When the timeless red and golden Banarasi sari became a part of the trousseau of Bollywood icons Anushka Sharma and Deepika Padukone, fashion gurus declared that the ancient art form which dates back to the 14th century was on the path of revival. Walk into any saree store in Varanasi today, and the salesman, without fail, would woo his patron with a replica of Anushka or Deepika's sari. He would even tell her the sari had been woven by the same weavers. The patron, invariably a young bride-to-be, would succumb. After having paid a quarter of what it would have cost the Bollywood divas, she would walk out of the shop triumphantly assuming that it was a steal.
