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The
Gujaratis, the people of Gujarat, are found all over the
state. These people trace their lineage from the people
originally known as Gurjars. They are believed to have
come to India with the Huns and while passing through
Punjab, settled in Gujarat. Gujaratis were highly
influenced by the cultural waves from the mainland and
accepted the monarchies that ruled over them. Various
Hindu traditions like Shavism and Vaishnavism which sprang
upon the mainland were imbibed by Gujarat which in turn
developed its own galaxy of saints and devotees and its
own art and culture. The successive waves of immigration
were absorbed in the society that was fast evolving and
today the word Gujarati does not seem to suggest any
definite association with a particular stock, a tribe of
immigrants or a specific group of people.
Cloth printing is a complicated and specialised job. It is
done with engraved wooden blocks and with screens. Certain
craftsman are doing superbly the work of printing
different varieties which are locally called Chundadi,
Patola Plain Gala, Lehria, Bandhani, Pomcha, Nagaria and
so on. House hold utility and decorative materials such as
table-cloths, bed -covers, curtains, tapestries, handbags
and carpets are also prepared by this type of printing
processes.
Temple curtains popularly known as Mat-no-Chandarvo is
another type of printing work. The Vahari-Harijan families
of Ahmedabad were engaged in this type of printing. It is
prepared in the old madder process and depicts goddess
Durga seated on the throne or on the back of a tiger and
surrounded by her devotees.
Cloth printing is a complicated and specialised job. It is
done with engraved wooden blocks and with screens. Certain
craftsman are doing superbly the work of printing
different varieties which are locally called Chundadi,
Patola Plain Gala, Lehria, Bandhani, Pomcha, Nagaria and
so on. House hold utility and decorative materials such as
table-cloths, bed -covers, curtains, tapestries, handbags
and carpets are also prepared by this type of printing
processes.
Temple curtains popularly known as Mat-no-Chandarvo is
another type of printing work. The Vahari-Harijan families
of Ahmedabad were engaged in this type of printing. It is
prepared in the old madder process and depicts goddess
Durga seated on the throne or on the back of a tiger and
surrounded by her devotees.
The Patola of Patan is a unique fabric of Gujarat. This
special variety of women's wear is strikingly attractive
with its colourful geometrical patterns. This lovely
silken fabric, which resembles a printed sari is not an
apparel printed by blocks. Its tie and weave method
resulting in identical patterns on both sides of the
fabric, involving complicated calculations, is entirely
based on the geometry of the design. The process consists
of dyeing the warp and the weft threads in conformity with
the proposed design on the fabric. Hand-woven and silk
yarn is used for weaving. The process is both costly and
time consuming and the market is limited with the result
that the families doing this work are fast dwindling. |