Draped in Warmth

The luxuriously soft and embroidered Kashmiri shawls have been worn from antiquity. Brinda Suri writes how they are, and will remain a prized possession

Kani shawl 

The uniqueness about handicraft is how it is representative of epoch, place and culture. When the three are seamlessly interwoven, that piece of craft becomes timeless. A remarkable illustration of one such contemporary classic is the Kashmiri shawl. 

When temperatures in north India hover in single digits, shawls and stoles from Kashmir are draped in style. Almost every wardrobe usually has a splendid pashmina sozni (needlework, from the Persian term soz which means needle) hand-me-down, lovingly passed on from the grandmother, to the mother, to the daughter. Some of these are tremendously gush-worthy and almost always have a delicious story of how they became a prized possession.

Papier Mache shawl

Though the delicately-embroidered sozni is a must-have and in constant demand, choices in the Kashmiri shawl have increased over the past few years with lost techniques having been slowly, but surely revived in the Valley. Winters now mean flaunting the woven kani, the painted and embroidered kalamkari or the bold-patterned papier mache shawls.

Royal patronage

While the origin of shawls in Kashmir remains obscure, the craft definitely goes back a few hundred years. Historical records dating to the 15th century throw light on patronage provided to the embroidered and woven craft by royalty, particularly the much-admired eighth Sultan of Kashmir Zain-ul-Abadein and later Mughal emperor Akbar and his sons Jahangir and Shah Jahan. There is a very compelling note on the splendour of Kashmir’s shawls by Abul Fazl, one of the navratans, nine gems, of Akbar’s court and author of Akbaranama and Ain-i-Akbari. In the latter work Fazl mentions how pashmina was a luxury export article from Kashmir to many countries. It was Akbar, says Fazl, who encouraged the development of jamavar, pashmina fabric woven in running length so it could be tailored into the jama, the flowing tunic-like dress worn by men in those times. These jamas were intricately embroidered and sometimes in such a way that the base material was not visible. Overtime heavily patterned shawls, whether embroidered or woven, came to be known as jamavars.

A kani is considered to be one of the most complicated weaving techniques of the textile world. Skilled artisans employ the double interlock twill tapestry weave to create its distinctive patterns. Kani literally means small sticks, and these are what construct the design. Coloured threads are wound on the kanis which are subsequently used as bobbins that are gently passed through the finely-laid warp and weft by the weaver. For a complex design over a thousand such kanis can be used to build the pattern. So painstaking is the process that in a day barely an inch can be woven. The reason a kani takes almost a year to complete and commands a premium price.

Stunning Designs

Sozni pashmina 

The kalamkari shawl on the other hand is lighter in work but looks equally stunning. In a kalmakari, traditionally the entire design is painted with a wood kalam, pen, after which it’s handed over to the embroider who highlights the outlines and fills certain motifs to lend an embossed look to the shawl. These days the digital printing technique is being ingeniously used to make the coloured pattern and bringing down the shawl cost.

A vibrant play of colours and design is the distinguishing feature of the papier mache shawl. They ape the painted patterns of the papier mache art seen on boxes and other artefacts. A variety of stitches is used on this shawl and what makes it stand apart from other sozni shawls is the use of minute knots throughout the pattern which truly gives it a painted papier mache feel.

The rich catalogue of shawls of Kashmir is an acknowledgment of the artistic talents of the Valley. Where once only men were involved in the arts, now women too, are being trained in all forms of embroidery. Women putting down their signature designs on the embroidered classics is a sign of the changing times.

Published in Deccan Herald, March 2020

Read more at: https://www.deccanherald.com/sunday-herald/sunday-herald-melange/draped-in-warmth-813301.html

The UnStitched Garment

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/598241/quietly-flows-yarn.html

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Sujani: Stitch art of Bihar

Contemporary sujani motif on a chanderi stole 

These are exciting times for sujani, the stitch-art from Bihar.  Having sat modestly in hamlets across the state for several decades, it’s seeing its revival.

Initially created for use as household linen, in its current avatar sujani is increasingly embellishing apparel. It’s wooing not merely the ethnic market by making an appearance on dupattas, sarees and kurtas but has found favour among those with more contemporary tastes and accordingly kimono jackets, stoles, skirts, tees etc are being adorned with these threads.

While different forms of hand-embroidery across the country made rapid strides, sujani got overshadowed by the social  environment prevalent in the state and also by the immense popularity of other folk arts of Bihar: madhubani and papier-mache. It’s been the effort of NGOs, especially in the state’s Muzaffarpur district, that’s seen it emergence. The barometer of popularity of a folk-form these days can be gauged when it makes its presence felt at premium handicraft fairs. Sujani, unknown till a few years to the layperson, is now a permanent feature attracting a cross-section of buyers.     

Colour and form

Quite fundamentally, sujani is a form of quilting. Traditionally its canvas was old sarees and dhotis that were layered together. These were embellished with simple line or motifs in running stitch to give the recycled structure a new look. The layers of decorated muslin cloth were transformed into a quilt or mat for home use.

Sujani often gets mistaken with the kantha of Bengal as it is seemingly similar in appearance. The subtle difference lies in the colour scheme and theme. By tradition, the embroidery is always on a cream-base fabric and the pattern usually portrays village life. Also, in sujani the motifs are almost-always outlined in black chain-stitch with the inner detailing being in colour. The other distinction between the two is that unlike kantha where the stitch can be done in any direction, in sujani these are always in straight lines.  

Traditional motifs 

Current winds have ensured while the basic art remains the same, a slight variation has given it a new idiom that’s enthusing fashionistas and folk-craft aficionados alike and is definitely more appealing for today’s buyer who has plethora of apparel choices. The most prominent shift has been in the theme of embroidery and the outlining that’s now done in various colours brightening a pattern. 

“The customer these days is always looking for novel ideas. Till a few years back we were embroidering only those motifs that we had learnt from the elders. What I’m doing now is the same form of embroidery but on a different material, with different motifs, for a different clientele,” says Archana Kumari, a young girl from Ramnagar village, Bihar, who made the effort to study the nuances of textile designing which has helped her in giving the sujani patterns she embroiders a refreshingly-fresh edge. She has combined tradition and modern with utmost grace and her patterned silk stoles are a hot seller. “The shift to apparel from the conventional linen has made a big difference as far as sales are concerned,” she says, adding, “Sujani is being regarded as the next big thing in the fashion world. We need to explore a few more avenues before it goes truly international and is reognised more widely in the country just as kantha or kutchi embroidery is.” 

Revival and uplift

Sujani was a recreational task for the village woman, who tried to beautify her home with the meager resources available. She embroidered what she knew best: traditional motifs thus were a display of village life and folklore. Interestingly, beside it being employed as linen, the first known use of sujani-embellished cloth as a piece of clothing is a shawl to wrap the new born. The concept behind using worn-out clothes for a baby — a tradition followed till date across the country despite the offerings of multi-brands — was the reasoning that used fabric would be soft on tender skin. 

What could have developed as a popular stitch-art form, dwindled because of poverty and unstable social conditions. Consequentially sujani did not receive patronage that other forms of embroidery got, chiefly via government policies of independent India that encouraged cottage industry.  

It’s since the past three-plus years that NGOs active in Sarfuddinpur and Bhusra villages of Muzzafarpur district,      Bihar, have inspired confidence and got village women to re-look at their craft. The explicitly-visible makeover in style via a change in motif and fabric has shown desired result. The increased sales and exciting opportunities is a shot in the arm not just for sujani but it’s also been instrumental in empowering women artisans.  

These experiences are reflected in their work. “Via our motifs we express the new understandings we have acquired. It’s through this embroidery-skill that we have crossed frontiers. Our women had not stepped out of their home surroundings. Some of them now travel confidently and deal with customers themselves,” says Sanju of Sujani Mahila Jeevan, Bhusara.   

New and old

The new motifs Sanju speaks off includes presenting city-life, gadgets (yes, the cell phone has become a prominent part of sujani pattern), social themes and also their experiences of visiting new lands. “The pattern I’ve made of New York on a sujani shawl I’ve designed always draws curious glances and appreciation,” beams Archana Kumari. Her figurines of women on the fashion ramp also demand attention.

Interestingly, the new-age buyer does find traditional pattern on garments quite funky. So apparel, especially skirts and tees, with conventional sujani motifs of village scene or a pond with turtles and fishes is as much a rage as the newly-experimented-with geometrical and floral patterns. These trends certainly bode well for a stitch-art that’s now begun getting long-overdue recognition.

Published in Apparel, December 2012 

Indigo

The indigo holds special place if you are an Indian handloom-addict.  It has quite a true-blue history too 

Origin and Role in Indian Freedom movement

Indian expertise in preparation of vegetable dyes goes back over a thousand years, with excavations revealing strands of dyed fabric belonging to the Indus Valley Civilization. 


According to D. Balasubramanian in his article ‘Indigo nation: Champaran to Chandigarh’ in The Hindu, “Further proof comes from the paintings in the Ajanta Caves, as well as from the writing in Kautilya’s Artha Sastra, which refers to dyes and their uses. Eighth century Central Asia and Egypt knew of Indian textiles. Marco Polo, who travelled through India in the13th century, was the first to report on the preparations of indigo dye in the country. Indigo was known to, and used by, ancient Greeks and Romans, as a pigment in paintings. It is very likely, however, that the name Indigo, attributing its association with India, came after Marco Polo’s report.”

A few centuries ago, the only source of blue was indigo. It was abundantly available in America, which had been colonized by handful European nations, who had monopolized the trade. Post American independence India was found ideal for indigo and Europeans colonizers, particularly British, set up units in indigo-friendly areas in Bengal and Bihar.

Its trade was a profitable venture and as British rule spread its tentacles, thousands of farmers were forced to grow indigo in place of food crops. Indigo was also purchased at a low price from them which lead to extreme poverty. Meanwhile by the end of the 19th century, chemical indigo had been manufactured in Germany and requirement of Indian indigo fell, worsening the conditions of farmers who began getting even lesser return but had to continue with the crop. During the 1920s famine spread in Bihar, and to boost economy the British levied taxes on the already debt-ridden indigo belt which lead to rebellions in the state, the most famous being the riots in Champaran district. Mahatma Gandhi was called to witness the condition of indigo farmers and it was from Champaran between 1918-19 that he held his first satyagraha, a movement that was to finally help India win her freedom.

Colour spectrum

Indigo is one of the most versatile colours. People usually associate indigo with blue but essentially indigo can run between the spectrum of very light blue to deep green. With alum it gets grayish blue, harad (or Black myroblan, the widely-used digestive herb that's also interestingly known in Sanskrit as Haritaki, meaning originating in God's home) makes it go green and copper sulphate turns it deep blue. It is one of the most exciting colours and can bring in unimaginable shades. A different mordant can change the complete look of the indigo. You can experiment a lot with its dyes.  

Indigo has always been used with great expertise on fabric in Asia and achieved cult status in the West when Levis Strauss developed the denim jean. In central and western India the ajrakh block printers are considered masters in the art of dealing with indigo. Every handloom variant—be it kalamkari painting, weaving, Jaipuri block printing etc—uses indigo successfully in vastly different ways. Being a hard-sourced natural dye an indigo outfit on the shelf always has a higher mark up as compared to other vegetable colours.  

Extraction process

The indigo plant is a biennial, bearing yellow flowers and bluish leaves. Known as Indigofera tinctoria or Nila in India, it has a higher indigo content as compared to its variants across the world. To extract the colour, the leaves are crushed into a paste and undergo a series of fermentation and oxidation processes before the dye is obtained. The technology in India, says D. Balasubramanian, was handed down from fathers to sons over the centuries. “In a nation full of castes and communities, each specializing in one art, craft or technology, it was the Kurmis of Bihar and UP, the Kumbis of Maratha and Deccan, the Niralis of Central India, and certain groups of Muslim dyers who have been exponents of this form of medieval biotechnology,” he elucidates.

There are a number of ways of extracting the dye. The common method used these days takes the following route. The first stage involves preparing the all-important indigo vat for which the water is warmed to about 20-25C and caustic soda stirred into it. Upon it being mixed well hydros is sprinkled and stirred slowly. Immediately after, indigo grain is added in small quantity and also stirred very gently in order to let no bubbles appear on the surface. Once it dissolves well the container needs to be sealed tight with a lid. Depending upon the quantity of the liquid the mixture is left to stand and get dissolved. When the surface reflects a greenish hue it’s an indication that the process has been successfully completed. 

The next step is dyeing for which pre-washed fabric or yarn treated in a mordant (which helps in holding-fast the dyes) is taken and fully submerged in the vat and vigorously moved in it. It is then allowed to remain dipped for a few minutes after which it is removed from the vat and squeezed. At this stage the dyed fabric/yarn looks like an unattractive clump of black but magically on exposure to air as the indigo begins to get oxidized the black turns blue. If the final colour emerges as being too faded the process of dyeing is repeated to ensure the required shade is obtained, upon which the fabric/yarn is rinsed in cold water and then given a quick warm bath in detergent and hung to dry.

Say no to chemical dye   

Chemical indigo is again on the upsurge in India and dyers have taken to it rampantly. Besides sounding the death knell of indigo plantation once again, it has adverse side-affects. It is extremely bad for the skin and the repercussions of using the chemical is felt only after a few years. Says Bangalore-based budding textile designer Mallika S, “The use of chemical indigo should be discouraged. Natural indigo is one dye that can last the longest. You need to make one concentrate and can keep adding it to a new mix to obtain successive quantities. It is also a cold water dye and is harmless. Moreover, indigo is part of our heritage and we need to make all efforts to preserve. Go natural. Wear pure indigo.” True blue thought, that.   


Published 

Indian Weaves WEST

The next few pages feature a small photographic documentation, a work in progress, of India's rich textile tradition. This is a mere strand from the brilliant wefts and warps that handloom artisans of India produce.


From top: Rajasthan (bandhini - dyeing); Gujarat (Kutchi - embroidered, Pattu, Mashru - both woven )

Indian Weaves EAST

From top: Bihar (BCI weave); Orissa (three Ikkat patterns); Bengal (Bishnupur, Tangail)

Indian Weaves NORTH EAST

From top: Arunachal Pradesh ( Monpa weave); Manipur (Sukham phi); Mizoram (puan); Assam (two assorted weaves); Nagaland (Ao tribe shawl, Mangkotepsu ) 

Indian Weaves NORTH

From top: Punjab (Phulkari); Kashmir (Jamavar, Aari ); Himachal (Kullu shawl, Chamba Rumal, Kullu border weaving)

Indian Weaves SOUTH

Andhra Pradesh (Kalamkari -- hand painted); Tamil Nadu (Toda -- embroidery)