Siddipet Gollabama Saree Weaving Telangana

Siddipet district of Telangana is known for the Gollabama saree — a unique handloom cotton saree in which the pallav (end piece) features human figures of women and men in traditional Telangana rural dress depicted in a naive folk silhouette style woven directly into the fabric using the extra weft supplementary technique. The motifs — a woman carrying a pot on her head, a man with turban and staff, a bullock cart, trees, and birds — are woven in white or coloured cotton thread against the bright body colour of the saree. The name Gollabama refers to the Golla (shepherd) community figure depicted in the pallav. Siddipet sarees are woven on pit looms using bright primary colour combinations — red body with green border, blue with yellow border — that are characteristic of Telangana folk aesthetic. Weavers from the Padmasali community in Siddipet and surrounding mandals practice the craft. The Siddipet Handloom Weavers Cooperative Society markets Gollabama sarees to Telangana government emporia and national craft fairs. Demand increased sharply after the Telangana cultural revival movement and statehood in 2014. Contemporary Siddipet weaving cooperatives produce Gollabama-motif stoles, table runners, and dress fabric yardage for urban market. Design innovation encouraged by the Handloom Export Promotion Council. Training in supplementary weft figure weaving and new Gollabama motif vocabulary development provided by Weavers' Service Centre, Hyderabad.