The sarees of Madurai

What is woven here

Sungudi is a cotton cloth in which small knots are tied across the fabric before it is dyed, leaving round dots in a pattern. Traditional colours include reds, maroons and deep blues, often with a contrast border. The cloth is light and cool, which makes it well suited to the climate. Modern makers also use it in other colours and for blouses and dress material.

The craft and its people

Sungudi work is done by tying hundreds of small knots by hand, usually by women working at home. The cloth is then dyed and washed. The craft is linked with the Saurashtra community, whose families settled in the city generations ago. The knotting is slow, which is why hand-tied pieces cost more than printed imitations.

Seeing it

The Meenakshi Amman Temple is the centre of the city, and its surrounding streets hold many cloth shops. Weaving and dyeing units are found in neighbourhoods outside the old city. Visitors interested in the craft should ask at a cooperative or craft emporium for a demonstration of knot-tying.

A trail idea for Madurai

1. Meenakshi Temple streets Stay in the old city and walk the cloth shops that ring the temple.
2. A Sungudi workshop Watch knots being tied across the cloth and see the dyeing and washing afterwards.
3. Government handloom emporium A place to compare hand-tied pieces with printed lookalikes.