Maroon Hand Painted Madhubani Tussar Ghicha Silk Saree – Bhagalpuri Handloom

Vrinda

Deep maroon through the body, and a pallu given over entirely to painting — at its centre a couple in profile, foreheads almost touching, ringed band after band in triangle, rosette and leaf, with flowering vine spreading to the edges.

About the painting

This is hand-painted Mithila work, drawn directly onto the silk. The faces are the tell: eyes, brow and lip drawn freehand, the fills stopping just inside their outlines, the pencil underdrawing still faintly visible in places. Every ring of the border was set down by hand, so the spacing breathes rather than repeating exactly.

The central pair — he crowned, she veiled and jewelled, her hand raised — is the couple Mithila painters return to most often, read as Radha and Krishna. Around them the painter has built the concentric world that always accompanies them: geometry closest in, then flower, leaf, bird and fish spreading outward.

About the fabric

Tussar Ghicha silk, handwoven in Bhagalpur. Ghicha is the yarn drawn from the outer layers of the cocoon and spun by hand — hence the slubby, uneven texture and the soft matte lustre. The maroon sits deep on it, shifting toward brick where the slub catches light.

Details

• Fabric: Tussar Ghicha Silk
• Colour: Maroon with natural beige
• Work: Hand-painted Madhubani (Mithila), painted directly onto the silk
• Pallu: Radha-Krishna roundel with concentric borders, flowering vine, bird and fish
• Border: Hand-painted Madhubani, both sides
• Blouse piece: unstitched, 0.8 m
• Saree length: 5.5 m | Width: 1.1 m
• Care: Dry clean only. Do not soak or scrub the painted areas. Store wrapped in cotton or muslin, refold along a different line every few months.

A note on hand work

Each piece is woven individually and painted by hand, so no two are alike. Slight irregularities in the slub, in the line, and in the density of colour are the marks of the hand that made it. Colour may vary a little from your screen.