Banarasi silk sarees are an integral part of the Indian sartorial landscape. The historian have traced the handloom weaving tradition there to 1500 to 2000 BC and located reference in Vedic and Buddha literature. It seems it specialized in cotton weaving but made a switch to silk weaving in the 14th century. Around this time, motifs also changed; bringing in a Persian mark.

Brocade is a textile in which pattern is created in weaving by transfixing or thrusting the pattern thread between the wrap. In regular weaving the weft thread passes over and under the warp thread regularly. But when brocade designs in gold, silver silk or cotton threads are to be woven, special threads are transfixed in between by skipping the passage of the regular weft over a certain number of warp threads (depending upon the pattern). Simultaneously, there is regulation of skipping by means of pre-arranged heddles for each type of patterning.

There may be several sets of heddles so arranged that on different occasions, they raise and depress irregular number of threads in turn, as required by the exigencies of the pattern.

Zari brocade entails use of gold (meaning silver thread with gold polish) and silver threads- real or imitation-thrust either as special weft or warp to create glittering raised ornamentation.The weave- rich varieties of sari are: Jangla, Tanchoi, Vaskat, Cutwork, Tishu and Butidar.

There are about one lac handloom weavers at Varanasi, presently 40,000 are active. In addition, there are hundreds of traders, dyers, designers, card-makers and ancillary support providers. The annual turnover (at Varanasi price) is estimated at around Rs.400 crores. While being concentrated in Varanasi City, the activity has spread to surrounding villages.

A Banarasi silk saree is not so strongly on the priority list of an Indian bride from a prosperous family as it was earlier. The heavy work (embroidery) sarees are out-competing Banarasi sarees in the high-end segment. There are two areas in which heavy work sarees apparently are exerting pressure on Banaras saree. It is possible to make each heavy work or embroidered saree exclusive because it is easy to make variations. This is not so in case of handweaving and currently, there is emphasis on exclusiveness. A basic heavy saree may cost Rs. 2000 and work on it gets priced at, say, Rs. 8000; leading to a price of Rs. 10,000.