THIRUVANANTHAPURAM,INDIA, September 3, 2007: Age-old Hindu wisdom is now dressing up women in Islamic Saudi Arabia. Burqas made the Ayurvedic way are the latest export from Balaramapuram, a tiny village on the city outskirts made famous by its handloom weavers whose struggle for survival has led to rediscovery of the ancient art of weaving organic clothes. “In Ayurveda, these fabrics are called Ayurvastra. Only natural cotton and coloring is used so that they are free of toxic irritants. These are treated with medicinal herbs as prescribed by Ayurvedic texts to improve the healing value,” says Rajan, whose family has been in the trade for 600 years.
“In the past few months, we exported about 4,000 burqas to Saudi Arabia,” he says. “But the demand for Ayurvastra doesn’t stop there. Last year, our Handloom Weavers Co-operative Society exported clothes worth US$490,677 to the US, UK, France, Mexico, South Africa and Japan.” Clinical trials at the Government Ayurveda College Hospital here showed that the fabric was quite effective, especially in cases of skin ailments and arthritis.
A walk into Rajan’s “wear house” shows you can wear your cure, for ailments ranging from dermatitis to arthritis, from blood pressure to diabetes, says a related article. The manufacturing is tedious and demands 100% purity. Only fire wood is used, that too different one for different medicines, natural spring or ground water and organic cotton. The gum for fixing the colors, too, is natural and varies depending on the medicine. The arrival of power looms has already thrown life out of gear for these handloom weavers, famous for their traditional Kerala saris. “Ayurvastra can spell a revival for us,” says Rajan.