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||Decorated
Fabrics||
Embroidery,
the art of working raised designs in threads of silk, cotton, gold
or silver upon the surface of woven cloth with the help of a needle,
has been known in India from very early times. Gujarat and Rajasthan
boast of a mind-boggling range in embroideries. Kantha of
Bengal, zardosi of Delhi, kasuti of Karnataka, phulkari
of Punjab, the gold thread embroidery and gota work of
Rajasthan, the zari work of Hyderabad, the appliqué
work and metal-wire embroidery are some of the brilliant specimens
of Indian embroidery.
Appliqué
or Pipli Work: Appliqué or Pipli Work is
an integral part of the decorative needlework of Pipli
village in Orissa and some parts of Gujarat. It is based on
patchwork, in which pieces of coloured and patterned fabric is
finely cut in different sizes and shapes and sewn together on a
plain background to form a composite piece. They are found in
brilliant colours and are highly ornamented with motifs, which
include human forms, animals and vehicles.
Originally parasols, canopies and pillows were made for the
Rath Yatra but now many objects of daily use like lamp shades,
garden umbrellas and bed covers have been introduced.
Aribharat:
The embroidery of Kutch is very picturesque and has the quality of
jewellery. The best known is aribharat, which is named after ari,
a hook, plied from the top but fed by silk thread from below with
the material spread out on a frame. This movement creates loops,
which are repeated to form a line of chain stitches. It is also
known as Mochibharat, as it used to be done by mochis
(cobblers).
Bagh:
The bagh is an offshoot of phulkari and almost always
follows a geometric pattern, with green as the basic colour. The
embroidery is worked into khaddar (coarse cotton cloth) with
silk thread. Sometimes two or three baghs will be stitched
together to for a phulkari.
Banjara:
The embroidery of the Lambada gypsy tribes of Andhra Pradesh,
banjara is a mix of applique with mirrors and
beadwork. Bright red, yellow, black and white coloured cloth is laid
in bands and joined with a white crisscross stitch.
Chikankari:
The Chikan work of Lucknow involves delicate and subtle embroidery
done in white thread on varieties of cloth such as mulmul
(fine cotton), voil or polyester.. It owes its origin to Nur Jehan.
Intricate and complex, this work is similar to what is
commonly known as shadow work. Simplicity, regularity and
evenness of stitches, combined with very fine thread-knots are the
highlights of Chikan work. The different varieties of chikan
stitches include tepchi, pechni, bakhia, zanjira, phanda and murri.
The Chikan kurtas are very popular.
Crewel:
Kashmir is known for phirans (woollen kurtas) and namdahs
(woollen rugs) with big floral embroidery in cheerful colours.
Crewel embroidery is the same as chain stitch and is usually done
with an awl (a small pointed tool for making holes) and is worked
from underneath the fabric rather than above.
Gota
work: The gold
embroidery of Jaipur, known as gota-work, is an intricate
form of appliqué with patterns of amazing richness, worked out in
minute detail in fine gold thread. Small pieces of zari
ribbon are applied onto the fabric with the edges sewn down to
create elaborate patterns. Lengths of wide, golden ribbons are
similarly stitched on the edges of the fabric to create an effect of
gold zari work. The gota method is commonly used for
women's formal costumes. Khandela in Shekhawati is best known for
its manufacture. Kinari or edging refers to the art of
fringed border decoration. It is usually practised by the Muslim
craftsmen.
Kantha:
Kantha is a kind of patchwork embroidery, typical of Bihar and
West Bengal, in which the ground consists of remnants of white
cotton saris, while the threads used for the embroidery are picked
from old materials. In kantha, the thread is carried over the
surface in small stitches to produce a series of dotted lines. To
these are added, from the reverse side, longer floats that are
mostly used as decorative elements and for filling in the bodies of
the figures. Floral, animal and bird motifs embroidered on both
cotton and silk are extremely popular.
Karchobi:
It is a form of raised zari metallic thread
embroidery created by sewing flat stitches on cotton padding. The
technique is commonly used for bridal and formal costumes as well as
for velvet coverings, tent hangings, curtains and the coverings of
animal carts and temple chariots.
Kashida:
This is the typical embroidery work of Bihar and is done in
different styles.
Kasuti:
This is typical of the Dharwar region of Karnataka. Kasuti is
delicate single thread embroidery done on handloom saris. It is done
in two styles called gavanti and murgi and has a wide
range of motifs consisting of temples, peacocks, elephants,
flowering trees and geometric forms spread across the sari.
Kathi:
This rural art of Gujarat is attributed to the nomadic tribes of the
kathi. The work is distinguished by a very unusual technique
in which chain stitch embroidery is combined with appliqué
work and enhanced by small mirror-like insertions. The embroidery is
characterised in particular by its wealth of forms and motifs. Many
of the kathi embroideries depict Hindu themes.
Mirror
work: The women of Rajasthan
and Gujarat traditionally carry embroidered torans (frieze),
dowry bags, shawls, cholis and dupattas as part of
their dowry. This work can be identified by its use of tiny mirrors
with colourful threads that shape floral and figurative designs.
Patti
Ka Kaam: It is
the exquisite embroidery work of Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh.
Phulkari:
The Punjab phulkari is of a spectacular nature. The word
means flowering and it creates a flowery surface. Strangely enough,
the stitch itself is the simple darning like the damask, done
either by counting the threads or with utmost care, since a single
miss can spoil the whole pattern. Originally, the designs seem to
have been predominantly geometrical but the phulkari now
being produced for sale has often a lotus in the centre and stylised
animals, birds, worked in harmoniously with flowers. The design is
fed into the cloth from the reverse side using darning needles, one
thread at a time, leaving a long stitch below to form the basic
pattern. The stitching is done in a vertical and horizontal pattern
as well as variations from this standard format, so that when the
phulkari is finally complete the play of light on its shiny surface
can do wonders. Stitching is usually done with silk thread, though
occasionally cotton threads are also used. The best work in phulkari
is found in Haryana in Gurgaon, Karnal, Hissar, Rohtak and Delhi.
Pichwai:
These are colourful embroidered
cloth-hangings typical of Nathdwara in Rajasthan.
Rabari
Art: This is a typical embroidery work of the nomadic Rabari
tribes of the Kutch region. The
embroidered motifs are generally camels, royal fans, elephants,
scorpions and women bearing water.
Shamilami:
It is a combination of weaving and
embroidery and was once a high status symbol in Manipur.
Zardozi
or Zari: Zardozi or Zari or kalabattu is an
embroidery work done in metal
 wires.
Varanasi, Lucknow, Surat, Ajmer, Bhopal and Hyderabad are
important centres for zari work. In this work, metal ingots
are melted and pressed through perforated steel sheets to convert
into wires. They are then hammered to the required thinness. Plain
wire is called badla, and when wound round a thread, it is
called kasav. Smaller spangles are called sitara and
tiny dots made of badla are called mukaish. Zardozi, a
more elaborate version of zari, involves the use of gold
threads, spangles, beads, seed pearls, wire, gota and kinari.
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