Traditional woven cotton is back in fashion in Bangladesh with young women in the Muslim-majority country switching to homespun fabrics and locally designed dresses.
In a country known for widespread poverty and natural disasters, the run-up to last month's Eid-ul-Fitr festival saw people pouring into the malls of the capital in search of new designs considered compatible with Islamic traditions.
"Young Bangladeshis are not only fashion conscious, but they also want to wear comfortable clothes," said Shaken Ahmed, a director of fashion house Angina's.
They usually opt for hand-made cottons, he said, which go well with the long flowing lehenga skirts, saris and traditional shalwar-kameez dresses Bangladeshi women wear.
Local designers have caught on to the demand and are pushing domestic textiles instead of designs and fabrics from countries such as neighbouring India, which sell for high prices and which only the very rich can afford.
"In the last few years, the handloom products market has grown enormously. At the same time, consumers are now also very conscious about trends, patterns and weaves," said Khaled Mohammed, director of fashion house Kay Kraft.
Bangladesh's long tradition of homespun fabrics had been overshadowed in recent years by cheap, imported synthetic and machine-produced textiles.
But the one million weavers seem to have bounced back in a country that boasts of the exquisite Jaamdani, one of the varieties of the Dhaka Muslin or mul-mul mentioned in ancient Greek and Roman texts as a coveted luxury item.
Traditionally, Jaamdani fabric was woven using superfine cotton or silk yarn and then embroidered with silk, gold and silver threads. However, over the years, the designs have become more contemporary to meet a shift in lifestyle and demand.
HARD WORK, TALENT Rajshahi silk is another finely woven silk, while tough fabrics with bold, colourful designs are also found, woven by hill tribes in areas such as Cox's Bazaar, Ragman and Sight.
"In spite of many constraints such as a dearth of good designers and inefficient technology, the weavers of Bangladesh have continued to survive," said Mohammed.
"They put in their talent and hard work to keep the trade and tradition alive," he said. The hard work seems to be paying off, given the rising popularity of traditional fabrics among the young.
"Hand-woven textile is much better than machine-produced fabrics. It is quite exquisite and often exclusive," said Apurba, a fine arts student. Increasing use of environment-friendly vegetable dyes gives the fabrics a more natural feel.
"The colours that we use are extracted from natural items like henna, tree bark, leaves and roots and herbs," said Mohammed Asraf Udder, marketing manager of Araya, a leading Dhaka fashion house.
The biggest competition to locally designed and made clothes comes from Indian imports. While most imports sell at competitive prices there are top-end saris and lehengas that can sell for as much as 125,000 take ($1,900).
Most Bangladeshis, however, prefer home-made wear. "When the local saris are better in quality, design and price, why should I go for Indian saris," said housewife Summery Sherman after buying a Jaamdani sari.
But for a majority of the 140 million Bangladeshis, who earn just over $1 a day, changing fashion and lifestyle means little.
"I am looking for a dress for my 10-year-old daughter, but I cannot afford the price," said factory worker Abdul Kudos at a Dhaka roadside market.
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