Sarees & Handloom in Kolkata

Bengal weaves its own sarees and Kolkata sells them: tant, the crisp cotton of Shantipur and Phulia; jamdani, woven in the loom rather than printed; baluchari from Bishnupur with narrative panels of scenes from the epics; garad and korial, plain white with a red border, worn at puja.

Gariahat is where the city buys. The big houses sit around the crossing and the pavement stalls in front of them sell the same weaves cheaper, without the air conditioning.

Name	Where	What they carry
Adi Dhakeshwari Bastralaya1926	Gariahat and Rashbehari	One of the oldest saree houses in the city; Bengal handloom in depth.
Adi Mohini Mohan Kanjilal1919	Gariahat, Rashbehari and city-wide	A Kolkata saree institution; tant, jamdani, silk.
Indian Silk House1940s	Gariahat	Silk and Bengal weaves.
Traders Assembly	Gariahat	Sarees and dress material.
Gariahat pavement saree stalls	Gariahat crossing	The same weaves as the shops behind, at lower prices and with bargaining.
Lake Market saree shops	Lake Market	A smaller cluster serving the neighbourhood.

Name	Where	What they carry
Burrabazar saree wholesale	Burrabazar	The wholesale trade behind the retail shops.
New Market saree shops1874	New Market	Handloom and silk inside the old market.
Biswa Bangla2014	Park Street, Dakshinapan	The West Bengal government handloom and craft outlet; reliable provenance on weaves.

Name	Where	What they carry
Hatibagan saree shops	Hatibagan	The North Kolkata equivalent of Gariahat.
Shyambazar cloth shops	Shyambazar	Everyday tant and cotton.

Name	Where	What they carry
Salt Lake and New Town saree showrooms	Salt Lake, New Town	The modern branches of the Gariahat houses.

Worth knowing

• Tant for everyday, jamdani for occasion, garad for puja — that is the working rule
• Jamdani is woven, not printed. Hold it to the light and look at the back.
• Baluchari from Bishnupur carries scenes from the Mahabharata in the pallu
• The Gariahat pavement sells the same weaves as the shops behind it, cheaper
• Durga Puja, roughly September to October, is when the whole trade peaks

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