About Kalamkari

The Name KALAMKARI  commences in the Persian and this is derived from the words qalam(PEN) and Kari(CRAFTSMANSHIP) it means DRAWING WITH PEN. It is a type of cotton and silk textile which is Hand Painted or Block Printed. This type of material is produced in Iran and India, in this material production only Natural Dyes are used, production process includes Seventeen Major steps.

History of Kalamkari

This was initially started in Iran Sasani Era which is nearly 2500 years ago in This there are two peculiar styles in India one is Srikalahasti and another one is Machilipatnam style. The difference between Srikalahasti and Machilipatnam style was Srikalahasti style was purely freehand designs and hand worked and is seen around temples and their outer layers, it has a religious identity in this style filling of colors is also done by hands only the textiles literally painted with pens which are made out of bamboo and cotton. whereas Machilipatnam, kalamkari which is also known as Pedana Kalamkari evolved with the encouragement of Mughals and Golconda Sultanates, in this type line drawing is done with a  pen and transferred onto wooden blocks which are carved and then used to print on fabric.

Types Of Kalamkari

Pedana Kalamkari involves vegetable dyed block painting. It was produced at Pedana Village near Machilipatnam Krishna District Andhra Pradesh, under handicrafts goods it was registered as one of the Geographical indications of goods act 1999. This style mainly uses vegetable dyes which are applied to the fabric with the help of wooden blocks. Different textile products produced from this type of style mainly includes wall hangings and curtains. In Machilipatnam kalamkari production is moved in commercial workshops where all the workers make production under a single roof.

Kalamkari is becoming popular day by day the reason behind this is now a day's most numbers of people across the globe are not interested to use chemicals in manufacturing and production so This Textile emerges as a perfect craft which uses only Natural Dyes avoiding chemicals in its production and still produces beautiful outfits in wide range of varieties like sarees, dresses, Kurtis, wall hangings, bed sheets, and curtains.

History

History of Kalamkari, From the 16th Century, Mughal rulers were the financial supporters for the textile art form, during Mughal rule this Kalamkari art was considered as a sign of great wealth, as it was in earlier times kalamkari begins to be produced in Machilipatnam an ancient city of Krishna District Andhra Pradesh,

And also another hub for the production of Kalamkari was Srikalahasti, situated in Chittoor District Andhra Pradesh, for a short period of time Kalamkari popularity was decreased, later on, when the British rule came nearly in the 18th century they found that the textile Art's craftsmanship was extremely beautiful.

The artists who worked on the kalamkari painting were known as Jadupatuas or Duari Patuas these are known as "Magical Painters". In spice trade merchants and traders across the world, kalamkari paintings are used as currency, these paintings have high demand as spices like clove, nutmeg, and pepper, which are available exclusively in the parts of Southeast Asia and Indonesia.

The Traders from Southeast Asia and Indonesia demands Indian Textiles in form of kalamkari paintings for ritual and commercial use. It is believed that the early part of painted fabric was found during Indus Valley Civilization. The Archeological department says that the hand painting on the resists-dyed cloth was discovered in the 8th century only. Francois Bernie's French traveler has taken initiation for promoting this kalamkari art through his old writings. Mughals encouraged this craft in the coromondal and Golconda region.

In olden days during 13th and 19th centuries, the people in the south region, especially in Andhra Pradesh painters, called CHITRAKATTIS kept moving from one village to another village only to describe the stories of Hindu Mythology in the form of street plays and earn for their livelihood.

For a better understanding of the people, chitrakattis gradually came up with the new ideas, they staged their plays using large coarse bleached cloth painted on the spot using basic natural dyes. This is how kalamkari has driven its path into the country.