I love wearing saris. Trouble is, the more unique a sari is, the more memorable it will be. If you wore this to a wedding in May, people will still remember it in June. For those of us who are 3,ooo miles from home and Mama’s saris, that doesn’t leave us with many options, especially if shopping at ISP in Murrland isn’t a palatable idea.
Since I haven’t been back to the pind since 1989 (insert cringe here), and I feel like I’m getting massively ripped off if I buy something on Devon or University Avenue, that only leaves me with one way to get my pleats on; every year, some relative returns from Kerala with a few gifts which my much-adored Chinamma chose for me. She knows that I favor Kanjeevaram…and that her older sister, my Moms, is very conservative. [See: my blouse sleeves, for proof.] Chinamma always sends me something beautiful, and because of her, I haven’t needed to purchase something silky or slinky online. And that, dear mutineers, is why I didn’t see this (click, to enlarge…if you dare):
Good thing our favorite fictionist “Happy No No Place” is alert and intrepid! She discovered this site and solemnly sent it along to me, along with the following pithy statement: “wow”. A few minutes later, when she had recovered her powers of speech, she informed me that she couldn’t reach their “live” customer service, to notify them of the unique item on their sidebar.
Meanwhile, I clicked that link (like you wouldn’t) and saw this:
Oddly enough, the Kanchipuram saris didn’t resemble what I thought they would; they looked more like the “fashionable”, lightweight, embroidered/bedazzled saris. I almost started to worry, but then I relaxed when I realized that the “special link” was how I could procure opulent, heavy silk! I must ask my Tamizzhhlan friends how to pronounce this phrase properly…wouldn’t want to botch it with my ABD accent and all.
