This sari was an impulse buy in February 2014 when I was visiting India. I had accompanied my Bhabhi to buy a gift sari for a friend in the UK. I had no intention to buy any saris for me as I had bought quite a few on my previous visit to India in 2013. My Bhabhi and I visited a couple of the shops in Ghatkopar, Mumbai for the sari, as you do! Whilst we were choosing the sari for my friend in this one shop that my Bhabhi knew well, I saw this sari and just the contrast and the colour of it made it jump out from all the heavy silk saris we were looking at. Well, I didn’t even know what the print was called. My Bhabhi advised me that it was called a Warli print, an aadivasi tribal print. Warlis live on the borders of Gujarat and Maharashtra in villages and have their own unique language and culture, including the tribal paintings. Both my Bhabhi and I loved the sari so much that I bought it.

I had a few hours on that trip before I took my flight back to the UK and so I couldn’t have the blouse stitched. I never had the time to have it stitched in the UK until I returned this year in February to India for a few days for a family wedding. I had prearranged for it to be stitched in Ahmedabad where I was again on literally a flying visit. It’s great to have an extended family of Bhabhis with connections, especially of their tailors who can sew clothes at very short notice!
The sari stayed untouched in my wardrobe until now on 1st November 2015, when I was attending a Community Bhajan Bhojan programme on this Sunday afternoon. The sun was shining, it was a warm afternoon and I felt like wearing a new cotton sari and there it was! How could anyone resist it! I love it! I of course had to ask hubby to take a picture of it.