Authentic Making Process
The traditional production of Jharkhand Tasar silk follows a rigorous seed-to-loom discipline respecting seasonal forest lifecycles and time-honored artisanal methods:
1. Forest Cocoon Harvesting & Sorting (Koya Chayan):
In post-monsoon autumn and early winter, tribal rearers harvest mature wild cocoons (Koya) from high branches of Asan and Arjun trees using curved bamboo pruning poles. Cocoons are sorted manually by shell thickness, density, and natural color—ranging from light ivory and champagne to deep copper-tan.
2. Alkaline Boiling & Natural Degumming (Khari Process):
Wild Tasar cocoons possess a tough shell cemented by natural sericin gum. To soften the filament without damaging the protein fiber, cocoons are cooked gently in water pots containing natural alkaline solutions—traditionally wood ash extract (Khari) or mild washing soda—for 4 to 6 hours. This softens the sericin, allowing the continuous silk filament to separate smoothly.
3. Thigh-Reeling (Panghati Reeling) & Solar Charkha Spinning:
In the ancient Panghati technique, tribal women roll softened cocoons across their earthen thigh pads while drawing the filament with one hand and twisting it with the other onto a wooden bobbin (Natai). This imparts a unique, uneven slub texture and high tensile resilience. Modern cooperative clusters also utilize clean-energy solar reeling charkhas to increase yarn output while preserving the fiber's organic integrity.
4. Bobbin Winding & Open-Air Warping (Tana Banav):
The reeled silk threads are wound onto wooden bobbins. In village alleys or forest clearings, weavers set up long bamboo stakes to stretch the warp threads across dozens of meters (Tana), meticulously counting and aligning hundreds of parallel silk ends to establish the fabric's precise width and density.
5. Loom Dressing, Sizing & Drafting (Rachh Bharna):
Warp threads are brushed with natural rice starch water to reinforce tensile strength during weaving. The thousands of individual silk ends are carefully threaded by hand through the eyelets of the heddles (Rachh) and the teeth of the reed on a traditional pit loom or fly-shuttle frame loom.
6. Handloom Weaving & Extra-Weft Ornamentation (Bunai):
Working the wooden treadles with their feet, master weavers pass the wooden shuttle carrying weft Tasar yarn back and forth across the warp shed. Using extra-weft techniques, weavers manually insert intricate traditional motifs—such as Sohrai animals, geometric tribal diamonds, and contrasting temple borders (Kumbha)—often introducing natural botanical dyes made from madder root, indigo, and palash flowers.
7. Washing, Softening & Sun Finishing:
The woven silk textile is washed in pure river water, lightly conditioned with natural arrowroot if crispness is desired, and dried naturally in shaded forest sunlight. Finally, the cloth is folded and beaten gently with wooden mallets or steam-pressed to enhance the silk's signature rich golden luster.
