Journal ·
Zardozi, dabka, tilla: a bride's guide to hand embroidery
The words you'll hear when you start shopping for a bridal, what they mean, and how to tell real handwork when you see it.
When a bride comes to our shop in Liberty Market for the first time, she usually brings a few screenshots and a lot of new words. Zardozi, dabka, tilla, naqshi, kora. Everyone uses them, and very few people explain them. Here is what they mean, the way our karigars would explain them.
Zardozi
Zardozi is the old name for embroidery with metal thread. Zar means gold and dozi means embroidery. In a bridal, it's the umbrella word for the heavy, raised, shimmering work that catches the light when you move. Most of the techniques below are part of the zardozi family.
Dabka
Dabka is a fine metal wire coiled tightly into a spring. The karigar cuts it into tiny pieces and stitches each one down by hand, building up flowers, vines and borders. It gives that rich, raised, almost sculpted look. Because every piece is cut and placed one at a time, dabka is one of the slowest parts of a bridal.
Tilla
Tilla is a fine metallic thread, laid on the surface and stitched down with a second thread. It draws the outlines and fills of a motif, a little like a pen line in gold. On a lehenga, tilla is often what makes the pattern read clearly from across a room.
Naqshi and kora
Naqshi uses a crinkled metal wire that gives a softer, textured sparkle. Kora is a smooth, shiny coil. Karigars mix them with dabka so a single flower has several kinds of light in it.
Pearls, sitara and stones
Pearls, sequins (sitara) and stones are sewn in between the metal work. Used well, they add depth. Used too much, they hide the handwork, which is why we keep them in balance.
How to tell real handwork
- Turn it over. Hand embroidery on an adda has a slightly irregular back, with knots and thread paths that follow the design. Machine work looks uniform and repeats exactly.
- Look at the edges of a motif. Hand-cut dabka sits at tiny, natural angles. Machine work is flat and even.
- Feel the weight. Real metal work is heavy, and the fabric moves with it.
- Ask how long it took. A hand-embroidered bridal takes months of work by several karigars. If a heavily worked outfit is ready in days, it wasn't stitched by hand.
Why it matters
A hand-embroidered bridal is meant to outlive the wedding. It's the dress a daughter or granddaughter may one day wear again, or have remade. That only works if the handwork is real.
If you'd like to see these techniques up close, come to the shop. We're happy to turn a piece over and show you the back.
