A land of beautiful colours, design motifs, captivating craftsmanship & aesthetic ingenuity defines the royal Rajasthan. When art and textiles are talked about, this state dates back the origin to the ancient times and needs no specific identity.
The rulers of Rajasthan seemed to have always embraced the highly refined art and culture, which in turn, instrumentally spread a cause for the growth of textile art in the land of gifted and skilled artisans.
Almost every city in Rajasthan is a distinct pearl in the crown, if the variety, colour palette, technique, design motifs & theme are concerned.
Hand block printed textiles of the townships of Sanganer and bagru, near Jaipur have won the hearts of millions at home and abroad. This is an ancient craft form of Rajasthan that has been practised, since time immemorial, however, the process of block printing flourished since the 12th century when the art received a royal patronage from the kings of the era. The floral motifs favoured by the printers of bagru and Sanganer are Persian in origin, whereas sanganeri prints are more sophisticated & have a white or pale background, embellished with colourful twigs or sprays.
Tie and dye textiles, called bandhej or bandhani is an indelible craft technique of Rajasthan which is believed to have originated some 5000 years ago. Dyes used are of natural origin, either from leaves of plants, bark, flowers, fruits etc.
Various tie and dye methods and patterns encompass the exotic craft for creating different effects onto the fabric. Most known & identified ones are the Lehriya, Mothda, Ekdali & shikari effects which create varied patterns. The main colours used are yellow, green, red & black.
A large variety of embroideries are practised in different districts of Rajasthan. The main types are Mochi Bharat , Heer Bharat, appliqué work and beadwork. Court embroidery is practised in the princely cities of Jaipur & Jodhpur. Marriage costumes, wall hangings, quilts, cradle clothes are embroidered, appliquéd, decorated with beadwork and embellished with mirrors, sequins, buttons and shells. The golden feather in the plume of embroidery of Rajasthan is the silk embroidery done on leather viz. shoes & purses. Words solely aren’t enough to tell about the beauty of the textile craft of Rajasthan, one needs to view the crafted patterns for understanding the intricacies of the motifs and techniques.
It is such an overwhelming experience for me when it comes to narrating the various aspects of the beautiful journey of the textile craft, covered by the ‘Land of Kings‘, the Rajasthan.
By: Suhail Qureshi
