Craft and Artisans of India

Jawahar Circle, Jaipur, Rajasthan

is a non violent method of silk extraction where the silk is extracted when the worm leaves the cocoon. In the normal process 1500 silk worms are killed while making one meter of silk. the silk is spun after the silk worm metamorphoses into a moth. Though ahimsa silk is expensive because than normal silk because only 16% of the silk is utilized.

Khadi over the decades has moved from a freedom fighter's identity fabric to a fashion garment. Many fashion designers believe that Khadi is India's answer to Egyptian cotton and linen. It falls well and becomes second skin after two washes. Khadi is available in many weaves and designs and stands apart from mill made unnatural fabrics. Almost every States in India produces Khadi, but differs from each other in their weaving style and fiber mix.

Kalamkari is an art form of hand printing or block printing normally done on cotton fabrics using only vegetable dyes or natural colours. Apart from printing, weaving and painting are also main component of Kalamkari Art. Andhra Pradesh in South India is the originator of this exquisite artwork that got flourished under the patronage of the Mughals and the Golconda Nizams. Also known as Qalamkari- means artwork with pen, the word gets its meaning from the Persian word kalam -pen and kari -workmanship. People all over the world have understood the harmful effects of dangerous chemical dyes and developing the taste for naturally dyed fabrics. Kalamkari painting is the best specimen of natural colour artwork. The artists use natural colours extracted from bark, flower and roots of plants. No chemical dyes are used for Kalamkari colours. It is quite amazing to know that the red colour is obtained by using the Indian madder root, yellow from the pomegranate seed or even mango bark, and black from myrobalam fruit. There is a certain kind of hypnotism effect of this art on every onlooker.

Batik can be called as a three-step art namely Waxing, Dyeing and Wax Removing, excluding the finer process like sketching of designs and preparing the cloth. Batik art is nothing but the reverse of painting. Instead of painting or coloring the fabric the wax is applied to the area to keep it color free. The fabric is then soaked in dye, to have an even coloring on all the wax free area. The cloth is boiled after dyeing to remove the wax. It is then washed in soap water and dried in sun. Batik dyeing was earlier used only in garments but with new technologies and tastes, it's usage has been extended to many other fields as well. Today, the exquisite murals, wall hangings, colorful paintings and household linen also adds to the list of Batik art.