Theblock-printing style called 'ajrakh' is a legacy of the Indus ValleyCivilisation. Renu Gupta writes about a craft that is now seeingresurgence.

Ajrakh is an ancientblock-printing method on textiles that originated in the presentday provincesof Sindh in Pakistan and the neighbouring Indian districts of Kutch in Gujaratand Barmer in Rajasthan. The word 'ajrakh' itself connotes a number ofdifferent concepts.

 

According to some, it comes fromthe Arabic word ajrakh, which means blue, one of the chief colours in ajrakhprinting. Other historians say the word has been coined from the two Hindiwords- aaj rakh, meaning, keep it today.

According to others, it meansmaking beautiful. Although ajrakh printing is a part of the culture of Sindh,its roots extended to the states of Rajasthan and Gujarat in India during thetimes of the Indus Valley Civilisation, around 3000 BC. The Indus river was animportant resource for washing fabric and sustenance of raw materials likeindigo dye and cotton, which were copious along the river.

 

Ajrakh printing thrived in Indiain the 16th century with the migration of Khatris from the Sindh province toKutch district. The king of Kutch acknowledged and recognized the textile art,and indirectly encouraged the migration of Khatris to uninhabited lands inKutch. Ultimately, some Khatri printer families migrated to Rajasthan andsettled in and around Barmer province of British India, including present-dayGujarat, and excelled at the art of ajrakh printing. At present, the Khatricommunity is engrossed in consistently producing jrakh printed fabric ofsupreme quality in Ajrakhpur village in Kutch and also Barmer.

 

Celebrationof nature

Ajrakh printing celebrates natureamazingly. This is evident in the aesthetics of the unification of its coloursas well as motifs.

 

The traditional colours found inajrakh printing are deep, which symbolise nature. Crimson red symbolizes theearth, and indigo blue symbolises twilight. Black and white are used with aview to outline motifs and define symmetrical designs. Although the use ofeco-friendly synthetic dyes is prevalent, the use of traditional natural dyesis being resumed gradually. Indigo is obtained from the indigo plant. Craftsmenused indigo plants growing profusely along the Indus river. Red is acquiredfrom alizarin found in the roots of madder plants. Black is obtained from ironshavings, millet flour and molasses with the addition of ground tamarind seedsto thicken the dye. The contemporary ajrakh prints have intensely vibrantcontrasting colours like rust, yellow and orange.

 

The use of traditional elaboratemotifs is still prevalent in ajrakh printing, which is the legacy of earliergenerations. These are symmetrically-geometric jewellike shapes symbolisingnatural elements like flowers, leaves and stars. The most common motif found inajrakh printing is the trefoil which is thought to be made of three sundiscsjoined together to represent the cohesive unity of the gods of earth, water andsun. All motifs are stamped around a central point and are repeated across thefabric in a grid forming something akin to web-like design, or the centraljaal. This jaal is made of vertical, diagonal and horizontal lines. Besidesthis web, border designs are also printed. The borders are aligned bothhorizontally as well as vertically and frame the central portion,distinguishing one ajrakh from another. A wider double margin is used to printthe lateral ends with a view to differentiate the layouts of borders.

 

Ajrakh is worn by males of the gypsy,Jat and Meghwal communities. The men wear safa, a shoulder cloth and lungi.People with lower incomes sport the ekpuri ajrakh, printed on one side. Peoplefrom higher income groups wear bipuri ajrakh, printed on both sides. This iscostlier, and is a status symbol. It is worn during ceremonies like weddings.Men carry new ajrakh lungis at weddings as shoulder-wear. On Eid and otherspecial occasions, it is presented to bridegrooms. This craft is prevalent ineveryday usage, like bed spreads, hammocks, dupattas, scarves and even giftsgiven as a token of honour.

 

Processingajrakh

Ajrakh printing is a long andarduous process that requires a number of stages of printing and washing thefabric repeatedly with different natural dyes and mordants. The technique ofresist printing is employed. This permits absorption of a dye in the requiredareas and prohibits absorption on the areas meant not to be coloured. Thestages are elaborated below:

 

Saaj: The fabric is washed toremove starch and then dipped in a solution of camel dung, soda ash and castoroil. Next, it is wrung out and kept overnight. The next day, the fabric ispartially dried under the sun and then dipped in the solution again. Thisprocess of saaj and drying is repeated about eight times until the fabricproduces foam when rubbed. Finally, it is washed in plain water.

 

Kasano: The fabric is washed in asolution of myrobalan which is the nut from the harde tree. Myrobalan is usedas the first mordant in the dyeing process. Next, the fabric is dried under thesun on both sides. The extra myrobalan on the fabric after drying is brushedoff.

 

Khariyanu: A resist of lime andgum Arabic (babool tree resin) is printed on to the fabric to outline themotifs that are required to be white. This outline printing is called rekh. Theresist is printed on both sides of fabric using carved wooden blocks.

 

Kat: Scrap iron andjaggery are mixed with water and left for about 20 days. The water becomesferrous. Next, tamarind seed powder is added and the ferrous water is boiled toa paste known as kat and is printed on to both sides of the fabric.

Gach: Clay, alum and gum Arabicare mixed to form a paste which is to be used for the next resist printing. Aresist of gum Arabic and lime is also printed at the same time. This combinedphase is known as gach. To shield the clay from smudging, saw dust or finelyground cow dung is spread on the printed portion. After this stage, the clothis dried naturally for about 7-10 days.

 

Indigo dyeing: The fabric is dyedin indigo. Next, it is kept in the sun to dry and then is dyed again in indigotwice to coat it uniformly.

 

Vichcharnu: The fabric is washedthoroughly to remove all the resist print and extra dye.

 

Rang: Next the fabric is put toboil with alizarin, i.e. synthetic madder in order to impart a bright shiningred colour to alum residue portion. Alum works as a mordant to fix the redcolour. The grey areas from the black printing steps turn into a deeper hue.For other colours, the fabric is boiled with a different dye. Madder rootimparts an orange colour, henna adds a light yellowish green colour, andrhubarb root gives a faint brownish colour.

 

In ajrakh printing, the fabric isfirst printed with a resist paste and then it is dyed. This process is repeatedseveral times with different kinds of dyes with the aim of achieving the finaldesign in the deep blue and red shade. This process consumes a lot of time. Thelonger the time span before commencing the next stage, the more rich andvibrant the final print becomes. Hence, this process can consume up to twoweeks, and consequently results in the formation of exquisitely beautiful andcaptivating designs of the ajrakh.

 

The roleof the industries

Water plays a significant role inajrakh printing. Craftsmen treat the fabric with mordants, dyes, oils, etc.Water impacts everything from the shades and hues of the colours themselves tothe success or failure of the complete process. The iron content in water isthe decisive factor which determines the quality of the final product.

Dhamadka was the chief location ofajrakh printing for a considerable span of time due to the favourable source ofwater. But after the 2001 earthquake, the iron content in water increasedheavily and the water turned to be unusable. Thus, the artisans from Dhamadkavillage shifted to a new base and named it Ajrakhpur. They have takeninitiative in harvesting water keeping in view the fragile eco-system.

 

Ajrakh printing in Sindh, Kutchand Barmer, are almost similar in terms of production technique, motifs and useof colours. This is due to the fact that craftsmen in these areas descend fromthe same caste-families of the Khatri community who migrated to Kutch andBarmer from Sindh in the 16th century, and who are the descendents of the IndusValley Civilisation. At present, the Khatri families are distinguished forcarrying on with the traditional technique of ajrakh printing.

 

This Khatri community had beeninvolved in ajrakh printing in the village of Dhamadka long before thedestructive earthquake of 2001. All Ajrakh printers were shifted to the newvillage of Ajrakhpur, which was set up primarily to commemorate the art ofAjrakh printing and its highly proficient artisans. It is chiefly the Khatriswho have acquired perfection in this craft, and are carrying on the legacy oftraditional technique of their ancestors.

 

Aplethora of problems

Ajrakh craftsperson's today face anumber of problems, which hinder work.

 

Use of synthetic dyes andsophisticated machinery: Use of eco-friendly and synthetic dyes andsophisticated machinery which has lessened production time to a great extent isproving to be a threat to the age-old traditions of this textile art.

 

Government loans: It is cumbersomefor artisans to get government loans which in turn discourage them from settingup their own printing units.

 

High cost of blocks: The high costof wooden blocks used in Ajrakh printing imposes a great financial burden onartisans as one block costs as much as Rs 3,000.

 

Crunch of water resources: Thereis lack of water resources which is a mandatory criterion for ajrakh printingin and around printing hubs.

 

Lack of new craftspersons: Due tothe lack of payback and great labour requirement, the upcoming generation ishesitant in adopting this craft as chief occupation.

 

Traditionally,vegetable dyes were used by ajrakh printers, but soon they began to usenaphthol dyes and synthetic dyes realising that vegetable dyes were proving tobe too expensive. But with the revival of the craft once again, ajrakh printershave reverted to the use of natural dyes. New motifs are being added to thedesign library day by day. Earlier, the body and the border used to be same,but now complementary borders are in vogue.

 

Earlier, blocks used to be made ina place called Pethapur. Now, blocks are made in the homes with the help ofmachine-like drills. And, instead of natural water resources, modern printersuse water from borewells. The craftspeople are also planning to establish atreatment plant for treating polluted water. Changing times have called forcritical changes both in terms of utility and design. But the beauty of thetraditional art has withstood the test of time. A number of hubs of ajrakhprinting have cropped up across India as well as Pakistan proving that art is supremeand it transcends national boundaries.

 

In tunewith changing times

A number of NGOs are currentlyengaged in making efforts to uplift this craft by providing new inputs to thecraftspeople. The NGOs conduct year-long training programmes to train aspiringcraftsperson in all relevant aspects of the art and give them monetary supportduring the same. NGOs also back them in selling their products in the marketand earn due profits. But the number of such NGOs is not sufficient inproportion to the number of craftspeople needing this assistance. Thus, thegovernment, the NGOs and those who are devoted to this craft should comeforward and devise ways and means to shield the interest of craftsmen who havebeen nurturing this art for ages.

 

In spite of environmentalcalamities, industrialisation and changing political regimes, the traditionalcraft of ajrakh has survived. Craftspersons are revitalising the age-old use ofnatural dyes for western markets. The handmade, ecofriendly and natural dyesare preferred to non-eco-friendly machine-made and artificial dyes and colours.

 

With passage of time,ajrakh printers are now open to trying out new motifs, designs, dyes, materialsand want to keep pace with the growing and changing contemporary world offashion. At present, the printing art is being impacted by market demand andthe new crop of ajrakh printers are prepared to accept and experiment with newpattern inputs provided by fashion designers. Hence, it has received a newlease of recognition both nationally as well as internationally. There is hopethat these are not just transient fashion trends and that the ajrakh artisanswill carry on the tradition of catering to the world with a fascination forhighly proficient, elaborate, handcrafted textiles for generations to come.

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