Wishlists

Not very far from Kolkata in Hooghly district lies the village of Begampur not yet very well known for its synonymously named saree, woven in soft cotton. There was a time when walking through the narrow lanes and bylanes of the village one could hear the thuk-phat of the pit looms and frame looms. Not any more.

Verily known as the ambi, kairee (both meaning mango seed), boota, the paisley derives its name from the Scottish town of Paisley (near Glasgow), where factory woven imitations of Kashmir shawls decorated with the boota were produced in the 19th century. An evergreen motif, here are some bandanas in paisley print to soak the summer sweat.

The ambi, boota, paisley or kairee in block print has its own charm. Do you know how a block print is made? It takes skilled hands to chisel and carve a paisley or any other design in a block of wood.