Page Heading

KAITHUN, KOTA (RAJASTHAN)

Kaithun, a small village situated 15 kms off Kota in Rajasthan, is home to the 2500 households associated with the glorious, time honored craft of Kota Doria sarees. It’s the women of these families who are carrying forward this heritage, the men of the households mostly take care of ancillary activities. Kota doria also earned itself a Geographical Indicator (GI) tag in 2005.

Know your Kota Doria:

Kota Doria is a textile craft in which delicate muslin sarees called Kota Doria or Kota Masuria are woven, the latter name coming from its links to Mysore, from where it was brought to Kota by the Mughals. The unique square checkered pattern called ‘khat’ is the hallmark of these sarees. The silk provides the shine while the cotton provides strength to the fabric. Since it’s a very fine weave, it weighs very less. Sarees, Salwar Kameez, Lehengas and Home furnishings are some popular uses of the fabric.

The weavers are mostly from the Muslim Ansari community. With the dominance of power looms there has been a considerable downfall in the number of handlooms with which this fabric is woven. This has become the plight of many of the weavers who are struggling to make ends meet in spite of their mastery over this intricate and dexterous craft. Moreover, there is a lot of replication of the fabric which deludes the buyer into buying fake material. So next time don’t forget to check the GI tag of your Kota Doria to be sure of its authenticity.