This was a #saree my mother bought me from Madurai circa 2004. It is considered a modern Banarsi (or perhaps Baluchari as explained below) silk, in deep Prussian blue. It has the little dot design more densely populating the front and more scarce in the rest of the saree. It has an ecru pallu enriched by pale gold threadwork as you find on the border.

Initially I didn’t fancy this as the design on the border features two girls most probably gardening – one is patting the earth in the pot while the other holds a jar of water. Gardening is my mother’s hobby. The border also features two designs interspersed: two girls talking with a man riding a chariot. I much preferred nature or geometric designs, and these figures implied homeliness to me, and I eschewed this saree for many years. However I wore it today for the ballet at the Philharmonic, and reminded my mum that she bought this for me. Today I find the combination of colours rich and stylish so I guess I can learn to appreciate what I previously thought I would never wear.