KALAMKARI - THE ART OF KALAM

Introduction
Printing is a process of of applying colour to fabric in definite patterns or self developed
designs. . Textile printing is related to dyeing but in dyeing the whole fabric is uniformly
covered with one colour, whereas in printing one or more colours are applied to it in certain
parts only, and in sharply defined patterns.

Different process that can be used to place colours on the fabric

Wooden Block Stencil Engraved Plates

Roller

Sceen Printing

Among the differnt style of Printing, Kalamkari is a type of hand-painted or block-

printed cotton textile, produced in Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.Till today,
many families in Andhra Pradesh continue to practice this art which serve as the prime source
of livelihod for them, over the generations.
History
Centuries ago,folk singers used to wander village to village narrating the stories of Hindu
mythology to the villegers.But with the passage of time this process came to an end, and
depiction of the tale by canvas painting started and that’s when Kalamkari art first saw the light
of day.But during that time Kalamkari used to be known as Pattachitra, an art form still found in
neighboring Odisha and other parts of India and Nepal. The term "Pattachitra" in translates to
"Patta" meaning "cloth" and "Chitra" means "picture". Paintings made on fabric and fabric
scrolls finds mentioned in ancient Hindu, Buddhist and Jain literature.
As per Historian, sample of Kalamkari Fabric has been found in the archeological sites of
Mohenjo-daro.But the art came to recognition during the Mughal period promoted the art
practiced by skillful craftsmen (known as Qualamkars), that’s how this art under
medieval Islamic rule was termed as Kalamkari Persian, which is derived from the words
kalam (pen) and kari (craftmanship), meaning drawing with a pen.

Types of Kalamkari
There are two identifiable styles of Kalamkari art in India –
- In the Machilipatnam style of Kalamkari, motifs are
essentially printed with hand-carved traditional blocks
with intricate detailing painted by hands.

-Whereas the Srikalahasti style of painting draws

inspiration from the Hindu mythology describing
scenes from the epics and folklore. This style holds a
strong religious connect because of its origin in the
temples.

In recent times, two other types of

Kalamkari patterns have also emerged,
based on the states where it is created.
Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh are two
prime states in India, where two
different types of Kalamkari patterns
are done. The Andhra Kalamkari
borrows design inspiration from forts,
palaces and temples of India, along
with motifs of animals and birds. While
the Gujarat Kalamkari depict motifs of
mythological characters like Krishna-
Arjuna from Mahabharata, lord
Krishna, lord Ganesha, lord Buddha
etc.The most prominent motifs seen in
kalamkari art include figures of women in yellow, demons in green
and red and Gods in shades of blue. The lotus flower is often ised as
the background for these prints.
Colors of Kalamkari
Kalamkari art primarily use earthy colors like indigo, mustard, rust, black and green. Natural
dyes used to paint colors in Kalamkari art is extracted for natural sources with no use of
chemicals and artificial matter. For instance, craftsmen extract black color by blending jaggery,
water and iron fillings which they essentially use for outlining the sketches. While mustard or
yellow is derived by boiling pomegranate peels, red hues are created from bark of madder
or algirin. Likewise, blue is obtained from indigo and green is derived by mixing yellow and
blue together.

The Making
The process of making Kalamkari involves 23
steps. From natural process of bleaching the
fabric, softening it, sun drying, preparing natural
dyes, hand painting, to the processes of air
drying and washing, the entire procedure is a
process which requires precision and an eye for
detailing.
Pre Painting Process
1. Cotton fabric used for Kalamkari is first
treated with a solution of cow dung and
bleach. After keeping the fabric in this
solution for hours, the fabric gets a uniform
off-white color.
2. After this, the cotton fabric is immersed in a
mixture of buffalo milk and Myrobalans.
Myrobalan is also remove the odd smell of
buffalo milk. This avoids smudging of dyes
in the fabric when it is painted with natural
dyes.
3. Later, the fabric is washed under running
water to get rid of the odor of buffalo
milk. The fabric likewise, is washed twenty
times and dried under the sun. Once the
fabric is ready for painting, artists sketch
motifs and designs on the fabric.
4. Post this, the Kalamkari artists prepare dyes
using natural sources from various roots,
leaves, and mineral salts of iron, tin, copper,
and alum to fill colors within the
drawings.Alum ensures the stability of the
color in kalamkari fabric
Painting Process
Making of Kalam:The kalam is
made by using bamboo sticks. It
is sharpened by using a cutter so
as the color drip from it and it
leaves precise fine lines on the
cloth. A woollen cloth or a cotton
rug or foam is tied with a thread
on the pen from where it is holed.

Painting on Fabric:The printing is done by kalam; which needs to be soaked

in the colour for about 10 minutes before any printing is done. The cloth rug
which is tied to the kalam needs to be pressed gently and the kalam needs
to be drawn smoothly without any breakage and stoppage while working on
the cloth so as to get perfect lines without any extra dripping or blots of the
colour. The first printing includes the application of black and red colour only.

As per the requirement a kalam with thicker tip is used to

fill in the colours within the outlined motif. Incorporating minute details, the
Kalamkars use ‘tamarind twig’ as pen, to sketch beautiful motifs of Krishna
Raas-Leela, Indian god and goddesses like Parvati, Vishnu, Shri Jaganath;
designs of peacock, lotus; and scenes from the Hindu epics like
Mahabharata and Ramayana.

Present Day Scenario

From the first representation of Kalamkari art as religious paintings, depicting Indian gods and
goddesses to the process of gaining recognition during the reign of Mughal dynasty, and till
today when Andhra Pradesh is the largest producer of Kalamkari; this art has come a long way.
In the past decade, due to the tedious technique involved in its making, Kalamkari art was
losing its shine. The emergence of high on technology machine looms and printed textiles also
escalated the extinction process of this art. But it was the fashion designers of the Indian
fashion industry who came together to revive this art and helped artisans practicing this art in
the state of Andhra Pradesh.
Today there are number of designers who have worked extensively with Kalamkaris like
Sabyasachi, Neeta Lulla , Gaurang Shah and Shashikant Naidu has worked almost exclusively
with it.There are runway collections at fashion weeks devoted exclusively to this art form too.
Lakme Fashion Week even has a Textiles Day devoted exclusively to handlooms and
Kalamkari is a popular choice for many designers who love to mix this art form with their Khadi,
Kota and silk ensembles.
Creative minds like Gaurang Shah6 beautifully portrayed Kalamkari sarees on the fashion
runways which brought back this immortal art back in the limelight.

Some of Gaurang Shah’s collection in Lakme Fashion Week Runway

NeetaLulla Bridal Lehenga

collection
Neeta Lulla Kalamkari collection from 2013
Ayush Kejriwal Created Magic in
His New Kalamkari Saree
Collections
 References

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Textile_printing

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalamkari#cite_ref-MetMuseum_7-1

https://www.utsavpedia.com/motifs-embroideries/kalamkari-art/

[ Refer video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcjYlU7GwC8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGpCww-dxO8 ]

https://www.aashniandco.com/journal/2018/03/04/makeinindia-kalamkari/

https://www.craftsvilla.com/blog/kalamkari-sarees-fashion-bollywood/

https://www.pintower.com/media/22095854407425496