Division of Work:
The process of making veshti is divided into following stages and the division of work is done as below:
1. Reed Making: Men (Lubbai community)
2. Heald Making & Denting: Men and women (Lubbai community)
3. Warping : Machine warp
4. Piecing : Women
5. Lease insertion, Measuring veshti lengths and Rolling warp: Family and neighbors
6. Weaver : Men
7. Weft reeling : Women
8. Cleaning the loom : Women
9. Folding finished veshti : 1 man and 1 woman together
Process:
Reed Making:
The Labbai or Bai communities in Ammapet are small and cater to the reed and heald making for all the handlooms in the area. They speak Urdu and Tamil. Both men and women work on reed-heald making. About four to five families work on bamboo reed making, heald making, drafting of the healds and denting of the reed. The reed-heald setup is a vital part of the loom that controls the way the threads are lifted. Over the last ten years, number of orders has dwindled and people have changed their occupations. The younger generations are not involved in the craft. Some bamboo reed makers are now involved in sourcing and servicing reeds. To make one set, they are paid 600 rupees for angavastram and 1000 – 1500 rupees for a veshti. Making the Thattupannai (bamboo reed), Irumbupannai (iron reed).
• Reeds are made from bamboo.
• The bamboo is soaked to soften in water for two days and then thin splinters are sliced.
• The bamboo slices are further slimmed using a blade positioned in a split bamboo stand.
• The fine strips of bamboo are cut into equal sizes and their edges shaped.
• They are then knotted on two horizontal thin bamboo rods using nylon yarn.
• Once knotted, the edges are trimmed and softened so that the threads that will pass through it will not get damaged.
• Veshti ragam (density of veshti): 1 kunjam = 120 elai (yarns) = 60 eki (dents)
Most weavers have switched from bamboo to iron reeds as they last longer. The bamboo reeds while producing a more pliable, softer fabric tends to open up near the selvedges and needs fixing often.
Heald Making:
After the reed is made, cotton yarn is twisted to make leases and dented in the slots of the reed. Once the denting is done, 8 kols (bamboo rods) are positioned for the 4 shafts and healds are tied by threading through the warp ends. Plucking each warp end and looping the heald eye around it from both the face and back makes the eyes of the healds. Once the healds are made, the setup is ready to be collected by the weaver. The weaver sends the setup and the warp roll to be pieced together.
Warping (Paavodurdhu):
The cooperative society provides yarn to the weavers. The yarn is given out for warping and starching to the machine-wrappers for a sum of rupees 500. The length of the warp is 40 gajam (yards). Piecing (acchupunaikardhu): Piecing is a process where the existing ends on the reed-heald setup is joined with the ends from the new warp by twisting. This pre-weaving process is undertaken by older women. For cotton, the piecing wages are between 80 to 100 rupees per warp for a veshti.
Adding Leases & Marking Veshti Size (Allu Pudikardhu):
Once the piecing is done, the weaver unrolls the warp out on street on stilts to insert lease rods and to mark out the length of each veshti. This is done between 6 and 9am in the morning to avoid the heat. Around four to five people are required for this process. The whole family and some neighbors assist. The leases are inserted. Markings are made at every yard using a bamboo stick and damp kumkum. After every four yards a different mark is made to denote the end of one veshti. The warp is then rolled on the metal cylinder that acts as the warp beam. The setup is then taken indoors to be fitted onto the loom.
The Loom:
The loom used for veshti weaving is a melthari (raised-pit loom). A cement seat is constructed for sitting and the local aasari (wood craftsman) makes all the parts of the loom and assembles it. It costs about 20,000/- Rs to setup a loom including the wood and cement work. Traditionally, rajendram wood (teak) was used to make looms. Today, any kind of wood is used for the purpose. Looms do not require frequent repair but needs work once in 10 years when parts get worn out. The jacquard attachments, if used are an additional cost and the weaver has to change the set up according to changes in patterning. Several attachments like the pet potti, kolpotti and jacquard are kept in store and used according to the pattern commissioned by the cooperative or private dealer. In the past, rajendram (teak) wood was preferred for the loom parts as it was considered long lasting. Looms are made to order according to the body proportions of the weaver.
Setting up the Loom for Weaving:
The warp beam is fixed in its position on the loom and the warp stretched out. The border pattern warp ends are hung using vertical nylon threads and connected to the patterning box on top. The patterning box, depending on the complexity of figuring/ design could be a sungu system, pet potti, kolpotti or a jacquard attachment with punched cards with the sungu being the oldest and the jacquard being the latest is patterning technology.
Winding Weft:
Weft yarn is wound on a metal cylinder from the pootu (hank) and allowed to soak for two hours. The cotton is then wound on smaller shuttle sticks (Taarkuchi) and allowed to soak for another two hours. Soaking the weft yarn ensures dense packing of weft and a smooth finish. The weft yarn is wound as the weaving progresses. This is done mostly at home at leisurely time.
Making Cloth:
The body of the veshti is woven in a plain weave and the cross border (kambi) is woven in a rib weave. A sedukattai is used to keep the width constant and is adjusted after every few inches of weaving. In the case of cotton, the yarn is woven wet whereas in silk, the warp, on loom is starched every few meters with kanji (rice starch) and kerosene. In both cases, the zari is soaked in water overnight and woven wet. This prevents the zari from coiling on itself or tangling. After every few inches of weaving, a solution of kondhupassai ( gum Arabic) is applied to the zari to stiffen it and the white borders are smeared with cooked rice and rubbed down to make it stiff. The folded front of the veshti is rubbed down with a metal plate to blur the weft. This makes the veshti smoother in finish and gives it shine.
Folding:
After every 2 veshtis are woven (8 gajam), the padarmaram (cloth beam) is changed. The cloth beam that has been removed is left out in the sun for a while to stiffen the starch and gum Arabic that had been applied on the veshti while weaving. Once dried, the veshti is folded in a set pattern. It takes two people to do this task. It is usually the husband and wife who do this and tie the veshti with thread. The veshtis are stacked and covered with fabric, ready to be delivered to the client.
