Treat for silk-lovers in city

HYDERABAD: National Silk Expo, on its maiden display in the city drew heavy crowds after it was formally inaugurated on Friday at Satya Sai Nigamagam, Srinagar Colony.The expo will showcase 100 per cent silk products. The expo is organsied by the Gramin Hastkala Vikas Samiti (GHVS) which is a non-profit organisation and works in handlooms and handicraft products.Silk-lovers thronged the stalls displaying silk varieties on sale at the exhibition were stamped with ‘Silk Mark’, implying 100 per cent pure silk.Silk saris of different hues and variety of designs adorned the stalls as women customers examined them, admiring their intricate design and craftsmanship.However, the displays contained more than mere saris. Silk shirts and ties apart, one Dharpan silks from Bangalore attracted curiosity for its exclusive range of silk cushion covers, blankets and divan sets.A stall dedicated to silk production ‘silk purity testing centre’ also managed to catch people’s attention with its specimen of eggs, larvae, pupae, moths, cocoons and a variety of food plants the silk worms feed on to produce silk.Jayesh Kumar Gupta, GHVS secretary says, “This is the first time we are coming here in Hyderabad. The specialty of this expo is that most of all the materials available here are handmade, hand painted and hand woven.” A demonstrator at the stall explained how different types of silk were produced. Gita Ben, the owner of the Gujrati stall explains, “There is a wide use of wax for making Indian designs on the salwaars. It is a three-day work where hot wax and colour is left on a material which is then left to dry. After this the wax is scraped off and other colours are added.” One place which showed its maximum presence was Kolkata with its huge variety of sarees ranging from Rs 2,000 to Rs 20,000.“We different varities from kantha work, naksi, Tussar to Bhisampur. It takes around five days to work on one saree,” says Shila Seth, stall owner from Kolkata.The exhibitions showcases 20 stalls from 15 states including Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Karnataka, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal etc.The major centres for silk work are Varanasi, Azamgarh and Mubarakpur. The expo closes on July 7.