Tangail saree thrives as ever before

TANGAIL, Jan 21: Tangail is the home of the weavers of world famous Tangail saree, a handloom saree made of both cotton and silk threads with intricate handworked design or all over its body. Though saree is a produce at different upazilas of the district, Delduar upazila is the capital of Tangail sarees with its prices ranging from Tk 400 to Tk 20,000 to meet the demand of people of all classes.

The sarees are sold in almost all the markets across the country. Wholesalers from different places of the country including the capital city come to Tangail to buy the ever popular 'Tangail saree', the first choice of women as festival wear. Rokeya Jahan, an inhabitant of Dhaka who came to Tangail town said Tangail sarees are of different qualities and kinds, including cotton, Jamdani, silk, Tussore, Baluchuri, Khaddar, Benarashi etc.

Tangail sarees enjoy continued popularity due to the creativity of local weavers. "The weavers of the other parts of the country had tried to emulate the designs of Tangail sarees in the past but could not match the qualities and varieties of our sarees, told Raghunat Basak, a weaver at Pathrail and also former president of Tangail Saree Traders' Association.

Sources said the traders in Tangail export about 25 per cent of their sarees to India of prices ranging from Tk 300 to Tk 10,000. Saree business is not so good this season due to unstable political situation, increased yarn prices and aggression of Indian sarees in the markets.

According to Tangail Weavers' Rehabilitation Organisation, around 0.25 million workers are employed in around 75,460 handloom units in the district.