With Eid-ul-Fitr three weeks away, weavers in Tangail are getting busy with huge orders from sari traders in the country as well as abroad. A coveted handloom product, Tangail saris see a sale surge ahead of big festivals both here and overseas.
Wholesalers across the country flock to Tangail at the beginning of Ramadan to place their orders. The weavers weave yarns into beautiful saris of different types and qualities: cotton, several kinds of silk, tashar, baluchori, khaddar, benarasi and jamdani, among many others.
Most weavers live in Sadar, Kalihati and Delduar upazila of the district. But Pathrail in Delduar upazila is known as the sari capital of Tangail; weavers there are very creative and come up with trendy design varieties.
While talking to the Dhaka Tribune, several Pathrail weavers said they had started early to cope with the pressure of completing the huge Eid orders.
Nil Kamal Basak, a handloom owner in Pathrail, said: “We are getting busier weaving saris as we are receiving orders in larger quantities. With Eid a few weeks away, huge orders are coming from different parts of Bangladesh and abroad.”
Ratan Basak, convener of Tangail Sari Traders Association, said: “Business has increased due to Eid this year. Now that there is no political unrest, we are hoping for good business.”
About 25% of the saris produced in Tangail are exported to India and other countries, while the rest are distributed in various markets in the country, he said.
Around 2.5 lakh workers are presently working on 75,460 handloom units to finish the Eid orders, he added.
“Tangail saris are popular mainly because of the unique and creative designs invented by the weavers. Weavers from other parts of the country have tried to emulate the Tangail designs, but they have not been able to match the quality, or the variety,” said Roghunath Basak, a specialist and successful sari trader in the country.
Partho Kundu, a wholesale trader of Tangail sari in West Bengal, and Prodip Kumar Dey of Boro Bazar in Kolkata, India told the Dhaka Tribune: “We come to Tangail every year before Eid and Puja due to the great demand of Tangail sari in India. These are also the cheapest of good quality.”
Price of Tangail saris range from Tk350 to Tk10,000, said the weavers. The latest addition to the industry is andi silk saris, which range from Tk1,700 to Tk4,000.