were motivated to make this art and sell it in Sona Jhuri Hat. 

Kabi made this happen to give the poor villagers financial stability.

Later on, they started to make this art on 6 yards of fabric, and started calling them ‘Kantha Saree.’

But now not only the sarees, the various designs of Lep kantha, used as a quilt, and Sujani kantha, used as a decorative pillow cover, are also found as the best sellers of the ‘sona jhuri’ market.

FAQs

1. Why is the Kantha Stitch Saree price so high?

The stitches are done by hands thatswhy the saree piece is so high.

2. How can I identify the authentic Kantha Stitch Saree?

If the thread knots in the back are visible, then you can understand the saree is authentic.

3. Kantha stitch Saree on Tussar Silk or Kantha Stitch Cottton which is the best?

Anyway, Both has its own beauty, but kantha stitch cotton is considered more authentic. 

4. How many types of stitches are used in Kantha Stitch Saree?

12 types of stitches are used during making kantha stitch saree.

5. What is the difference between Kantha Stitch Saree and Chikankari?

Kantha stitch is a running stitch. But in Chikankari, stitches are complex. A refined shadow work is done during the chikankari embroidery.