Banares: Meet the man who shot to fame after posting pictures of Anushka’s Saree that she wore on her reception in New Delhi, Muazzam Ansari who has created the gorgeous Banarasi saree working day and night for two months. He is nicknamed as ‘Anushka Sharma’s Saree Man’ after his pictures on Facebook grabbed attention.
Ansari along with his team of three craftsmen worked day and night for two months to create the exquisite saree all which was carried out in secrecy. He says it was his pride moment when the world was applauding the saree that looked so gorgeous on the actress.
As the Virat-Anushka reception photos went viral, Ansari was quick to post photos of the saree on his Facebook page – a move that would quickly bag him the nickname, ‘Anushka Sharma’s Saree Man’.
The entire process of designing the saree from choosing the color to the craftsman was all done in absolute secrecy by the designers who zeroed on the Banarasi Saree as Anushka’s reception dress as soon as the wedding dates of Virat and Anushka were decided. Selecting the craftsman after deciding on the saree was also a tough choice since there are thousands of skilled workers in Banaras.
Delhi’s Cottage Emporium reached out to Maqbool Hassan from Peeli Kothi in Banaras who is in the business since 1966 for Anushka’s reception saree. His family is has been in the business for over two centuries now Hassan says. His other works were also credited as he created Aishwarya Rai’s saree and Abhishek Bachchan’s Sherwani.
After Hassan was contacted, he set on to create a team of three skilled craftsmen for the given project.
Muazzam Ansari’s work is famous in Benares though he joined the industry just five years ago, his fans compare his work with experienced craftsman with 20 years of experience. He was roped in by Hassan along with two other craftsmen.
Once the designers selected the colour and finalized the fabric the real work started since Banarasi sarees are handloom made with each thread and colour is put in place by hand.
Three weavers worked nonstop nigh and day for 45 days and the final touches took 15 days to add the finishing touches making it to a total of 60 days.
The craftsmen made sure that the saree did not have the glittery shine to it despite the use of real gold used in place of Zari. A mixture of Silk and chiffon fabrics was used to create the outfit which looked both soft and light with all the heavy work on it.
Every single motif is worked on separately and with all the heavy work done on the saree, banarasi saree’s are known for their timeless beauty, as published in The Quint.