Vidarbha: Part 15

 # Ajrakh

Long post alert !!

The story of my Ajrakh saree . I bought this Vidarbha  Karvati tussar saree online . It had vertical stripes of tussar alternating with ghicha stripes and a red border in cotton with the classical saw tooth lining which is the hallmark of Karvati from Vidarbha in Maharashtra . 

After wearing a few times I decided to give this one a makeover. So I sent it to Ajrakhpur with a friend. A month or so later it was back in its new avatar.

It is so versatile. I am able to wash it at home . It is soft and tough at the same time . Drapes comfortably and stays nearly crease free all day. I have worn it to work multiple times . Gives a look that is elegant but not over dressed . 

One day I chose this for a half day trip to Paso Robles which is a wine producing town about 100 miles from where I live . There was an annual wine and dine festival there where 35 vineries and 25 local restaurants offered a wine and food tasting experience. Vendors and fellow visitors alike struck up a conversation with me over the saree. At least a few of those people I think were impressed enough to go looking for Ajrakh when they got home . More about Paso Robles some other time.

I am sharing with you pictures of the saree in its original form when it was recognizable as a Vidarbha Karvati tassar . Also sharing how it looked in subsequent stages of printing and dyeing . The original stripes are easier to recognize in the close up of the saree.

Much has been said about Ajrakh. Where do I start ? Kutch, Sindh, Mohenjo Daro? 

Yes history takes back to early civilization in the Indus Valley . 

Ajrakh is a source of identity and pride as much as it is an income for the Khatri community . Some of these people moved from Sindh to kutch area in the state of Gujarat centuries ago. Ajrakh remains important part of Sindhi culture in Pakistan . 

This art is very much dependent on nature and it’s whims and fancies . It needs water, not too less , not too much . Quality of water influences coloring.It needs soil and minerals and other natural ingredients for dyes . It needs sunshine.Monsoons halt the work because the dyed product needs to be dried in the sun . The amount and intensity of sunshine in summer Vs winter affects development of colors. In other words specific colors are created in specific season.

The Khatris have endured drought in Dhamadka when the rivers dried and later the devastating 2001 earthquake in Bhuj . Everything was lost in that single day . Homes and several lives . Their resilience was tested to the limits . Those that survived relocated almost penniless to a new township aptly given the name Ajrakhpur . Over the last few years I have come to know a few from this community and grown to respect their creativity and hard work and admire their humility . 

The craft is a form of block printing . It is a conglomeration of several sub crafts . Some but not all of the master craftsmen are adept at more than one of these skills. 

Making of the blocks starts from conception of design . Then picking the right wood , usually shesham and teak . And then the art of chiseling the desired design into that block .  The wood swells in wet weather. So it needs to be protected with oil .

The name Ajrakh is derived from Arabic where it indicates blue / indigo which is the primary color for this .The indigo, madder( red), green, yellow hues that attract us are all created painstakingly through a laborious process . You may find the hands of the artisan tell the story of the color they created . 

Natural resources such as soil elements , camel dung , turmeric, pomegranate, lime are put to use to create the colors.

Ok , so now you have a wooden block and you have the colors. You need a fabric to use them on . 

In recent years ,creativity has expanded into experiments with Modal silk , linen , Khadi , Chanderi silk cottons , georgette, pure silk , tussar . Yet , cotton which was the ancient traditional fabric remains the best .The colors take expression on cotton like soul mates in an eternal relationship.

The fabric is subjected to multiple washings to make it soft . Then treated with a fixative for subsequent dyes . Printing is a process involving multiple repetitions alternating with washings . Technique of resist painting is employed so some areas of the fabric remain uncolored while neighboring areas are being subjected to coloring. 

One interesting piece of information I got from my craftsman is that within Kutch , different communities/ castes wear garments of different designs of Ajrakh. Also different castes contribute to different parts of labor that goes into the making of Ajrakh. So it is a task that brings together different people from that region and yet their garments keep them distinct from each other .

Next time you buy Ajrakh, remember the hard labor that goes into each garment before you get to lay your hands on it . Remember the uncertainties that it’s makers go through each year with drought and monsoon. And salute their creativity, dedication and resilience. Let them know how special they are . When I get compliments on my attire or looks , I think to myself : it takes a village to make a person. In my case , it takes a whole country and more .