On World Saree Day, Sanjukta Dutta Tells Us What Makes the Assamese Mekhela Chador Attire Special

Ace fashion designer Sanjukta Dutta is known for reviving and redesigning the traditional Assamese attire, mekhela chador. On World Saree Day, the designer shares some insights on the rich culture and colours of the ensemble and speaks to News 18 on why she chose to revive the age-old traditional attire.

According to Sanjukta, saris can never go out of style and over the years, every generation has brought its unique twist to it. “A saree is one of the few garments that can be worn in a number of different ways.Since the era of Mahabharata to this age of Artificial Intelligence, Indian sarees can never become obsolete in the fashion industry. Today, it’s become one of the most popular fashion trends followed by Gen Z,” expresses Sanjukta.

Sanjukta who hails from Assam, since her childhood always had a liking for the mekhela chador. But that’s not the only reason she ventured into fashion. Sanjukta wanted to also revive the dying handicraft industry because a lot of artisans were opting for alternative income methods due to the lack of finances. She went on to set up her brand in the year 2014, where she not only revived but gave a new life to the attire and redesigned it to cater to people across the world.

Sarees are an integral part of Sanjukta’s creations, and her mekhela chador saree has been adorned by Bollywood celebrities including Tabu, Bipasha Basu, Karisma Kapoor, Dia Mirza, Lara Dutta, Bhagyashree, and Divya Khosla Kumar to name a few. While we all love to dress up like our favourite stars, Sanjukta shares things one should know about the mekhela chador before you purchase it. They are as follows:

1. When purchasing any handloom saree, especially the mekhela chador, always check the workmanship and textured fabric quality. Do note that the colour should be the same all over the ensemble.
2. The fabric quality depends on the yarn quality and the yarn must be genuine paat or muga. All authentic mekhela chadors are made from Assamese silk but not all Assam silk is used for making mekhela chadors.
3. While eri, pat and muga are known as Assam silks, mekhela sets are only woven from pat and muga while eri, a thicker fabric, is used for shawls, quilts or heavy kurtas.
4. It takes almost 20 to 25 days to make a pair of mekhela chador by the artisan.They are much easier to drape in comparison to single piece saree.

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