KNOTTED: Weavers get little work and earnings are uncertain.

The illuminated floor of Prakash Silk House in Kancheepuram, 75 km from Chennai, is draped with myriad wonders, intricate designs in silk and zari that make Kancheepuram saris a synonym for unmatched craftsmanship in textiles. There are traditional designs of peacocks or a dancing Krishna on the pallu and, though unconventional, even the Seven Wonders of the World are woven in gold zari along a black, silk border.

All the glitter and gold, sadly, is not reflected in Pillayar Palayam, a weavers' village 5 km from the town. Thousands of looms remain silent for weeks while the weavers brood over a market awash with cheaper fakes and a moribund cooperative society that they depend on for existence.

Twenty-two silk cooperatives in Kancheepuram provide raw materials such as silk and zari to weavers who have looms. The finished product is returned for sale. But poor marketing and even poorer organisation means most weavers do not get enough silk and zari to sustain their livelihood. "This is my life, my breath, my bread," says Pitchumani, a weaver for more than 50 years, holding a yarn of red silk to his heart. Pitchumani has just enough to weave three saris. "My daughter and two sons work with me for 45 days on three saris for which the cooperative pays us Rs 1,700. It may be enough to feed us for a month, but no one knows when we will get work again." When idle, weavers like Pitchumani scour private looms that offer abysmal wages.

The cooperatives have saris worth Rs 86 crore lying in their godowns for which they have only themselves to blame. Till the mid-1990s, every Kancheepuram sari that was woven was sold, raking in a turnover of Rs 10 crore a month and a profit of 15-20 per cent. But with the market opening up, instead of improving their marketing strategies, the cooperatives choose the easy way out-increasing the rebate from 10 per cent to 55 per cent on saris lying in the store for more than a year. This usually means selling for less than the cost of production. Even so, drab and uninspiring cooperatives fail to lure customers like private showrooms do with their gaudy displays and advertisements.

As if that wasn't enough, the originals are competing in a market inundated with fakes. Hundreds of shops pass off silk saris from Dharmavaram in Andhra Pradesh and Salem as Kancheepuram saris to unsuspecting buyers and are making a killing. The zari used for Kancheepuram saris is a silk thread covered with flattened silver in the centre and gold on the outer surface and costs Rs 2,400- 2,700 for a marc (240 gm). In the fakes, the precious metals are substituted by white metal or impure silver and is available for just Rs 90-360 per marc. Even then, fake sari manufacturers use less zari and two-ply silk instead of three-ply for weaving, bringing down the cost and quality drastically.

To add to the confusion, cooperatives have been robbed of their names too. In Kancheepuram alone, there are five shops with names similar to Anna Silk Cooperative, the official agency. Imitation has proved the worst form of flattery. The weavers are on the verge of starvation while politics supersedes policies. Last month, when the DMK opened gruel centres for weavers of Madurai, the ruling AIADMK started biryani centres. When they clashed the weavers returned hungry-for food and work.

HOW TO SPOT A FAKE

• Test by fire: If burnt, silk thread smells pungent and there is virtually no residue. A fake emits a plastic-like smell and leaves fibrous remnants.
• Scratch and tell: Scrape the zari thread. If there is red silk at the core, it is an original. Any other colour means it is a fake.
• Looks are deceptive: Kancheepuram border and pallu, usually not of the same colour, are made of yarns different from those used in the rest of the sari. The seam can be easily noticed in single-side saris.
• Price matters: An original sari costs at least Rs 3,000 and weighs over 600 gm.