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Let’s read about Kalamkari: Timeless art

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khinkhwab
Let’s read about Kalamkari: Timeless art

Know about Kalamkari

Kalamkari is a type of hand-painted or block-printed cotton textile, produced in Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Iti is more than just being a fabric used for clothing or home. It is more than  textiles to an experience that a culture has witnessed over centuries. This textile is supposed to be a multi-colored fabric in one of its raest forms.

 

Kalamkari is known to be a healing fabric, as the colours, motifs and the narration of magical forms create an aura that heals an individual physically and spiritually.Only natural dyes are used in Kalamkari, which is an ancient style of hand painting done on cotton or silk fabric with a tamarind pen. The word Kalamkari is derived from a Persian word where ‘kalam‘ means pen and ‘kari‘ refers to craftsmanship.While Pedana and Machilipatnam are the hub for hand block-printed Kalamkari, Srikalahasti in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh is known for the pen-drawn format. Kalamkari has been around for nearly 2000 years in India.

Kalamkari over the years..

Kalamkari art has been practiced by many families in Andhra Pradesh, some villages in Tamilnadu by migrants from Telugu speaking families and over the generations has constituted their livelihood.

As an art form it found its peak in the wealthy middle Ages. The Mughals who patronized this craft in the Coromandel called the practitioners of this craft "qualamkars", from which the term "kalamkari" evolved. In this era, term refers to making of any cotton fabric patterned through

Vegetable dyes by free hand painting and block printing.In places where the fabric is block printed the kalam (pen) is used to draw finer details and for application of some colours.

 

In the modern times, this has become completely digital. New types and new techniques are introduced and the digital files of kalamkari (pen work) is totally introduced widely all over the regions of India.

Kalamkari Technique

 

According to sources, Hand block-printed Kalamkari is a tedious and time-consuming process involving a minimum of 10 steps.

 

Cotton cloth pieces are bought from mills and cut into pieces. These pieces are soaked in water mixed with cow-dung. Once soaked well, the water is loosely squeezed out and the cloth is laid on the floor overnight.

The next morning, these pieces are washed on a stone in a pond and spread on grass and water till evening. This process is repeated the next day and then all the cloth pieces are washed and dried.

The next step involves treating the cloth with Myrobalan seeds and buffalo milk to prevent smudging of dyes when painted. After this process, the cloth is printed using natural colours as per the required design and then washed in flowing, fresh water.

Source for this information-  https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/fake-kalamkari-takes-over-market-original-struggles-andhra-s-pedana-85338

 

How to identify original Kalamkari?

 

Dyes for the cloth are obtained by extracting colors from various roots, leaves, and mineral salts of iron, tin, copper, and alum.Various effects are obtained by using seeds, plants and crushed flowers to obtain natural dye.

 

Along with buffalo milk, myrobalan is used in kalamkari. Myrobalan is also able to remove the odd smell of buffalo milk. The fixing agents available in the myrobolan can easily fix the dye or color of the textile while treating the fabric. Alum is used in making natural dyes and also while treating the fabric. Alum ensures the stability of the color in kalamkari fabric.

 

Test for original kalamkari is  done by the smell of the fabric. You can smell the odours of milk and alum. And the natural colours used doesn't glitter.

 

Kalamkari Fabrics

 

Kalamkari is one of the traditional art for of India noted for its extraordinary beautiful hand paintings on fabrics. This is very popularly used as handprint in fabrics for dress material , sarees and readymade salwar kameez, kurtas etc. The most common theme followed is exhibiting magnificent paintings of sun chariots, famous deities and scenes from the epics Mahabharata and Ramayana.

 

Kalamkari sarees showcase the fine craftsmanship of Indian artists. Ir is a perfect blend of elegance and heritage followed by latest trends. Wide range of Kalamkari sarees is available with different styles and fabric. They don’t get faded away with wash, since natural dyes and colors are used.

 

Kalamkari sarees  are perfect for ladies who are looking for class and elegance. As the Kalamkari prints come in cotton and silk sarees, it gives a unique style. Kalamkari silk sarees with block prints are easy to wear and provides comfy to the user. As normal hand washing can shrink the fabric, make sure to dry wash or petrol wash to get better results.

 

The designs done using Kalamkari bring out the best in you. Even though they are traditional sarees, even today, these sarees have not lost its worth in the modern fashion industry. The mix and match of Kalamkari works gives the fabric a rich look.

 

Kalamkari printed sarees are widely used  come in Cotton, Crepe, Designer wear, Printed sarees , Silk sarees,Georgette, Chiffon, Patch work, Chanderi, Kerala kasavu sarees

 

Check out some beautiful Kalamkari sarees :- https://stylesatlife.com/articles/kalamkari-sarees/

 

Khinkhwab admires Kalamkari

 

As a brand, Khinkhwab always in the fore front supporting all handmade and handwoven traditions of India. Kalamkari one such hand printed textile form that we have been admiring and supporting over the years

 

When talking about Kalamkari, one cannot miss the contribution and the passion of this well-known Kalamkari artist Niranjan Jonnalgadda who is the grandson of Lakshmaiyya, the last surviving artists of Andhra Pradesh and one of the few Kalamkari practitioners of his generation.. Niranjan is a recipient of State Award during the event to celebrate 50 years of All India Handicrafts Board. He is the fourth generation Kalamkari atrist  and learnt this work by observing his father closely.

 

Niranjan  has extensively traveled both internationally and nationally trying to promote Kalamkari and conduct workshops. He had conducted workshop in Singapore,early this year,which was organized by Ms. Sushita Paidi of the brand Antara . Khinhwab,being  a supporter of handloom and hand-painted products,our founder Ruchi Agarwal had a wonderful opportunity to attend the Kalamkari workshop by Niranjan and she still cherishes this amazing experience

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you are looking at supporting handmade , it is time to buy the hand printed beautiful Kalamkari sarees, readymade salwar kameez or churidars and dress material and contribute to the community of Kalamkari artists of our country.

 

Check out our Kalamkari inspired products oh Khinkhwab

 

https://khinkhwab.com/products/grey-pure-chanderi-silk-digital-print-saree

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