Men in Kerala wear Kasavu mundu or dhothies during festive occasions. In all places of worship, specially in temples, the most preferred dress is the dhoti. This light pure cotton handlooms edged with golden thread is some times touched with contrasting bright colours. Dhoti's are available in regular, large and extra large sizes

Kerala is also known for its unbleached cotton handloom crepe popularly known as 'kora' cloth which has entered the foreign markets and occupy a proud place in the garment industry

Balaramapuram in Thiruvanathapuram district, the capital of Kerala is the most historically important place for Handloom fabrics, especially the traditional wear. It follows a tradition  about 150 years old. It was during the regime of His Highness Maharaja Balaramavarma, which dates back from 1798 to 1810, that handloom weaving was first introduced at Balaramapuram. The weavers here originally belonged to Saliyas community who migrated from Nagar coil and Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu. They used to produce super fine 'Mundum Neriyathu' for the need of the royal family. The tradition spread from them to the local weavers. The weavers use original type throw-shuttle pit looms for the production of exclusive cotton sarees with pure jari. Besides Sarees, 'Mundum Nereyathum', 'Mundu', 'Earezha thorthu' (bathing towel), 'Melmundu' etc. are woven here

Named after the village of its origin, Chennamangalam handlooms in North Paravur, Ernakulam district is famous for its fine weaving and special effects in the weft direction. Besides sarees, both pure cotton and silk, Chennamangalam also concentrates in the production of settu mundu, earezha thorthu, kavani and super fine double dhothies

Kasaragod sarees from the north of Kerala are masterpieces made with high quality yarn using traditional hand made methods. It is known for the design, quality, varied colour pattern and ornamented jaris or borders. The weaving is done in a unique style by giving care to the thread and applying a special kind of paste to make the saree strong and long lasting

Koothampalli in Thrissur district is also well known for its handloom fabric. Here a community of Devangas who immigrated from Karnataka are engaged in weaving. The 'Kasavu Sarees' which are being produced here is mostly with half fine jari and hence more economical. Koothampalli sarees are preferred by the middle class people for its comparative low prices

The districts of Malappuram, Kozhikode (Calicut) and Kasargode are famous for the 'Malabar loom'. The products, mainly furnishing fabrics, Jacquard products, Bed sheets, Table mats etc. are unique for the excellent texture of the cloth, colour combinations, wide width (98"-120") and craft man ship. Calicut is also famous for its 'Calico cloth'

The history of export trading practice of handloom fabric in Kerala can be traced back to the15th century when handloom cloth of excellent qualities were exported to Asian and European countries

In Kerala, almost 2 lakh weavers are earning their livelihood from the handloom industry, 75% of them in the co-operative line