In recent times, two other types of Kalamkari patterns have also emerged, based on the states where it is created. This style holds a strong religious connect because of its origin in the temples. On the other hand, Srikalahasti style of painting draws inspiration from the Hindu mythology describing scenes from the epics and folklore. In the Machilipatnam style of Kalamkari, motifs are essentially printed with hand-carved traditional blocks with intricate detailing painted by hands. There are two identifiable styles of Kalamkari art in India – Srikalahasti style and Machilipatnam style. Likewise, blue is obtained from indigo and green is derived by mixing yellow and blue together. While mustard or yellow is derived by boiling pomegranate peels, red hues are created from bark of madder or algirin. For instance, craftsmen extract black color by blending jaggery, water and iron fillings which they essentially use for outlining the sketches. Natural dyes used to paint colors in Kalamkari art is extracted for natural sources with no use of chemicals and artificial matter. Kalamkari art primarily use earthy colors like indigo, mustard, rust, black and green. 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.
Post this, the Kalamkari artists prepare dyes using natural sources to fill colors within the drawings. Once the fabric is ready for painting, artists sketch motifs and designs on the fabric. The fabric likewise, is washed twenty times and dried under the sun. Later, the fabric is washed under running water to get rid of the odor of buffalo milk. This avoids smudging of dyes in the fabric when it is painted with natural dyes. After this, the cotton fabric is immersed in a mixture of buffalo milk and Myrobalans. After keeping the fabric in this solution for hours, the fabric gets a uniform off-white color. 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.Ĭotton fabric used for Kalamkari is first treated with a solution of cow dung and bleach. The process of making Kalamkari involves 23 steps. Process Flow of Making Kalamkari (Image Courtesy: Behance) Till today, many families in Andhra Pradesh continue to practice this art and this has served as the prime source of livelihood for them, over the generations. Under the Golconda sultanate, this art flourished at Machilipatnam in the Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh and further was promoted during the 18th century, as a decorative design on clothing by Britishers in India. Mughals promoted this art in the Golconda and Coromandel province where skillful craftsmen (known as Qualamkars) used to practice this art, that’s how this art and the word Kalamkari evolved. According to the historians, fabric samples depicting Kalamkari art was found at the archeological sites of Mohenjo-daro.īut, it was during the Mughal era when this style of painting got recognition. This colorful art dates back to more than 3000 B.C.
But with course of time, the process of telling tales transformed into canvas painting and that’s when Kalamkari art first saw the light of day. After more than 300 years, however, Yerrapragada of the 14th century completed the unfinished Aranya Parva and lived to a ripe old age.Kalamkari Design (Image Courtesy: D esicraft blog)Ĭenturies ago, folk singers and painters used to wander from one village to other, narrating stories of Hindu mythology to the village people. It was rumoured that it was not auspicious to touch that leftover section (Parva). Tikkana Somayaji, another veteran Telugu scholar, completed the rest of the Mahabharata, except, of course, the leftover Aranya Parva, in the 13th century. Nannaya translated Adi Parva (the first chapter), Sabha Parva, and half of Aranya Parva. He thus evolved his own distinctive literary style, prosody and grammar. He also seemed to have drawn on several characteristics of the already enriched Kannada literature. He liberally mixed Sanskrit diction with the then prevailing Telugu language in his translation. Nannaya Bhattu took up the work in right earnest in 1030 AD.
So, Rajaraja Narendra entrusted Nannaya Bhattu with the stupendous task of translating the Mahabharata into Telugu. Only some Brahmin pandits recited the Puranas and epics like the Mahabharata in temples and courts of the rulers. Unfortunately, at that time, the Puranas and the epics were not available in Telugu.
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