Field of InvestigatIOn & First Draft S S Dandekar, Investigator & U P Gangurde, Statistical Asstt
GUIdance Edltmg & Fmallsatlon
K V Ramaswaml, Deputy DIrector
CENSUS OF INDIA 1981
PART X D
SERIES 12
MAHARASHTRA
HANDICRAFT SURVEY REPORT ON
BANJARA EMBROIDERY
Directorate of Census Operations Maharashtra
A map Included In this publication on frontispiece IS based upon Survey of India map with the permission of the Surveyor General of India
2 (C) Government of India CopYright, 1988
PRINTED BY THE. GENERAL MANAGER GOV[ ,'1MENT OF INDIA PRESS NASHIK
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FOREWORD
THE INDIAN HAND!CRAFTS are known the world over for their rich variety, grace, elegance and skilled craftsmanship Nevertheless, a number of handicrafts, because of their stiff competition with factory made products, non-availability of raw matenals, exhorbitant increase In the manufacturing cost, lack of proper marketing facilities for finished products or due to a variety of other reasons, have either become extinct or have reached the moribund stage After Independence, however, a number of schemes were introduced by different government agencies for their growth and development but still this sudden Impetus have helped only a few crafts to flourish and thereby become spinners of foreign exchange for the country,
Despite the unique position being enjoyed by the handicrafts especially In the realm of national economy, the general awareness among the people In the country about our crafts and craftsmen had been deplorably poor Nothing was practically known about the commodities produced, techniques employed for the manufacture of different objects, raw matenals used, their availability, methods adopted for the sale of finished products etc An attempt was,therefore ,made In connection With the 1961 Census to study about 150 crafts from different parts of the country With a view to prOVide basIc Information on those crafts which were selected for the study
At the 1971 Census, the study on handicrafts was not taken up but thiS was again revived In connection With the 1981 Census There has been, however, some difference between the studies taken up In connection With the Censuses of 1961 and 1981 While the 1961 studies have covered both rural and urban crafts, the 1981 studies have focussed their attention only on traditional rural based crafts That apart, the 1981 studies, beSides touching upon those aspects which were covered under the 1961 series, have laid emphaSIS on matters that are Vital tor the revival of rural crafts and thereby for the rejuvenation of the economy of the region particularly the villages This IS In consonance with the policy of the government to give due Importance to the rural sector With focus on employment Intensive strategy of development In which next to agnculture, the small scale Industries and handicrafts play a significant role
(III)
(IV)
The formats reqUired for undertaking the study were formulated by Dr. K P Ittaman under the able guidance of Dr. N.G. Nag, the then Deputy Registrar General, Social Studies Division Dr Ittaman who succeeded Dr. Nag as Deputy Registrar General, Social Studies Division co-ordinated the study undertaken In different States/Union Terrltones by the Directorates of Census Operations. The reports received from the Directorates were examined by Shn M.K. Jain, Senior Research Officer with the herp of Smt Suman Prashar, ASSistant Director of Census Operations. I am grateful to all of them for organising this study.
The present report is the outcome of a study undertaken on Banjara EmbroIdery by the DIrectorate of Census Operations, Maharashtra. I have Immense pleasure In acknowledging the services rendered by S/Shri AS Dange and K. V. Ramaswami, Deputy Directors and their colteagues in the Census Directorate tor bringing out this publication.
New Deihl The 1 st June, 1988
V. S. VERMA REGISTRAR GENERAL, INDIA
PREFACE
IN THE HISTORY of Indian Census the handicraft surveys were taken for the first time dunng the 1961 Census as mentioned by the then Registrar General, India, Dr Asok Mitra, "The Idea was to make a beginning wiil empincal, analytical studies based on a structured questionnaire which would replace general descnptlve accounts that had obtained so far The primary aim was to obtain a picture as much of the artisan himself as of his craft, to abtain a perspective of the artisan and his craft in his social and economic setting, the extent to which tradition bound him and the winds of change ruffled him, the extent of his mobility and Immobility, the conditions of market, credit, new contacts and designs In which he operated, the frame of new as well as traditional producer - customer relationships, in which he still worked, and ~ow far he was ready to pierce his own caste-tribe socio-economlc cocoon and make a break through the new opportunities promised by the Five - Year Plans The aim was to hold up the mirror to hereditary skills struggling with the dialectics of tradition and change",
Dunng the 1961 Census, the Census Directorate, Maharashtra brought out the following seven reports out of eight on handicrafts In Maharashtra State' -
1 Hlmroo Weaving at Aurangabad, dlstnct Aurangabad
2 Clay Images of Ganapatl and Images of Plaster of Pans at Pen, district Kolaba
3 Wooden Toys at Savantvadl, district Ratnagin
4 Coir Ropes at Achare, district Ratnaglrl
5 Glass Bangles at Tarapur, district Thana
6 Silver Ornaments at Huparl, district Kolhapur
7 Kosa Silk at Ganeshpur, district Bhandara
At the 1971 Census, the study on handicrafts was not taken up but this was reVived again as a part of the 1981 Census
(v)
(VI)
The Registrar General, India, In his masterly 'Foreword' outlined the main objects of the traditional rural based handicraft studies as a part of the 1981 Census programme related to social studies
The Directorate of Maharashtra had selected two craft studies VIZ i) BanJara Embroidery and II) Die-making In consultation with the office of the Registrar General, India, New Deihl The present report IS based on BanJara Embroidery and has been brought out first
The field work and data collection of the survey were done during June '86 to December '86 The compilation, tabulation of survey data and writing of report were extended over a penod of one year. S/Shn S S Dandekar, Investigator and U P Gangurde, Statistical Assistant completed the field work The prellmlrary draft was prepared by S/Shn Dandekar and Gangurde under the gUidance of Shri K V. Ramaswaml, Dy. Director of Census Operations
The views expressed In this report and the conclusions drawn' are those of the Author and do not In any way reflect the views of tre Government.
We are grateful to Shn V S Verma, Registrar General, India, Dr K P Ittaman, Dy Registrar General (SS) and Shn M.K Jain, Senior Research Officer for their gUidance and advice dunng all the stages of the preparation of this report
The maps, sketches and line drawings were prepared In map section under the gUidance of Shn K.S Thakur, Research Officer The cover page was prepared by Shrl A -L Randlve, Artist The photographs found In this volume were taken by S IShn V S Nagle and S G Gavall of this directorate Our special thanks are due to Shn S S. Jadhav, Secretary, Banjara Vlkas Mandai, Challsgaon and Shn RanJlt Nalk, Social worker, Bombay for extending full cooperation at all stages for bringing out this report Smt A Sam, Jr Steno typed the entire manuscript and the tables meticulously My thanks are also due to all unnamed assistants In various grades who attended to the work of scrutiny, compilation, tabulation, checking etc.
Bombay Raksha Bandhan, 27th August 1988, (Narah Pournlma)
A.S. Dange Deputy Director
CONTENTS
FOREWORD
PREFACE
CHAPTER I
History of Origin and development of the craft
CHAPTER II
Craftsmen in their rural setting
CHAPTER //I
Process of learning
CHAPTER IV
Manufacturing process
CHAPTERV
Marketing
CHAPTER VI
Craft and employment
CHAPTER VII
Conclusion
BIBLIOGRAPHY
(vir)
PAGE
1·10
11·23
25·30
31·67
69·75
77·78
79-81
83
LIST OF MAP AND PLATES
Description
Map of Jalgaon district showing the villages having concentration of Banjara population
Plates
Plate No
1 Field investigation in progress
2 Banjara tanda begins in Ichchhapur Village
3 Smt Gopibai Sangram Jadhav, National Award Winner In Banlara embroidery
4 A Banlara family In front of their house
5 Two Banjara girls In their usual dress
6 A Banjara couple WIth their traditional dress and ornaments
7. A Banjara belle In the traditional dress and ornaments
8 Training class in progress
9 Two trainees at work
10 Equipments - Sickle and needle
11 Raw materials
12. Cutting chhatya cloth using Sickle
13 Banjara woman dOing embroidery work on a piece of cloth for kachaIJ
14 The chhatl, peti and bahl for kachall are being JOined
15 A pair of finished kachalls
16 Doing embroidery work on lepo piece
17 Doing embroidery work on lawan piece
(IX)
Between pages
Frontispiece
4
4
6
6
6
8
8
27
27
37
37
42
42
43
45
46
46
(x)
18 Joining the lawan piece with sabab, the printed mangjl cloth 48
19 The finished phetwa with lepo and lawan pieces 48
20 Finished Items - Daram and khalchi 54
21 FInished Item - Darani 54
22 Gadanos In different sizes and designs 56
23 Pat 56
24 Finished items - Kothali and chunchls 57
25 Kotha/o 57
26 Shingadi (on the two extremes) and tikiya (in the middle) 62
27 Talwarkhol and patta 62
28 Masala kothali 63
29 Gala 63
30 Fan 63
31 Vakhara 63
32 Dhalkholi 64
33 Ghoongato 64
34 Bed spread 64
35 Bhala (spear) with bhalakhol 64
36 Ornaments - Kamarpatta (waist belt), bajuband and gajara 65
37 Kothali and chunchi with modifications es
38 Pieces of cloth embroidered with designs 66
39 Embroidered pieces 66
CHAPTER I
HISTORY OF ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE CRAFT
Introduction
A CAREFUL STUDY of the different patterns of the dresses the people have evolved in different parts of the world would make It clear that these are designed to suit thQ climatic conditions or customs prevailing in different nations or continents One can generally see the difference In patterns of dresses from continent to continent and from nation to nation In a big na~ion like India, we see that patterns of dresses vary from state to state But the dresses of the people belonging to Banjara community are a unlq~e case It IS identical throughout the country among the Banjaras irrespectIVe of the place of their domicile Because of thiS unique feature a Banjara can be easily recognised In any part of the country To maintain this unique feature the Banjaras have adopted a common national pattern of designs With luxuriant embroidery work They never give the dress making to the tadors Women at home make their own garments dunng their leisure time exhibiting dexterous craftsmanship USing their needle and applYing their natIVe embroidery skill they make their own dresses lending an artistic blend to them They use small sea shells (kawadya) , lead ornaments and worn-out coins to decorate their dresses The love of the Banjaras for their traditional dress IS rarely to be found elsewhere among any other community So it is worthwhile to make a detailed study of the Banjara embroidery, a craft which was Innovated and kept up by the Banjaras as their legacy
The practiSing of the Banjara embroidery IS confined only to the people belonging to a
particular community VIZ Banjaras The ongln and development of thiS craft is inseparably blended with the history of the BanJara people So let us first
see who are these Banjaras? How did they come to be called by this name and what is the historical background of the association of thiS craft With the above community?
History of the people
The Banjara people have a great history behind them Their onglnal homeland was Rajasthan One version about them IS that they were In the ancient days carrying on the Important task of transporting military supplies for the Mogul army and merchandise to different parts of the country They fulfilled the Important work of communications also In those days 1. ''Those who did successful transportation of goods on animals and Withstood the hazards of long distances were called 'Banjaras' by the society they served, the government they helped, and the army they fed, the Banjaras also on their part accepted thiS terms honourably" 2
The word 'Banjaras' IS conSidered to be derived from the Original Sanskrit word 'Va nljya' the meaning of which IS trade The Sansknt word 'VanlJya' IS pronounced In Gujaratl as 'Vanajara', in Rajasthanl as 'Banajara', In Urdu as 'Banjare', In
Hindi as 'Banzara' and In Marathi as 'Banjan' The term 'Banjara' does not Indicate any particular caste or race It denotes a profeSSion of transporting food grains FollOWing the practice of naming the people by their profeSSion such as 'Sonar' (Goldsmith) and 'Lohar' (Blacksmith), the community which took up the profeSSion of
1 Report of All India Banjara Sevak Slblr held on 24th to 26th August, 1966 2 Ranjlt Nalk, Report of AI/India BanJara Study Team, AI BSS, 1968 - pp 8-9
1
4-23 ItO. India/NO/89
transporting foodgralns and other supplies from place to place was called 'Banjaras' Though they were not trading community and their profeSSion was simply to transport merchandise they were called as 'Banjaras' by the people as the trading community alone was generally known to them 1
Edgar Thurston In his book 'Castes and Tribes of Southern India' has given a vIvid descnptlon of the Banjaras In the follOWing words of Moor nBanjaras associate chiefly together seldom or never mixing with other tribes They seem to have no home, nor character, but that of merchants, In which capacity they travel great distances to whatever parts are most In want of merchandise, which IS the greatest part cornn2 Based on the reference made In the Sanskrit book called 'Dasakumar Chantam' written In 11th and 12th centuries AD Shn H M IIlIat has desCribed the 'BanJaras' as nothing but the same ancient tribes whtch were In eXistence dUring 4th century B C The tribes were reported to be reSiding In small tents and hiring out their bullocks for transport of foodgralns 3
In the Maharashtra State Gazetteers on Jalgaon district there IS a reference to an unsettled tribe named Vanjaris as follows "Vanjaris who once wandered about with their flocks of oxen have now settled down as agricultural workers and have built houses in villages Their bUSiness was to bring bullocks from Malva, to load them With wheat and go from place to place to sell It They went down the ghat even in the Konkan districts but the growth of transport facilities by rail and road has nearly killed their trade and that IS why they have become agricultUrists Now one rarely sees a tanda, Ie,
2
caravan of Vanjarl families camping from place to place In their coarse tents With bullocks and the
dirty clothes they used to wearA The 'Van]ans' deSCribed above and the Banjaras can be one and the same community as It is learnt that the Banjaras are referred to by different synonyms in different states. According to information available they are known by synonyms like Vanajara, Banjare, Banjarl, Brlnjari, Laman, Lamanl, Lambada, Lambadl, Ladenla, Sugali, Gwar, Gwarla etc5 They have the follOWing 17 sub-groups als06
1 Gor
2 Mathura or Mathure 3 Dhadl 4 Sanar
5 Navi 6 Dhalla
7 Shingadya
8 Maru 9 Bamanla 10 Sagora 11 Dlgora or Glgora
12 Charan 13 Badl 14 Osana 15 Jogi or Bharava 16 Rohldas
17 Dhan-kute
In the 'Language Hand Book on Mother Tongues In Census' published dUring 1971 Census the language Banjarl IS explained as "Name of a speech given after the name of a well known nomadiC tribe of India the members of which are found spread sporadically all over the country They are also known by different names, like Lambadl, Lamanl and Labhan, Sugali etc Against Lamanl and
1. Ranjlt Nalk, Report of All India Banjara Study Team, AIBSS, 1968·p 8
2 Edgar Thurston, Castes and Tribes of Southern India, Volume IV, Cosmo Publications, Deihl, 1909 - pp 210-211
3 Ranjit Nalk, Report of AI/India Banjara Study Team, AIBSS, 1968
4 Government of Maharashlra, Maharashtra State Gazetteers, Jalgaon Dlstnct (ReVised Edition), 1962 - P 154
5 Ran]lt Nalk, Report of AI/India Banjara Study Team, AIBSS, 1968 6 Ibid
Lam bad I also very large number of mother tongue returns were recorded from the States of Andhra Pradesh, Mysore and Maharashtra while the returns against Banjarl were also from the States like Mysore, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh According to LSI (LingUistic Survey of India) information Banjarl IS a dialect of Rajasthanl spoken all over India under various names Of fate, however, the wandering Banjaras have SWitched over to more or less a settled life and have beell In
course of time heaVily Influenced by the contact languages of the areas where they have been reSiding In 1961 Cen~us the returns being very large against the names Lamanl/Lambadi the figures were indicated separately although for classification purposes Banjan and Lamanl/Lambadl could be treated as one and the same language BIlingual returns have shown that the main subSidiary languages of these commUnities were Kannada, Marathl and Hindi according to the language areas where the tribes have been settled,:1 According to 1961 Census figures there were 591,654 speakers of Banjan language With largest concentration In Mysore With 288,012 and second largest In Maharashtra With 242,046
Banjara settlements
The Banjaras, being nomads for centuries pnor to the British advent In Indian sub-continent, carrying foodgralns from one corner of India to another, the Banjaras have spread throughout the country In states and union territories After the dawn of British Raj the demand for their profeSSion of transporting commodities gradually dwmdled due to the introduction of railways and automobiles and the BanJaras had settled In various parts of the country engaging In occupations like cultivating small pieces of lands Today they are small agrrculturrsts and agrrcultural labourers They are also working as labourers In road and bUilding constructIon and are also engaged In animal husbandry and poultry farming Even though the Ban}aras are no more nomadiC and have taken up
3
sedentary occupations they are even now associated chiefly together liVing In their own encampments called tandas, usually situated away from Cities and towns In case of Villages they generally stay together In small huts, away from the main gaothan I e heart of the Village Particularly In
the state of Maharashtra the Banjaras are spread prominently in Khandesh area, Vldarbha area and Marathwada area and to some extent In Solapur district They are not found In coastal Maharashtra except the recent labour migration In Bombay city and suburbs Though the Banjaras have now become a sedentary community they have no regular and profeSSional craft centres
The arts and crafts of Banjaras
On the arts, crafts and traditional costumes of Banjaras, Rajasthan, which IS their Original home land, has Influence Further, because of their nomadism for centuries and also being travelling tradesmen their arts and crafts and mode of liVing reflect mostly temporary In nature and not of permanent and monumental In nature and their arts and handicrafts are only stressed on their dresses and ornaments and the eqUipments reqUired by them for transporting foodgralns and other things of dally use Beyond this they have no arts and crafts of such nature which the sedentary commUnities of India have As stated earlier their entire arts and crafts are reflected on their dresses and ornaments There IS no mass production and commercial explOitation of these Items Their arts and crafts In
the form of intricate embrOidery works are being done and maintained mainly for their own use and to keep up their Identity by wearing these unique types of dresses The Banjara women Intensely love to wear their traditIOnal garments and thiS Intense love rrchly kept thiS art Intact till very recently though a declining trend In the preservation of thiS art IS being noticed now The nature of their settlement In separate and Independent encampments known as tandas also helped them to keep their art and to maintain their Identity
1 Registrar General, India, Language Hand Book on Mother Tongues In Census, Census of India, 1971 - P 21
. /
Plate 1:
Plate 2:
4
Reid Investigation in progress \
I ,
Banjara tanda begins in Ichchhapur village "In case of villages, they (Banjaras) generally stay together in small hUts, away from the main gaothan" Page: 3
Present stage of the craft
Though this craft has Its own onglfl and distinction with rich embroidery work done by hand no attempt has been made so far In an organised manner to preserve the craft and for Its commercial explortatlon by establishing arts and crafts centres as has been done for other sedentary communities In India This craft of superb embroidery work IS gradually vanishing due to lack of patronage The facts that It IS very expensive to do such embrOidery work because of the cost of raw matenals, that It reqUires a lot of time to do manually the elaborate embroidery work which IS not always pOSSible to spare In a fast moving society, that the effect of the taboo amongst them that their gods and goddesses would get angry If they change their traditional dress has begun to wean away, that their contact With people of other commUnities has started ' attracting them to more simple type of dresses like others and that the educated among them have started reforming and discouraging them from wearing the traditional dresses as they, are too heaVf', unhygieniC and unWieldy In modern times contribute to the gradual vanishing of thiS legendary craft Though the elder generation IS stili maintaining their tradition the younger generatIOn has already started wearing light garments as In the case of other population due to SOCial Interaction ThiS trend spells danger and extinctIOn of thiS craft along With the elder generation IS certain unless an organIsed attempt to preserve and develop thIS craft as a bread earning vocatIon by creating arts and crafts centres for mass production and marketlng_ facilities at the government level with the cooperation of Banjaras IS made
Banjaras in the selected villages
For the study of thIS rural based handicraft three Villages In Jalgaon dlstnct VIZ Ichchhapur and Ghodegaon In Challsgaon tahSil and Vasantnagar In Parola tahsil were selected The local enqUiries In these Villages also confirmed that the Banjara' community originates from Rajasthan State and they migrated to various places IncludIng the
5-.23 lLG. IDdiaINDJI'
5
Villages selected for detailed study for tradIng foodgralns as their means of lIVelihood and when the chances for their trade dWindled due to the introduction of railways and automobiles they permanently settled In these places and engaged themselves In other OCCUpatIonS like agnculture, animal husbandry, poultry farming, casual labour etc It may be Interesting In thiS context to quote below an extract from the statement given by a very old Banjara woman Smt GOPlbal Sangram Jadhav of Chalisgaon taluk to the Development CommisSioner of HandIcrafts dUring the celebration of Cottage Handicrafts Week from 8th to 15th
I
Decer:nber 1982 for ISSUing a hand-Qut for publiCity purpose "I ,have learnt recently that we Banjaras are GYPsies: and have come to Incila across our borders from another country, or could rt be that some of our own people wandered across our borders to become Gyps~ there? Whatever It be I grew up bellevln~ that we came from our nelghbounng state of Rajasthan and that some more of my communrty went even further south carrying loads for the Moghul armies of the past centuries and when the army disbanded they settled In the Ban}8ra Hills In Hyderabad thus giving us our name, the Banjara Tnbe It IS a fact that we
were the people who transported goods back and forth In thiS region at a time when there were no trains or trucks We used ammal drawn vehICles to take the loads across the country from state to state Then of course came the raIlways and the trucks and fInally the aeroplane Suddenly we had no work at all More Important, our wandenng ceased and our way of life changed, and we settled down In what we call tanda There are many such Villages In Maharashtra We Banjara women love to embrOider our cloths USIng a coarse cotton and some coloured thread, we do a cross stitch mostly and a few other stitches and then embellish with shells, bits of mirror or beads and all kinds of metal pieces espeCially COinS of small denomination, which we also make Into ornaments" ThiS woman IS stili alive and a copy of the above hand - out was obtained from her dunng field VISit Among the lIVIng Banjaras In the selected Villages she IS conSidered to be the doyen of the craft and has received a certthcate of mant In 1982 In
'.
Plate 3: Smt. Gopibai Sangram Jadhav National Award
winner for her expertise in Banjara embroidery work Page: 5
6
Plate 5: Two Banjara girls in their usual dress youngsters, however, consider their traditional
costumes unfashionable and have switched over
to modern dresses like saris, skirts and blouses"
Page:7
Plate 4: A Banjara family in tront of their house "The elder generation consider their tradition very deal,
wear their traditional costumes and engage in the production of their requirement of
garments" - The Banjara women engaged in the craft can be seen in the background Page : 7
appreciation of her craftsmanship and contribution to the development of tribal embroidery (BanJara) from the All India Handicrafts Board under the MInistry of Commerce, Government of India
Even In the new settlements the BanJaras are living In groups Isolated from other communities In tanda with Tanda Nayak as their chief and headman It has been the tradition of the BanJara women to make themselves the articles required by them for their dally use blending these Items with their masterly artistic embroidery work These Items, apart from their gprments like phetiya and kachafl, Include lofana (shoulder bag), kothafo (big shopping bag), Kothafl (small bag for keeping money), darani (piece of cloth used while making chapatl-bhakn), gadano (dish-cover), khalchl (bag
to keep bhakn), etc Even today the BanJara women espeCially the elder generation conSider their tradition very dear, wear their traditional costumes and engage In the production of their reqUIrements of garments and other items themselves The youngsters, however, generally conSider their traditional costumes unfashionable and have SWitched over to the modern dresses like saris, skirts and blouses They do not also show much Interest In the learning of their traditional craft involVing Intngue embroidery work
Number of persons engaged and period engaged In the craft
The Banjara embroidery craft IS not being conducted as a regular household Industry by the Banjara community and the products do not find ready market The BanJara women do this embrOidery as a part of their routine household duties to meet their own domestic requirements As such this embroidery work IS not even recorded as a secondary work In the Census IndiVidual Slip as this might not have been returned as secondary work by the Informants For the purpose of this report, however, the details of the persons engaged In the Banjara embroidery work were collected separately In the selected Villages VII, Ichchhapur, Ghodegaon and Vasantnagar In Jalgaon dlstnct
7
among the selected 60 households, who are practising the BanJara embrOidery work
About tHe craft The BanJara embrOidery work IS not complex In
nature It Involves only Simple techniques But being a manual and hand operated Job uSing the needle and thread It Will test the patience of any one FInishing even a Simple piece of work Will be labonous and time consuming However, If one has the required enthusia~m and patience, even a child of 8-10 years can learn and master this craft The survey reveals that the craft IS now practised only In the rural areas In urban areas, perhaps due to the Interaction of the Banjaras with others, the BanJaras are not dOing this work as It IS, not a means of lIVelihood and the SOCial COndltlqhs In urban areas dissuade the BanJaras there from weanng their home-made traditional costumes and use their traditional articles of daily use The" fact that the cost of production of their articles IS very high when compared to the substitutes readily ayallable In market is also a reason to persuade even the Baljljaras to go In for substitutes To cite an example, a shoulder bag (lofana) With BanJara embrOidery will cost around Rs 75/- whereas a substitute can be purchased from open market at
one fourth of this cost, If not at a stili lower rate At present articles With Banjara embrOidery are displayed and sold only In exhibitions organised by the Govt of India and the State Governments and these Items are purchased only as show-pieces and antiques by Interested persons who can afford to buy these costly Items There IS not much scope for expanding this handicraft by finding market In the exhibitions as IS being done at present as the demand for these Items Will be very limited as It can be only from among the rich people who are Interested In the collection of show-pieces and antiques The general complaint of the craftspersons IS that this craft IS on the verge of extinction due to the lack of patronage and nonavailability of ready market for the finished products
ReVival and rejuvenation of thiS dYing craft Involve complex problems The Banjaras gave birth
Plate 7:
8
A Banjara belle in the traditional dress and ornaments "Their arms are indeed so encased with ivory that it would be no easy matter to clean them"
- E. THURSTON.
Page: 9
/
Banjara couple with their traditional dress and ornaments "Their dress is peculiar, and their ornaments are .so
singularly chesen ... " - E. THURSTON Page: 9
\
to this handicraft hundreds of years ago when they were nomads to maintain their tradition In their
costumes and to be self sufficient In the articles required for their dally use like shoulder bag (zo/ana) , big shopping bag (kotha/o) and the like
On the dress and ornaments of the Banjaras Edgar Thurston quotes the follOWing words of Moor In hiS book 'Castes and Tribes of Southern India' "Their dress IS peculiar, and their ornaments are so Singularly chosen that we have, we are confident, seen women who (not to mention a child at their backs) have had eight or ten pounds weight In metal or IVOry round their arms and legs They pay
little attention to cleanliness, their half, once plaited, IS not combed or opened perhaps for a month, their bodies or clothes are seldom washed, their arms are Indeed so encased With IVOry that it IS would be no easy rnattPf to clean them" 1
ThiS gives an Idea about their dress .0, "f'h3
(skirt) and kachall (blouse With bare b;' ~ I I li",r
love of the Banjaras for their traditional dres':> I'
for the other traditional customs IS r2121y to 1,,0;
found elsewhere Over the centuries anc nver ,; Ie generations, these have been hande J down to
them ThiS being the pOSition, no modification or Improvement has occurred in the pattern of the traditional costumes of the Banjaras Ol'f r tl'e centuries and over the generations tf"' ' 'I' the changing conditions elsewhere So It IS flat possible to populanse the embroidered products ()f the Banjaras among others to find out market ,or the finished products In their present form What IS
required IS the introduction of SUitable modifications In the costumes and other Items keeping Intact the embroidery part of the craft to attract customers For example, with the present trend of fashion bringing In ethnic apparel In to the market the kachali of the Banjaras haVing various colour patterns Will become one of the hottest seiling Items
9
If necessary Improvements In thiS dress to SUit the present reqUirement are made It may be worth mentioning here that the various patterns of latest blouses are based on Original deSigns of the kachall Fashion shows may be organised and thiS
dress may be exhibited by models In their modern form With Its unique deSign, eliminating the use of a bra, women Will find It more and . I1m8
comfortable to wear It and thiS Will throw open evpn
export market for thiS garment earning valLlLlDle foreign exchange 2 ThiS can be done by 11'10 All India Handicrafts Board of the MInistry of Commerce or py the Directorate of Industry,
Maharashtra, which are the main agencies looking
after the development of handicrafts
Training
The All India Handicrafts Board, GOVf'1 t ,rr ,of
India, New Deihl has recently Inciltdc,j r' ,j;:;ra
emoroldery as one amC'l1g the crath I ' drl >8t maKing, hand block U,{,'. artistic t,", Iii"
embrOidery and zan works 'lvtalware, j€/iP!iPty bangles and beads, conch shell, wood v/ori<s,
ceramiCS, stone work, articles In ;; "-me,
bamboo,straw etc, flax and fibre, toys anc (Jolls, papler mache, IVOry horn ;V"l I)one articles, leather goods, mUSical In ,Trur, h,l' " ~r and are sponsOring speCial training clilSS8S f:jr ',',:chlng tjl3SC crafts
ThiS IS being executed and controlled through their regional offices which are I) In number VIZ, eastern region, central region, western region, southrrn region and northern region, each consisting (,f "
number of marketing and service extension centres
For Banjara embrOidery also a few training
classes have been conducted To attract tralf1eeS a stipend has also been paid Till" the time of the survey training has been Imparted In Banjara embrOidery In the follOWing training centres
1 Edgar Thurston, Castes and Tribes of Southern India, Volume IV, Cosmo Publtcatlons, Deihl, 1909 - pp 21-
212 2 Appare/, The Clothier's Digest, Volume 2, No 8, August 1983 (The offiCial journal of the Clothing
Manufacturers ASSOCiation of India)
6 -23 LO. India/ND/S9
10
1 Village - Rajdehere Tal - Chalisgaon Dlst - Jalgaon
One training class of one year duration from 1 7 84 to 30 6 85 has been conducted The training was Imparted by Smt Nllabal Harish Jadhav
2 Village - Ichchhapur Tal - Chalisgaon
Here three batches have been trained by Smt Bhurlbal Shankar Rathod.
Dist - Jalgaon The duration of training of the first batch was from 2 9 82 to 1 9 83, the second batch from 1 784 to 30 6 85 and the third batch from 21 4.86 to 20487
3 Village - Ghodegaon Tal - Chalisgaon Dlst - Jalgaon
Here two batches have been trained by Smt Gopibai Sang ram Jadhav. The training for the first batch was from 13 6 83 to 12 6 84 and the second batch from 1 11 84 to 31 10 85
4 Village - Vasantnagar Tal - Parola
Here one batch has been trained by Smt Samalibal Tilmbak Jadhav The duration of the training was from 9 5- 85 to 8 5 86 ' .
Dist - Jalgaon
5 Town - Laxmlnagar Tal - Chailsgaon
Here one batch has been trained The duration of the training was from 9585 t085 86
Dist - Jalgaon
The strength of each training class was 10 and they were trained under one instructress
During the entire period of training the trainees are being paid a monthly stipend of Rs 100/- and the instructress IS paid a monthly remuneration of Rs 600/- While submitting proposal for the training the Instructress should certify that the follOWing terms and cond Itlons would be observed during the course of training
2
3
The instructress will be responsible for successful completion of the course and she will ensure that the trainees acquire necessary skill in the craft being taught
The Instructress should maintain proper attendance and acquittance registers and should submit regularly the progress report with quarterly examination results to the sponsoring authOrity
The instructress Will be responsible for diSCipline and security of the scheme and will
4
be answerable to the office of the Development CommiSSioner, Handicrafts till the completion of the course
No trainee should be allowed to leave the training In the middle, and in such an event recovery of stipend paid to those who discontinue the training in the middle will be made, at the discretion of the head of the department.
The government of Maharashtra Is also imparting training in various handicrafts at district and state levels As a part of this, one training class on Banjara embroidery was conducted at Patane Tanda Village in Challsgaon tahsil of Jalgaon district The duration of the training was six months The instructress was paid a monthly remuneration of Rs 300/- and the trainees were paid a monthly stipend of Rs 100/- In this class 5 persons were trained Though training classes are conducted on Banjara embroidery, so far no cooperative societies have been formed in the state for the promotion of thiS craft
CHAPTER /I
CRAFTSMEN IN THEIR RURAL SETTING
Selection of villages for survey IN MAHARASHTRA STATE considerable
concentration of Banjara people IS in Jalgaon district So naturally the choice of Villages for the study of Banjara embroidery has to be made from the above district In order to select the villages a baseline survey was conducted to locate the areas of concentration of Banjara people For this purpose the Challsgaon tahsil headquarters, the social workers of BanJara community and the organizers of the Banjara Vikas Mandai established in Chalisgaon town were also contacted It could be ascertained from them that there are 11 Villages In Jalgaon district having concentration of people
belonging to Banjara community A distrICt map showing the location of these Villages IS gIVen as frontispiece of this report The names of these Villages and the population there according to 1981
Census are also given In the table below In columns 2 and 3 An attempt was also made to estimate the present total population of the above villages and the number of Banjaras among them through field investigation with the help of the Tahslldar, Chahsgaon tahsil and the social workers of Banjara community The details thus collected, though can only be a rough estimate, are given in columns 4 and 5 The percentage of Banjaras to total population is available In column 6
Table 1/- 1 Areas of concentration of Banjara people in Jalgaon District
Estimated Population as on 1685
SI Name of Population Total Banjara % of
No Village (1981 Population Population Banjara Census) Population
1 2 3 4- 5 6
Lonje 2095 5372 2500 465
2 Ichchhapur 1487 2200 2200 1000
3 Plmparkhede 2106 3800 1200 316
4 Sangavi 1333 2600 2239 861
5 Patane 1592 2300 800 348
6 Londhe 1277 2200 1050 477
7 Ghodegaon 1157 2500 1500 600
8 Talonde P 0 1548 1665 680 408
9 Kherde 981 1590 605 381
10 Shmdl 2235 2235 800 358
11 Vasantnagar 1855 2575 2570 998
11
When the 1981 Census figures and the estimated figures as on 1 6 85 are compared there is very steep Increase In most cases. This IS not possible In the normal Circumstances For the estimation of the present population figures, no sCientific method was adopted and the figures supplied by the revenue officials and the SOCial workers of Banjara community were totally accepted However, an attempt was made to further Investigate this pOint through the agenCies who supplied the figures Their contention was that dunng the months of Janual)' to May every year the members of the BanJara community would be away from their tdlldas :'1 search of casual labour as this IS an offsauson ior cultivation As such, dUring the census count, which was done In the month of February, these persons might have been counted elsewhere and not In their own villages and this might be the reason for the steep Increase III the e:,[lm~:lted
population as on 1 6 85 Though rhlS appears to be a Justifiable reason the Increase :~ 11m uniform In
all the villages haVing almost equal conc.entration of Banjara people So It has to be concluded that defective estimation of the present population may be the main reason for this steep Increase No further probe was made on this pOint as It would not be worthwhile to spend time and energy on thl& as this has not much relevance to the craft under study
Among the above Villages the concentration of
Banjara population was maximum In 4 Villages VIZ Ichchhapur (100%), Vasantnagar (998%), Sangavi (86 1 %) and Ghodegaon (60 0%) DUring field Investigation It was reported that only a very few persons among the Banjaras In Sangavi Village were engaged In the traditional embrOidery work So thiS Village was dropped and the remaining 3 Villages VIZ Ichchhapur, Ghodegaon and
12
Vasantnagar were selected for detailed study In these three Villages training classes on BanJara embroidery sponsored by the Government of India were also conducted
General particulars of the surveyed villages
The Village Ichchhapur falls under Challsgaon tahSil and hes to the north of Chahsgaon town at a distance of about 4 km from there It IS to the west of Kharjal Village, to the east of Bhoras kh Village and to the south of Vadgaon lambe, Village - The exact area of thiS Village liS not readily available as thiS IS a newly formed village bifurcating the old Kargaon Village The area of the old Kargaon Village was 1,627 hectares Gh~egaon is also in Chahsgaon tahSil lYing to the south west of Chalisgaon town at a distance of about 16 km from there It IS Iymg to the west of K~aradl Village, east of Plmpalgaon village, to the north of Rajdehere Village and to the south of Karajgaon Village The area of thiS Village IS 589 hectares Vasantnagar Village IS In Parola tahsil and hes at a distance of about 15 km to the west of Parola town It is to the west of Bholane Village, to the east of Dhule district boundary, to the north of Jamde Village and to the south of Plmpalkothe Village The exact area of this Village IS also not readily available as thiS too IS a newly formed Village blfurcatmg Bholane Village The area of old Bholane Village was 1,019 hectares
Amenities
The amenities available In these Villages are given In the followmg table In case any Village does not have a particular amenity the distance of the nearest place where that amenity is available is given under the respective column within brackets
13
Table 1/-2
Amenities available In the s~lrveyed villages at the time of field survey In 1986
Name of Educational Medical
village
2 3
Ichchhapur Primary (5Km)
and
middle
schools
Ghodegaon Primary (510Km)
school
Vasantnagar Primary (510 Km)
school
Drinking Postal
water
lacllity
4
Tap
Well
Tap
Tube well
Well
River
Tap
Well
Tank
lacllity
5
Post
office
(510 Km)
(SKm)
Markel Transpor- Approach Nearest Power Railway
tallon to village town and supply station
facility distance
InKm
6 7 8 9 10 11
(5Km) Bus Kachcha Chalisgaon D:lectrlfled Bheras
stand road 4Km 3Km
15Km) Bus Kachcha Challsgaon Electrified Rohlnl
stand road 16Km 3Km
(5Km) Bus Pakka Parela Elecklfled Amalner
stand road 15Km 15Km
Source Census of India 1981, District Census Hand Book of Jalgaon District With sUitable modifications on the basIs of the additional amenities seen available at the time
offield survey In 1986
Climate
All these 3 villages are surrounded by extensive open land So there will be nice breeze dunng the night keeping the villages fairly cool Dunng day time It will be pretty hot December is the coldest month During thiS period the minimum temperature may come down to 12-11 0 C and the maximum temperature during thiS penod Will be 29-300 C Temperature begins to nse steadily from about the beginning of March and dunng May, the hottest month of the year, the maximum temperature may go up to 42-430 C and even higher Temperature begins to come down appreciably with the onset of monsoon after the first week of June The monsoon penod is generally pleasant With the withdrawal of the monsoon by the end of September, day temperature nses a little in October and both day and night temperature begin to drop rapidly by November
'-23 LO. India/ND/"
Ethnic composition
Among the 3 Villages selected for survey, In
Ichchhapur and Vasantnagar the entire population belongs to BanJara community with the exception of one family consisting of 5 members belonging to Nhavi community in Vasantnagar In the other Village VIZ Ghodegaon people belonging to other communities are also reSiding Except 4 Muslim households In Ghodegaon all others are Hindus In Ghodegaon there are 6 families belonging to scheduled castes and 22 families belonging to scheduled tribes also They are liVing along with the other households However, their houses are not Intermixed with the houses of caste Hindus and Muslims, but are located at the boundary ~f the Village (gao than) Here also the people belonging to the scheduled caste community are living together and those belonging to the scheduled tnbe community are lIVIng together separately ThiS IS
the case with the caste Hindus and Muslims also Even among caste Hindus, people belonging to each community VIZ, Maratha, Dhangar, Koh etc are also not Intermixed and each community lives In separate clusters However the houses of all these people are contiguous and within the main gaothan Contrary to this the Banjaras In Ghodegaon Village live far away from others In tanda, which IS clearly Isolated from others, and they live In one cluster In these Villages no untouchability IS seen practised as far as the scheduled castes and scheduled tnbes are concerned The Banjaras In these Villages are treated on par with the rest Inspite of their hVlng in Isolation away from others and they take part In the
14
SOCial functions In other households and meet with no distinction or discrimination and they enjoy equal SOCial status with others Barnng the Banjaras and Muslims all others have returned Marathl as their mother tongue with the exception of one household belonging to Mall community with Telugu as mother tongue The mother tongue of Muslims IS Urdu and the mother tongue of Banjaras IS Banjan Table shOWing the names of different commUnities reSiding In each village with their religion, mother tongue, number of households, population and traditional occupation IS given below
Table 1/- 3
EthniC distribution of people in the selected villages
Name of Religion Mother Number of Total population Traditional
caste or tongue households as per survey occupation
community conducted dUring
June 1986
M F T
2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Village Iqhchhapur
(I) BanJara Hindu BanJari 342 1111 998 2109 Cultivator
Village Ghodegaon
(I) Maratha Hindu Marathl 25 70 62 132 Cultivator
(II) 5 8 12 20 Agricultural
labourer
(III) Dhangar 11 41 33 74 Cultivator
(IV) 12 29 40 69 Agricultural
labourer
(v) i 24 15 39 Shepherd
(VI) Bhll (ST) 2 7 3 10 Cultivator
15
2 3 4 5 6 7 8
(VII) Shll (ST) Hindu Marathl 19 45 46 91 Agricultural
labourer
(VIII) Koli 4 14 11 25 CultIVator
(IX) 9 17 16 33 Agricultural
labourer
(x) Wan! 2 3 2 5 Cultivator
(XI) Thak~r (ST) 3 4 Cultivator
(XII) GOsaVI 4 3 7 Cultivator
(XIII) 4 12 12 24 Tailor
(XIV) 5 5 10 Cattle
rearing
(xv) Mali Telugu 3 5 8 Cultivator
(XVI) Mahar (SC) Marathl 5 12 9 21 Agricultural
labourer
(XVII) Chambhar (SC) 6 4 10 Cobbler
(XVIII) Muslim Muslim Urdu 3 7 7 14 Agricultural
labourer
(XIX) 2 Cultivator
(xx) Banjara Hindu Banjarl 5 4 9 Bnck
manufacturer
(XXI) 22 • 62 60 122 Agncultural
labourer
(XXII) 2 2 4 Tailor
(XXIII) 193 604 579 1183 Cultivator
Village Vasantnagar
(I) Banjara Hindu Banjan 244 1067 727 1794 Cultivator
16
2 3
(II) Hindu
(III) Nhavi Marathl
Concentration of Banjara people in the selected villages
It may be seen from the table that Banjaras form nearly 68% of the total population in Ghodegaon village and In the other two villages the entire residents except one household are Banjaras In all the three villages the Banjaras and others are mainly cultivators or agricultural labourers Only a few people are engaged In other occupations like cattle rearing, brick manufacturing, tailoring etc In Ichchhapur Village all the Banjaras are cultivators In Ghodegaon village among the total cultivators the Banjaras form 81 6% and among the agricultural labourers they form 33 0% In Vasantnagar Village 69 8% of the Banjaras are cultivators and 30 2% are agricultural labourers These figures indicate that the Banjaras In these Villages are economically better placed when compared to others
There are altogether 933 households of Banjara community In all the 3 selected Villages, 342 In Ichchhapur, 217 In Ghodegaon and 374 In Vasantnagar Among these, only 600 households are stili dOing Banjara embroidery and the remaining 333 households are not at present dOing thiS embroidery work though they were dOing thiS In the past Among the 600 households practising the craft 60 households were selected at the rate of 20 households In each Village and among the remaining 333 non-practising households 15 were selected at the rate of 5 from each Village for Intensive survey To ensure due representation of the households In different economic status In the selected households for detailed study, the households of BanJaras In all these 3 Villages who
are practising the craft were first classified as rich, middle and poor, conSidering households haVing
4 5 6 7 8
130 446 330 776 Agncultural
labourer
3 2 5 Barber
more than 5 acres of agricultural land as rich, those haVing 2-5 acres of agricultural land a& middle and those haVing less than 2 acres of agricultural land or haVing no agricultural land at all as poor On the baSIS of thiS classification 20 households in each Village were selected :giving representation to the extent pOSSible to the rich, middle and poor Strict proportion among these categories In the selection of households could not be adherp.j to due to the non-availability of suffiCient number of households In one or the other category who cir:e stili practising the craft Similarly, while selecting the households which are not practising the craft at
l present, the
same prinCiple was applied to the extent pOSSible
About the practising and non-practising households
The Banjara embrOidery IS a way of hfe to the Banjaras and not a vocation With any source of Income They were dOing thiS embrOidery work as part of their household duties, only dUring their
, leisure time to meet mainly their personal reqUirements of dress and other Items of daily use It was only qUite recently that a handful of people belonging to Banjara community became aware of the fact that thiS embrOidery can be developed Into a full fledged handicraft capable of prodUCing and marketing finished embrOidery Items and they are making attempts to achieve thiS But the progress made by them so far IS not very substantial and even now most of the Banjaras are not aware that their embrOidery has a potential source of Income As mentioned earlier thiS embroidery in the past was practised by the Banjaras only as part of their household duties Among them a number of Banjaras. have discontinued to practise thiS embrOidery work for the reasons gIVen In Chapter I
Others who are stili dOing thiS embroidery also have not so far given It the status of an occupation
This being the position the practising ,or otherwise of this embroidery by the Banjaras had and stili have no effect to bnng any distinction in the demographic profile and social status of these two categones and the above aspects are the same among them leaVing no scope for the analysis of these aspects separately for each category So In
the succeeding paragraphs the mantal status, literacy, migration etc are discussed taking the practising and non-practising households as a single unit
Marital status
The total population of the 75 households selected for detailed study is 455 with 248 males and 207 females Among them 244 are never
17
married, 194 married and 17 widowed No case of dIVorced or separated was reported hinting that divorce or separation is not common among the Banjaras The minimum age for marriage of females according to the returns is 15-19 and for males it is 20-24 According to the data collected 7 females In the age-group 15-19 and 20 females In the age-group 20-24 have got married ThiS Indicates that early marriage of females IS not very common among Baniaras and the marriages of females are commonly taking place at the age of 20-24 Among the males 9 in the age-group 20-24 and 161n the age-group 25-29 have got married The inference here is that males generally marry at the age of 25-29 Among the never married there are 13 males in the age-group 2Q-24, 1 male In the age-group 25-29 and 1 female in the age-group 30-34 A table shOWing the distnbution of population classified by age, sex and marital status is given below
Table 1/- 4
Distribution of population of selected households as classified by age, sex and marital status
Age-group Never marned Marned Widowed Total Population
P M F P M F P M F P M F
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
0-4 64 35 29 64 35 29
5-9 76 45 31 16 45 31
10-14 55 28 27 55 28 27
15-19 34 28 6 7 7 41 28 13
20-24 13 13 29 9 20 42 22 20
25-29 34 16 18 35 17 18
30-34 24 16 8 25 16 9
35-44 43 20 23 3 3 46 20 26
45-54 27 17 10 4 3 31 18 13
8-23 "0. IDdiaIND/8'.
70 +
AQanot
stated
2
Total 244
3 4
150 94
18
5 6 7
23 14 9
7 4 3
194 96 98
8 9 10 11 12 13
8 8 31 14 17
2 9 5 4
17 2 15 455 248 207
N B. There are no cases of 'Divorced or Separated' and 'Unspecified'
It can be Inferred from these detaOs that most of the males and females get married before the age of 29 and late marriage Is not prevalent among the Banjara people.
Uteracy
Among the selected households 56 7% are
illiterates The male Illitera~s form 37 9% and females 79 2%. The' highest educational level is matriculation or higher secondary and there are no graduates or persons having techQlcal diploma or degree Among the females the highest educational level Is up to middle school and there are no matricUlates among them Th'e distribution of population classified by age, sex and educational level can be seen from the following table.
Table /1- 5
Distribution of population of selected households as classified by age, sex and educational level
P-Qe- Total Illiterate Pnmary Middle Matncula- Non-tech-
group population or 1Ion or nlcal diploma
JUnior higher or certificate
basiC secondary not equal to
degree
p M F M F M F M F M F M F
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
All ages 455 248 207 94 164 80 33 60 10 13
Q-4 64 35 29 35 29
5-9 76 45 31 20 20 25 11
10-14 55 28 27 3 11 16 12 9 4
15-19 41 28 13 3 9 5 15 4 5
19
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
20-24 42 22 20 4 17 7 2 8 3
25-34 60 33 27 11 25 8 10 4
35+ 117 57 60 18 53 19 7 18
Age not
stated
N B. There are no retu~ns agalOst 'wterate Without .educational level', 'Technical diploma or certflcate not equal to degree' and
'Graduate & above'
Migration status
Among the 75 households 67 are non-migrants and only 8 households are migrants Among these 8 households, 4-have migrated due to marriage of the head of the household and the remaining 4 seeking occupation by the head of the household. 4
migrated households are from the same district, 2 from outside the district but within the state and 2 from outside the state All the migrated households belonged to rural areas and 7 of the households have been in this vWage for more than 21 years and 1 household for 6-10 years The details collected during the survey on migration status are given below,
Table /1- 6
Distribution of households In the selected households as classified by migration status and duration of stay in the village with reference to head of the household
Migration status With
ref.rence to place of birth
A. Non-mtgrant
(Born In the Village)
B Migrant
Born outside the VIllage
but 10 the same district
Rural
Urban
II Born outSide the district
but WlthlO the state
Number of
households
2
67
8
4
4
2
Number of households where duration of stay
!O the village of head of the household IS
Non-migrant 6-10 years 21 + years
3 4 5
67
7
4
4
20
2 3 4 5
DIstrict· 1 Nashlk
Rural
Urban
DIstrict· 2 Ratnaglrl
Rural
Urban
III Born outside the state
State· 1 Madhya Pradesh 2 2
Rural 2 2
Urban
State·2
Rural
Urban
Other including unspecified
N B There are no returns against the duration of stay for the periods 'less than 1 year', '1-5 years' and '11·20 years'
Traditional occupation
The traditional occupation of maJonty of households of Banjaras In the three vUlages IS cultivation Among the selected 75 households the traditional occupation of 52 households IS cultivation Among the remaining, 21 are agricultural labourers, 1 tailor and 1 brick manufacturer
Workers
Of the 455 persons in the 75 selected
households, 218 are workers and 237 are non· workers Among the 218 workers the traditional occupation of the head of the household of 168 persons is cultivation and the traditional occupation of the head of the household of 48" persons IS agricultural labour Of the remaining, the traditional occupation of the head of the household of 1 IS tartonng and 1 brick manufacturing It may be seen from the above that there are no households haVing Banjara embroidery as their traditional occupation The distnbutlon of workers claSSified by traditional and present occupation IS as follows
c o :;:: [ ::::s u u o -I: II) en ~ Q. "0 C «I
«I I: !2
:t:: "0 I! ->-.c -g .;::: 'c;; en «I U en «I en "0 '0 J: II) en ::::s o J:
i (; II)
G> en II) J: -I: e CI) .lC ... o ~ -o I: o .;:: ::::s .c t: !! c
0.. ::::s o ... ~ 0) «I "0
~ ... .c "0 I: «I
~ en
~ E :J Z
c :;: " Q.
i!' " .c ?; c I" 0
"'-" " '" ;..0. '<f :;
U 00
c
~o~ " " a. :;: E a "0 '" U :: c 0
" E S roUloO (/) '" u
:J U _ C
a ~ Q
o ' • --:, M I ~ § o i§ 8 ~
"5
" E '" g-N
'" c c
~~ " a. :0= :J
-6 ~ := 0
" E '=
U C
8g
'" '" 0 (/) '" u
"'23 A.O. India/NO/S,
o C\I
<D
I()
C\I
o
0>
C\I
C\I C\I
" I() C\I C\I
C\I
C\I
!") !")
<D C\I <Xl '<t" !")
I()
C\I
21
, '
0>
<D
C\I <Xl
I()
" C\I C\I
:2' LL :2' LL :2' LL
In the 60 households practising Banjara embroidery, there are 181 workers and amc.:mg them only 2 females, whose traditional occupation is cultivation, have claimed that their present occupation IS Banjara embrOidery and the remaining 179 have returned other occupations as their present occupation These two women are teaching Banjara embroidery In the training classes organised by the Government of India and the State Government This clearly indicates that even now there IS no Incentive In the Banjara embroidery work to persuade persons to leave their traditional
22
However the elder generation In their fervour to keep up their tradition used to wear only their traditional costumes and this compelled them to do the craft at least to meet their personal needs Now that tradition IS on the wane With the spread of CIVIlization and the regular social contact of the Banjaras With others as they have now permanently settled In a place
Non-workers
occupation and to take up Banjara embroidery as Among the non-workers there IS no one seeking their present occupation This IS a deplorable state employment All the non-workers fall In the of the craft at present Even In the past this craft categories of Infants, full-tlrpe students, houseWives was not done at any stage on a full time baSIS as and dependants The distribution of non-workers there was no market for the Items produced by sex and age IS given In the following table
Table" - 8
Distribution of non-workers In the selected households by sex, age and type of activity
Number of non-workers by type of activity and sex
Agegroup
Number of
non-workers
Infant Full- Household
duty
Seeking
employment
Dependant
student
p M F M F M F M F M F M F
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
0-14 190 107 83 3 7 53 19 4 51 53
15-19 19 17 2 17 2
20-24 5 2 3 2 3
25-29 3 3 3
30-39 4 4 4
40-49 3 3 3
50-59 2 2 2
60 + 11 3 8 5 3 3
Total 237 129 108 3 7 72 19 26 54 56
Present position of the craft Recently, however, there IS an awakening among
some members belonging to Banjara community to revive and rejuvenate this craft and to make It a source of livelihood for the Banjaras The Central Government and the State Government also are now extending. help to the Banjaras for the promotion of thiS traditional craft by giVing monetary assistance for conducting training classes to teach the craft to the younger generation The
23
programme IS only In a very Infant stage and much has to be done by way of moderniSing the craft to attract market and to establish agencies for purchasing and promoting the sale of the finished products. The future of the craft IS now uncertain and time alone will tell whether this will develop and survive or will be only In the legends One of the reasons for selecting thiS craft for study IS to have some record on thiS rural based handicraft In case It IS destined to a gnm fate
CHAPTER III
PROCESS OF LEARNING
THE PATIERNS OF the dresses like kachalJ and phetlYa which the Banjara women wear are Identical throughout the country The colour schemes and designs are also the same everywhere How IS 'thiS possible among the Banjaras living all over the country to maintain this Uniformity?
It IS believed that the Banjaras onglnally hail from Rajasthan and It was from there that they spread all over the country The origin of the Banjara embroidery could also be In Rajasthan and It might have fully developed before the Banjaras dispersed from Rajasthan and settled In vanous parts of the country Even while In Rajasthan they might have accepted as their cherished tradition to wear the typical costumes developed by them to maintain their separate identity and when they moved out of Rajasthan they carned With them the art which they developed even In their primitive stages and have preserved this ancestral art till today from generation to generation
Source of learning
As mentioned earlier only the Banjara women are dOing this embrOidery work They are dOing this not mainly for commercial purpose They do It With an urge to maintain their tradition and as a hobby and make use of the end products mainly for their personal use When the mother IS dOing the embrOidery work the child IS beside her With the traditional Instinct and cunoslty Thus watching the mother working on her needle the child also begins to attempt on the craft even at a very young age and the mother perfects the skill of the child In the craft by giving gUIdance wherever necessary Thus the main source for learning the craft IS their
25
respectIVe mothers and there were no arrangements till recently to teach thiS art by engaging Instructors However, for the last few years the All India Handicrafts Board IS extending finanCial assistance to the Banjaras to conduct training classes by engaging paid instructresses The trainees who attend the classes are also paid stipend as an incentive to attract trainees to attend the class regularly Those who attend the classes know the craft even before their jOining the training class and thiS tralnrng, If conducted properly, Will help them to perfect the art which they already know
The Banjara embrOidery IS a very simple art which can be learned Without any difficulty by any one even at the very young age Needle IS the Implement reqUired and colour threads and chhatya and mangJI cloths are the main raw matenals for thiS work Among the 60 selected households who are stili practising the craft, 9 persons are engaged In the craft for less than 5 years, 16 persons for 5-9 years, 22 persons for 10-19 years and 37 persons for 20 years or more Among these 84 persons, 5 are the heads of the household, 51 are wives of the heads of the household, 6 are daughters of the heads of the household, 13 are the son's wIves of the heads of the household and remaining 9 others are either mother, Sister, brother's Wife or maternal uncle's Wife of the heads of the household Again, among these 84 who are engaged In the craft, 72 persons have learned the craft from their mothers and 12 through female Instructors Even these 12 knew the craft already and perfected It With the assistance of the Instructors The table shOWing the number of persons classified by relationship to the head, the penod engaged In the craft and the source of training IS given below
26
Table 11/- 1
Distribution of persons in the selected households classified by relationship to the head, period engaged In the craft and the source of training
Penod No of Others
engaged persons Their relationship to the head of the household and the source of training (Mother,
In the
BanJara
embrol-
dery
Less than
5 years
5-9 years
10-19 years
20 + years
Total
engaged
In the
BanJara
embrol-
dery
2
9
16
22
37
84
M = Mother I = Instructress
Self {Head
of the house
hold) who
received
training
from
M M
3 4 5
5
14
4 21
5 40
All the 5 heads of the household who are engaged In the craft have learned It from their mothers, among the 51 wives of the heads of the household, 40 learned the craft from their mothers, and 11 from the female Instructors , all the 6 daughters learned It from their mothers, among the 13 son's Wives, 12 from mothers and 1 from female Instructor, and the 9 others (mother/brother's wife/sister/maternal uncle's wife) from their mothers
Training classes
In the past there were no arrangements for conducting training classes In Banjara embroidery
Sister, Wife who Son's wife Daughter
brother's received who who
wife, etc) training received received
who recel-from training training ved traln-
from from 109 from
M M M
6 7 8 9 10 11 12
2 5 2
2 7
3 2
6 5
11 12 6 9
However for the last 5 to 6 years training classes are being conducted In villages where BanJara people live The classes are arranged by the local master craftsperson With the approval of the Handicrafts Board under the Development CommisSioner (Handicrafts), iVllnlstry of Commerce and Supply Such classes have already been conducted In Ichchhapur, Ghodegaon, Vasantnagar and RaJdehere Villages The necessary funds for the payment of remuneration to the Instructors and stipend to the trainees are allotted by the Handicrafts Board and the classes are conducted followrng the terms and conditions prescribed by the Handicrafts Board for thiS purpose The terms
Plate 9:
Plate 8: Training class in progress, The woman in between the two young child~n is the instructress
"Even those who attended the training classes have alre~dy learned the craft through their elders .. ," Page: 25
i
Two trainees at work ", .. the training classes helped them to perfect their skill
in the craft."
\ \
Page: 2&
•
\
27
,I
and conditions of training have already been given In chapter I of this report There are no regular training centre or tralnlng-cum-productlon centre Even In the training classes arranged seasonally the
Handicrafts Board IS not providing the trainees with raw matenals nor do they collect the finished products for sales The funds reqUired for paying the remuneration alone are sanctioned and paid by the Handicrafts Board
Craftspersons vis-a-vIs the training classes
It has been revealed dunng the survey that even those who attended the training classes have already learned the craft through their elders and the training classes helped them to perfect their skill In the craft They all are of the OpInion that the penod of 1 year tralnlng IS qUite suffiCient and they require no better training faCIlity In fact what they actually require IS a scheme for making Banjara embroidery a gainful occupation by prOViding arrangements for marketing the finished products so that the BanJaras who are hitherto dOing this work due to their zeal to preserve their tradition carr engage themselves In this craft as a means of livelihood It is understood that so far no plans for creating marketing facilities for the BanJara embroidery Items have been envisaged by the government Left to themselves the Banjaras are helpless In the matter and government alone can do any thing by populanslng the finished products In
India and abroad and creating marketing faCilities
Biographical sketches
The- biographical sketches of a few crafts persons narrating bnefly the story of their life In the background of the craft are given below which may
be of Interest to read
Biography 1:
Name Smt Bhunbal Shankar Rathod,
Ichchhapur EducatIOn illiterate Age 45 years
28
OccupatIOn Cultivation and household duties Address Post Office - Ichchhapur Ta/uk - Challsgaon Dist - Jalgaon Maharashtra State
She was born In Akrale Village In Dhule district some 45 years ago She does not exactly remember her date of birth She had no
opportunity to reoelve even pnmary education She was marned to phn Shankar Benlram Rathod of Ichchhapur Village at the age of 15 and consequently moved to; Ichahhapur Village The main occupatIOn: of her family )Nas cultivation Even after her marriage she has been looking after cultIVatIOn Her husband "IS a primary school teacher In the Zilla Panshad school State She acqUired knowledge of traditional embrOidery work wh,en she was very young M the age of 7 she started learning this embroidery from her mother Her grandmother also gave her training In the embroidery work before her marriage After marriage her mother-In-law also perfected her skill In the work by explalntng the craft techniques and traditional deSigns
In her opInion nowadays this craft IS at a dYing stage because the young generatIOn IS not taking Interest In thiS craft Traditional dresses are very costly and heavy while substitutes are readily available at a cheaper rate In olden days no dress other than their traditional dresses was known to the Banjara females But that posItIOn has changed
now espeCially In the case of young girls and they prefer to wear only sans and blouses as In the case of girls belongmg to other communities ThiS has resulted In the non-practising of thiS embroidery work by a number of Banjaras
However In the recent. years Shn Sanchand Sang ram Jadhav and hiS family are taking Interest to populanse thiS embroidery Due to the Interest taken by them training classes on Banjara embrOidery were conducted In their Village dunng 1982-83, 1984-85 and 1986-87 The training classes
were for a duration of one year and she was the
instructress in a" the three classes She also took part In the handicraft exhibition held In Bombay, Deihl and Nagpur In the stall opened for Banjara embroidery items they could sell articles to the value of approximately Rs 5000/-
Her suggestion IS that regular trainmg centres should be opened and government should give financial assistance CO-liperatlve societies should also be formed Lack of publiCity is also a drawback for the non-development of this embroidery work
Biography No.2
Name Smt Go'plbal Sangram Jadhav, Ghodegaon Age 73 years Education illiterate OccupatIOn Household duties Address Post Office - Ghodegaon Tafuk - Chalfsgaon
Dist - Jalgaon Maharashtra State
She was born In the same village She IS 73 years old and Illiterate She was marned at a very young age to Shn Sangram Rekha Jadhav who IS now 87 years old He also belongs to the same Village Smt Goplbal belonged to a very poor family and used to work hard from her childhood In her young age she was mostly engaged In agriculture labour work At about 60 years ago It was compulsory that the BanJara females should have full knowledge of their embroidery work and they should wear their traditional dress It was the duty of the Banjara women to stitch all dresses at home With traditional designs in leisure time So naturally from her childhood she learned thiS art from her mother Because of her shrewdness and hard working nature she mastered the embroidery work and knew to embroider almost all the traditional designs Because of her profiCiency In the
embroidery work most of the women In their Village used to come to her to learn the different types of designs From her childhood she used to collect
29
the specimens of the designs prepared by her mother and her mother-in-law and even now she IS preserving them She has also tramed a lot of women in this craft She loves their traditional art very much But thiS is gradually disappeanng due to the Indifferent attitude of the BanJara community In general ThiS pained her very much and she was anxIOUs to do something to revive this traditional art So she mvolved her son Sanchand and her daughter-m-Iaw Kalavatl to work for the uplift of thiS vanishing art and to make It a source of livelihood for her community Accordingly they halle approached vanous government departments and
by their effort the government has 1I1cluded BanJara embroidery as a craft and has given financial assistance for conducting training classes In the handicraft exhibitions conducted In various places separate stalls were allotted for BanJara embroidery
Despite her old age she has conducted trainmg classes and trained about 30 girls The expenditure for the training classes was met by the Development CommiSSioner, Handicrafts, Bombay She has also participated In exhibitions held at Deihl and
Bombay The Central Govt awarded her a certificate of merit In appreciation of her craftsmanship and contribution to the development of Banjara embroidery in the year 1982 Her people call her 'mother of craft' and this she conSiders as the best award In her life Her anxiety IS that the craft should not die before her death Now due to old age she could not do anything for the development of thiS craft However she is confident that her son Sanchand Will continue hiS efforts to give this art the status of a full fledged handicraft
Biography No.3
Name Smt Shamalibai Trimbak Jadhav,
Vasantnagar Age 63 years Occupation Household duties Address Post Office - Vasantnagar Ta/uk • Parola Dist - Jalgaon Maharashtra State
She IS now 63 years old Her birth place was Melan village in Madhya Pradesh and she came to Vasantnagar due to marriage She IS now a widow She is literate and has passed Standard II She learnt the basic technique of the traditional Banjara embroidery from her mother and grand-mother, and became and expert In the work After her marnage, which was held at a young age, her mother-In-law made her an expert in this craft In- olden days Banjara embroidery articles were produced only for the use of family members and to give to the bride dunng marnage ceremony It was compulsory when she was young that the females, both old and young, should wear only their traditional dress Now that position has changed and young women now mainly use sans and blouses
DUring her young age she was engaged In agricultural work In the past and also at present this Banjara embroidery work is only a leisure time work and no one IS doing this as a full-time
30
occupation as they are not getting any money out of it She is thankful to the Development Commissioner, Handicrafts, Bombay who gave her a chance to teach some of her people thiS
embroidery She was appointed as an Instructress for a period of two years in training classes at Vasantnagar village Itself Dunng these two year period she trained 20 persons She had also made demonstrations of Banjara articles In the exhibitions The lack of facilities in seiling Banjara articles and lack of public demand are nearly k~hng this art
In her opinion, In the first Jn~tance, the Banjaras should take interest in thiS craft' and they should try to find market for finished products themselves Ths government help' to conduct training classes alone Will not serve the purpose of development of the art If they wait for the help,.the art will be knled
\
before the help IS made available
CHAPTER IV MANUFACTURING PROCESS
Place of work
THE BANJARA EME!ROIDERY involves only needle work on small pieces of cloths which will later be joined together to make the finished products. As mentioned earlier the Banjara females alone are practising this craft and they attend to this work at their leisure time after finishing their household duties. There are open verandas in front of most of the Banjara houses and these are used for dOing the embroidery work As no tools and equipments are to be handled except a needle, what IS reqUired is the space for one person to sit comfortably while attending to the embroidery work and for thiS purpose the veranda is more than sufficient
Number of persons engaged in the craft and adequacy of space
The survey of the households engaged In the craft reveals that 84 persons in the 60 households selected for survey are engaged in the craft Among them 5 are the heads of the household (femafes) and 79 are members of the households
31
All these heads of the household are engaged In the embroidery work in their respectIVe houses Among the 5 heads of the household two were conducting (during the survey) training classes In the verandas of their houses Among the- 79 members of households 73 are practising the craft in their respective houses and 6 .In the training centre The survey also reveals that 2 In the agegroup 0-14, 45 in the age-group 15-34, 33 In the age-group 35-59 and 4 In the age-group 60 and above are engaged in the craft To the persons engaged in the craft the requirement of space poses no problem as the persons practising thiS craft require only the space sufficient for them to Sit comfortably They have no tools or large quantities of raw matenals to be kept handy Of course thiS point will have relevance when a fully-fledged tralning-cum-production centre on a permanent basis IS set up as this Will necessitate the stonng of the raw matenals and finished products In bulk quantities However, at present there IS no such centre The details showing the households classified by broad age-group, place of work and duration of work In the handicraft are given on the next page
-c ., g> 0) c: .,
i II 0) c: II)
32
u. co ....
u.
It)
u.
LL.
LL.
u.
LL.
u.
33
C\I
e E ~
~ E E It) (I)
!!1 III c: !!1 III c: !!1 :u ~ '" OS ~ OS ~ OS II) :5 f!! III II) OS III II) ell 0> ;>.
«S ~ 0> ;>. :5 ~ 0> ;>. ;>. III
~ 0> 0 + (I)
., 0> ~ + rn
0> + ~ .3
;>. ~
(I) 0 ~ ob ~ It) ob I- o!! ob
+ g
As all the persons are engaged In the craft in their own houses or In the training classes conducted in the same village there is no question of providing any conveyance for them to reach their place of work
Items produced
The Banjara embroidery is the art developed by Banjara women in their garments VIZ kachali and phetiya and the articles of their daily use like zolana, chunchi, khalchi, darani, gadano and the like No belief of purity or pollution is associated with thiS craft The brief descriptions and the purposes for which these Items are used are as follows
KACHALI This is a blouse with bare back The uniqueness of a kachal' IS the pattern of its designs conSisting of multi-coloured pieces of cloths stitched together to form a pattern The colours of the cloths used are predominantly bright Generally red and black coloured cloths are used for kachali Other colours· are also used, albeit sparingly The colour schemes, deSigns and models used for kachali are almost the same all over the country and thiS enables anyone to recognise the Banjara women in any part of the country A typical kachali If observed closely has many distinguished features as compared to other ordinary blouses The front part is the main portion of a kachali and It consists of three parts viz chhati, peti and bahi The upper part of the kachall I e chhati is used like a bra, as in the olden days there were no bras The back portion is bare except for two sets of strings known as daTI which are used to fasten the kacha/' by the wearer as no buttons are provided in it The first set of strings is at the back top portion of the kachal, to tie them round the neck and the second set Is at the middle portion at the joint of the embroidered and the plain portions of the khadapa piece to tie them round the back of the wearer The length of the kachah covers the stomach and it is squarish In shape Small sea shells (also known as kawadya) and old coins are also used In olden days small quantity of sliver was also used In the
34
kachal,s With the soaring prices of Silver, nowadays lead has become the alternative and thiS IS used in abundance to lend shine and grace to the kachali Brides have a different kachal, made for themselves It IS made much more fancier by attaching mirror pieces on both the sides of chhat', the upper part The deSigns used for the kachal' meant for bndes are also different from other kachalts Unmarried girls do not wear kachal'
PHETIYA It IS af skirt like garment used by the BanJara women' It consists of four parts The top portion is called lepo It serves as a cloth belt attached to the phettya ,to tie It round the waist In the lepo the Baniara women exhibit their skill in embroidery with different blend of designs Below the /epo is attached ghero ThiS conSists of two pieces In two contrasting bright colours generally black and red The portIOn below thiS IS called sabab (also known as chhlt) and for this fine textured pnnted cotton fabriC IS used The bottom portion of the phettya is called lawan and thiS also is a masterpiece of embroidery
ZOLANA ThiS is a shoulder bag with exquisite embroidery work and a long strap to hang it over the shoulder On the edges of the bag sea shells (kawadya) and balls made of woolen yarn of different colours are attached to add the beauty of the bag
CHUNCHI This is a bag containing 3 or 4 pouches to keep pan, supan, tobacco etc
KHALCHI This is a square shaped bag used to keep bread (bhakan)
DARANI 1 hiS is a small cloth used to keep the prepared flour of wheat ready for making chappat, dUring festive occasions ThiS cloth artistically decorated With embrOidery work is used as a show-piece
GADANO ThiS is a dish cover used to cover drinking water in pots and dishes containing
eatables This IS generally Us.ed dUring festive
occaSions and marriage ceremonies
PA T This is like a chess board and IS used by women to play an indoor game
KOTHALI This is a small bag used for ~eeping money, other personal belongings and the raw materials reqUired for the embroidery work and this is used generally by old women
KOTHALO It is a sack like big bag used while the Banjaras go for shopping.
35
Quantity produced
The above items of articles are made by the Ban}aras depending on their personal requirement .and demand, if any, from others Availability of spare time is also an Important factor as 11: will take a number of days and even months to finish the work on even a single piece as they are not dOing the work at a stretch on a full time basIs An attempt was made during the survey to estimate the number of pieces of each of the articles mentioned
above which were produced by the selected households in a year and the details collected are given In the table below It may be noted from-the table that none of the households has made the article kothalo during the year to which the details In ths table relate.
Table IV - 2
Distribution of households manufacturing Ban)ara embroidery articles by number of items manufactured in a year as related to educational level of the head of the household
Educational Name of article No of NO or an:Jcles
level manufactured households manufactured In
manufacturing a year
these articles
2 3 4
illiterate Chunchl 3 B
Gadano 1 2
Kachall 19 53
Kothall 5 6
Phetlya 18 54
Pat 3 9
Zolana 8 12
Pnmary or Chunchl 9
JUnior basIc
2
Daran!
Gadano
Kachali
Khalchi
Phetiya
Pat
Zolana
Middle Chunchl
Daranl
Gadano
Kachali
Kothah
Phetiya
Pat
Zolana
Matriculation Kachall or higher Phetlya secondary
Seasonal variation
There IS no seasonal vanatlon In the production
of these articles as the BanJara women do this work
only dUring their leisure time However dunng April and May the BanJara women Will have more leisure time as they Will be free from their agricultural work
and hence dUring this period they can spend more
time for the embroidery work
36
3 4
7
4
12 41
3 4
20 66
3 12
8 18
5 10
2 11
3
14 73
4 13
16 43
5 22
2 11
3 3
Raw materials
The main raw matenals reqUired for the
embroidery are chhatya cloth, mangJI cloth, woollen and cotton threads of different colours, sea shells (kawadya) , hollow frustum shaped zinc pieces
(pan) etc In the past old cams, glass pieces, Silver,
lead etc were used to decorate the finished
products But at present these are not commonly
Plate 10:
Plate 11:
37
Equipments- Sickle and needle I "The only equipments required for'the craft are sickle to cut the cloth into pieces and the needle to make ~he embroidery work."
I Page : 40
Raw materials - Thread , wool, chhatya cloth and sea shells (kawadya) Page: 40
used The raw matenals are available in the nearby villages or towns and no problems are faced In the procurement of these Items The Banjaras purchase these raw matenals along with their other requirements when they go to market The average consumption of the raw materials depends on the quantum of articles produced DUring summer season the Banjara women get free time to attend
38
to the embroidery work and hence the consumption of raw matenals dunng the above season Will be a httle higher when compared to other seasons The details collected from the selected households on the average monthly consumption of raw matenals for manufactunng different items classified by educational level of households are gIVen below In
the following table
Table IV - 3
Educa
tional
level
of the
head 01
house
hold
illiterate
LIterate
without
educational
level
Pnmary
Average monthly consumption of raw materials classified by edl,lcatlonalJevel of head of the household
No of handi
craft Items
manufactured
In a year*
Name 01 Nos
Item
2
Kachali
Zolana
Kothah
Pat
Chunchl
Gadano
Phetlya
Kachall
Zolana
Chunchl
Gadano
Daranl
Khalchl
Pat
Phetlya
3
53
12
6
9
8
2
54
41
18
9
4
7
4
12
66
No of
house
holds
manu
factu
ring
handi
craft
Items
4
19
8
5
3
3
1
18
12
8
3
3
20
Chhatya Mangjl
cloth cloth
(In (In
metres) metres)
5
440
050
015
040
040
010
950
340
075
045
020
075
025
050
1160
6
1 10
050
015
040
040
010
4000
090
075
045
020
075
025
050
4870
Average monthly consumption of each raw matenal
Thread Wool ~awadya I Metal Pan
(In (In (in nngs (Nos)
kg ) gms ) (gms ) (No~ )
7
1100
0250
0040
0190
0100
0020
2600
0860
0375
0115
0035
0120
0070
0250
3175
8
45
25
5
20
10
5
115
35
35
5
10
15
5
25
140
9
100
50
20
150
35
60
70
10
4
6
11
3
4
2
39
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 ----------
Middle Kachall 73 14 610 160 1525 60
Phetlya 43 16 760 3180 2075 90
Gadano 3 015 015 0025 6
Kothali 13 4 030 030 0085 10 110
Chunchl 10 5 050 050 0125 10
Zolana 11 2 045 045 0230 20 90 4 3 Pat 22 5 090 090 0475 45
DaraOi 11 2 1 15 1 15 0185 25 90
Matncula- Kachah 3 025 010 0065 4
tlcn/ Phetlya 3 055 230 0150 6
higher
secondary
*Slnce the number of Items manufactured In a month will be very negligible or 'nil' In respect of most of the Items, the yearly figures
are gIVen In col 3
The surveyed data reveal that kachall and phetwa are the Items mainly prepared and more households have engaged in the preparation of these items While 55 households have prepared 166 phettya, 46 households have prepared 170 kachalls The production of these items is more as these are required for regular use by the BanJaras The next major production is zo/ana which IS also
kothali have been made by 9 households each and the. nUlT'ber of pieces made are 27 and 19 respectively The other items like gadano, darani and khalchl have been made only by 3 households each and the items produced are 9, 18 and 4 respectIVely
required by the households for regular use 18 As mentioned earlier the raw materials mamly households have produced 41 pieces of this Item required for producing these items are chhatya This IS followed by pat, the article required for cloth, different coloured thread and mangji cloth for indoor· game of women, and 11 households have providing Iinln,g In addition to these woollen t~read, made 43 pieces of this Item This indicates ihe sea shells (kawadya) , pari etc are also required tendency of the women folk to Idle their time by The average requirement of raw materials for one plaYing an indoor game like chess C/;wnchl and piece of each item is as follows
Name of
Item
Kachah
Table IV - 4 Average requirement of raw material for dIfferent items
Raw matenal required for each Item
Chhatya MangJI Thread Wool Kawadya Metal
cloth cloth (Ingms) (10 (10 gms) nngs
(In (In gms) (Nos)
metres) metres)
2 3 4 5 6 7
100 025 250 10
Pan
(Nos)
8
2 3
Phetlya 210 885
Zolana 050 050
Chunchl 05() 060
Khalchl 075 075
Daram 125 125
Gadano 060 060
Pat 050 050
Kothah 025 025
Kothalo 150 150
Cost of raw materials
Rajasthan is a cradle of ancIent art and craft am;! the products made by the people of Rajasthan are beautiful, functIonal and unrque in that each one IS hand-crafted with a love and pride There IS also a saying In Rajasthan that the patterns on the women's skirts change wIth every twelve kos (384 kilometres) one travels In the state So great IS the variety of hand-crafted fabrics available here FolkembroIderies have survrved despite very lIttle patronage from princes and Banjara embroIdery IS one among them Most Rajasthanr women love to decorate theIr surroundings and are clever WIth theIr needles EmbroIderies, often incorporatIng beads or mIrrors cover door frames, furnIture and garments 1 It IS, therefore, no wonder that the Banjaras, whose ancestors hailed from Rajasthan, show remarkable skill In their traditional embroidery work The process of manufacture of Banjara
40
4
575
250
150
200
200
100
250
75
400
5 6 7 8
25
25 100 4 3
10
10 200 6
25 100
25 100 4
25
10 100
10 100
craft In Its present stage had developed even before generations and decendants of thiS craft have not adopted any new technique to SUIt changing needs as IS eVident from the fact that the Banjaras are stili uSing short Sickle to cut the cloth to pieces Instead of replaCIng this by sCissors to their advantage The only equipments reqUIred for the craft are Sickle to cut the cloth Into pieces and the needle to make the embroIdery work The needle costs Jess than 50 paIse The cost of the various Items of raw matenals at the tIme of survey was as follows
1 Chhatya cloth - Rs 5 - 7 per metre
2 Mangjl cloth - Rs 5 - 8 per metre
3 Cotton thread - Rs 50 - 60 per kg
4 Woollen thread - Rs 10 per 100 gms
embroidery IS very simple as the needle alone IS 5 Sea shells (kawadya) - Rs 60 - 70 per kg needed In this craft and what IS Important IS the talent applied In the work which IS traditional The 6 Pan - Rs 9 per dozen
1 'The crafts of RaJasthan', deSIgned and produced for the Department of I ounsm, Government of Ralastnan by India TOUrism Development Corporation and pnnted at Process Private Ltd, Madras, Dec 1984
Chhatya cloth IS the main raw matenal required and It IS used for making all articles. It is a thick, coarse cotton cloth prepared from 60 count yarn The embroidery work is made only on chhatya cloth The mangjl cloth is used for lining only. The coloured thread Is used to do the embroidery work In different types of designs The woollen threads are made ball-shaped and attached at the edges or bottom portion of kachait,phetwa, zo/ana, chunchi etc to add the beauty of the articles The sea shells are also used to make the Items attractive in appearance
Chhatl (portion covering the bosom)
Peti (portion covering the abdomen)
Chlrma (pieces covering a portion of the nbs on both sides of bosom and abdomen)
41
Stages of production of various items
The vanous stages In the production of different items of articles are as follows
I Kacha/,
Stage 1 The first stage In making a kacha/I Involves the preparation of different sizes of chhatya cloth pieces of different colours, mainly black and red Sickle IS used to cut the cloth in the following sizes
25 cm X 20 cm - one piece 20 cm X 16 5 Clll - one piece 72 5 em X 7 5 cm - two pieces
Khadapa (pieces covering the remaining portion 72 5 cm X 7 5 cm - two pieces of the ribs on both sides of bosom and the abdomen and a portion of the back)
Khuppa (pieces joining chhatl and chirma in the bosom portion) 15 cm X 7 5 cm - two pieces
Bah; (portion covering the shoulders and arms) 35 cm X 10 cm - two pieces
Katta (cloth used for piping to make the edges strong) 1 5 em X 75 em - two pieces
The different portions of the Kachali may be seen from the diagram gIVen below
string (darl )
balls
KACHALI
1 Chhatl 2 Pet! 3 Chlrma 4 Khadapa 5 Khuppa 6 Bahl 7 Katta
(plpmg) A Portion with out
2mbroldery
42
Plate 12: Cutting chhatya cloth using sickle
" ... decendants of this craft have not adopted any new technique to suit changing needs as is evident from the fact that the Banjaras are
,still using short sickle to cut the cloth to pieces instead of replacing this by scissors to their advantage." Page :40
Plate 13: Banjara woman doing enbroi~ry work on a piece of cloth for kachaJi Page: 44
43
PIIIte 14: The chhatl, p«J and bahi of kachall are being joined. The photograph at the
bottom shows the reverse side of chhati and peti Witt-, lining cloth (The long piece with
design of animals in frOflt of the craftsperson is not a part of k~haIi.1t is a tepo piece required for phetiya) Page: 44
,
Stage 2 Once the pieces of cloth required for the kachali are ready the second stage of operation is of making embroidery work on these pieces The embroidery work is being done only with the help of needle The threads used for stitching are of different bright colours. A different blend of designs are used On chhatJ and petl the figures of peacock, dog or other birds and animals are generally embroidered along with bangad; bharat, hathphool or rumall bhat designs These deSigns are made adopting cross stitch. Khadapa, chirma, khuppa and bahl are decorated with bajofl akada, balo" bhat, ghoderkhur and kundalu akada designs In the khadapa pieces the upper portion is left plam without embroidery hS shown in the dlagt8m
Stage 4 After completion of the third stage piping with black coloured mangji cloth (katta) will be provided at the neck portion at the end of the bahl and at the sides of the khadapa At the bottom of the peti also piping will be provided using mangjl cloth (katta) and the colour of the cloth used will be red Then the stnngs (dart) are attached at the neck portion and central portion
44
Stage 3 When the pieces of cloth are thus decorated with embroidery the chhatl, petl and khuppa are provided with lining using mangJl cloth Then the chhati and petl are Joined together appropriately using needle and coloured tt;lread Then the two pieces of khuppa are attached with chhati, one on each side Then the chlfma' and khadapa (2 pairs) are joined together and these are attached on both sides of the piece containing chhati, peti and khuppa 'Before thus joining, the edges of the pieces are folded and stitched to make the edges ~hlck Then these thick edges will be joined together using black thread Thereafter the two pieces of bahi are attached appropriately The sketch of a Banjara woman joining the embroidered pieces of kachali Is illustrated below.
of the' kachali to tie these round the back as the back portion of the kachall is bare Finally woollen balls of different colours are attached to the peti and bahl to make the kachal! attractive Now the kachafl IS ready
II PhetlYa This is used as skirt by the Banjara females This
consists of four parts viz lepo, lawan, ghero and
Plats 15: A pair of finished kachalis
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I I
I
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Page: 44
I I
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46
Plate 16: Doing embroidery work on '~po piece Page: 47
Plate 17: Doing embroidery work on lawan piece Page: 47
sabab The cloths required for each part of the phetlya are as follows
Lepo - One piece of plain chhatya cloth In red colour of size 75 cm long and 7 5 cm wide - the length may vary depending on the waist measurement of the wearer
Lawan - Two pieces of plain chhatya cloth, one
In red colour and the other In black colour of size 4 5 metres long and 15
cm wide each
Ghero - Two pieces of plain mangJI cloth, one In red colour and the other In black colour of size 4 5 metres long and 20
cm wide each
Sabab (chhlt) - Two pieces of printed mangJl
cloth, one In red colour and the other In black colour of size 4 5 metres long
and 40 cm wide each
Stage I Among these four parts embroidery work IS done only on {epa and lawan The tepa IS the top portion of the phet'Ya and selVes as a
47
cloth belt to tie the phet'Ya round the waist - In the cloth of size 75 em X 7 5 cm embroidery work IS done lengthWise In the central portion at
a width of 4 cm leaVing a border of about 2 cm on either side (I e at the top and bottom) The deSigns used for the embroidery are generally
bangadi bharat, sasyardat, masuryafjall etc The deSigns are made USing different coloured
thread
Stage 2 Then the emholdery work on the two pieces of lawan, which form the boraer of the !)l1etlYa, IS taKen up As mentioned earlier the length of each r.uecs IS 4 5 metres with a Width of , 15 cm Here also embroidery work IS done
lengthWise In the central ,<ortlon of the cloth covenng a Width of 10 cm leavmg 2 5 cm border a1 the top and bottom Ekdam baJorl
akada, kundalu akada and zhy.Jndall baJon are the deslqns generally used In It Along with the abov8 deSigns the tlgures of peacock, dog or other b!rda and animalS are also embroidered After completing the work the two pieces of lawan are JOined together Sketches shOWing the craftsperson's hand at the {epa and lawan pieces are given below
48
Plate 18: Joining the Iswan piece with sabab, the printed mangji cloth
Plate 19: The finished phetiya in the centre with another lepa and lawan pieces at its top and bottom respectively
Page: 49
____ ' Page: 50
Stage 3 When the Jepo and Jawan are ready, ~he two pieces of printed mangfl cloth In red and black colours In the size 4 5 metres X 40 cm are Jomed together to make the length of the sabab 9 metres with a Width of 40 cm , and thiS piece IS then stitched with the lawan, which IS ready In
such a way that the black and red colours In the fawan and sabab come diagonally That IS the black portion of the sabab WIll be above the red portion of the Jawan and vice versa ThiS IS being done to add the beauty of the phetwa by contrast of colours Since the lawan and sabab are of the same length of 9 metres there will be no difficulty In JOining them Care IS taken at thiS stage that the sabab IS JOined with the border provided In the lawan above the embroidered portion In It and the entire embroidered portion In the lawan shows up The loose end of the JOint of the lawan and sabab Will come on the reverse Side of the embroidered portion In the lawan and the printed portion In the sabab To make the JOint strong and the lawan thicker, lining IS provided to the Jawan covering the loose enps of the JOint and for this purpose mangjl cloth IS used At the bottom of the Jawan piping IS provided uSing black mangJl cloth Throughout the entire JOint of the lawan and sabab a border
IS provided on the outer Side uSing black piece of cloth ThiS IS being done to make a contrast between the lawan and sabab Running stitch IS made to provide thiS border
Stage 4 The next stage of operation IS the JOining of ghera with the JOined piece of lawan and sabab For that the two pieces of ghera In black and red colour of size 4 5 metres X 20 cm are JOined together first to make a single piece of size 9 metres X 20 cm Then one end of this piece is JOined to the loose end of the sabab In such a way that the black and red colours In the sabab and ghera come diagonally As was done In the Joint of lawan and sabab, a black border IS provided m the Jomt of sabab and ghera Thus the three pieces VIZ lawan, sabab and ghero are attached together Into one single piece with lawan at the bottom, the sabab In the middle and
49
the ghero at the top In such a way that the black and red colours from top to bottom come alternately
Stage 5 The total length of thiS piece IS 9 metres and the loose end of thiS has to be attached to the tepa with a length of only 75 cm or a little less or more depending on the waist size of the wearer In order to achieve thiS the 9 metres long loose end of the ghera IS reduced first to 75 cm or a little less or more by making closely arranged pleats of convenient size To keep these pl~ats Intact a stitching IS made about an Inch below the- top loose end of the ghero ThiS IS an ornamentpl smocking stitch called cheen ThiS Will be clearly vIsible even after the ghera and tepa are JOined When the pleats are made In the ghera and, these are kept Intact by , providing the smocking stitch, thiS piece IS JOined with the tepa In such a way that the loose ends of the JOint come inside l"hereafter the Inner Side of the tepa IS provided with lining covering the folded top border of the tepa and the loose ends of the JOint of the tepa and ghero Thick used cloth IS used for providing thiS lining While providing the lining, care IS taken to see that the entire embrOidered portion of the Jepo shows up
Stage 6 After JOining the fepo, ghera, sabab and lawan one below the other the entire piece IS JOined Sideways In the shape of a skirt While doing so, the top portion measuring about 7 5 cm IS kept open to facilitate easy weanng of the phetlya by slipping It over the head At the loose ends of the Jepo two loops are made with thread and In these loops tapes are att<fched to tIe the phetJyB round the waist At the ends of the tapes woollen balls are attached In the SIdeways JOInt, a few Inches above the Jawan, a square white piece of cloth IS attached to facilItate easy Identification of the SIde in whIch the tapes are This IS necessary In view of the fact that the phetJya IS made up of cloth measuring 9 metres This white piece IS called katta The bottom of the phettya IS decorated with woollen balls of different kinds The Width of the cloth for each part of the phetlYa mentioned above may vary
slightly depending on the height of the wearer Another pOint deserves mention IS that the phetlya, when worn, will not cover the ankles and It will be left exposed to exhibit the ornaments worn there The fondness of the BanJara women
50
to wear singularly chosen metal or IVOry ornaments weighing eight to ten pounds round their arms and legs has already been mentioned In Chapter I A sketch of phettya IS given below for easy Identification of various parts In It
CHEEN (Smocking stitch)
:\ 1
PHETIYA III Zo/ana
1 Lepo 2 Ghero 3 Sabab
(chhtt) 4 Lowan
SKotto 6 Borders
7 PIPI ng
It IS a shoulder bag commonly used while
travelling or while going to the market The different parts of the zo/ana and the size of chhatya cloth reqUired for each part are as follows
lo/anar sabab Red chhatya cloth of size 22 5 cm X 22 5 cm (one piece)
Za/an (border pieces) Black chhatya cloth of size 22 5 cm X 5 cm (four pieces)
Takadi (corner pieces) Red chhatya cloth of size 5 em X 5 em (four pieces)
Patta (strap) Red chhatya cloth of size 67 5 cm X 75 cm (one piece)
Stage 1: First the chhatya cloth is cut according to the above sizes. Then embroidery work is
done on each piece of cloth. While doing the
embroidery work masur; design is made in the
zolanar sabab and takadi pieces and bajori design is made in zalari pieces. In the patta different designs like kattajali, masuri,
valyanarphoo/, sasyardat etc. are made.
Stage 2: When the embroidery work is finished the four pieces of zalar; are attached to the four
sides of zofanar sabab and the takadi on the corners as shown in the figure below (position 1).
POSITION--1
1 Zolanar sabab
2 ZalaIi
3 Takadi
This will form one square piece of size 32.5 cm.
This piece is then provided with lining using mangj; cloth. It needs no mention that the lining will be on the reverse of the embroidered side.
Stage 3: After providing the lining, the piece is folded in a peculiar way and some edges stitched to give it the shape of a pouch. It is rather difficult to explain the way in which this is
done and the actual demonstration alone will
.. I
51
I
make the thing clear. However, an attempt is
made below to explain this process. The piece of embroidered cloth is first folded in the shape
of a postal. envelope (position 2).
POSITION--2
, I
If this is held by all the corners together'it will be in the shape or a pouch (po~tion 3).
/
I .
POSITJON--3 \
This will have 4 open edges. Half the portion of
these 4 edges will be stitched half the length of
the open portion from the bottom (Le. about 8 cm.) (position 4).
I i ,
POSITION--4
Stage 4: The cloth thus folded and stitched will h~ve four triangular shaped edges at the top
with a pouch below. On the four loose corner
edges at the top, metal rings are attached. The ends of the patta (shoulder strap) will be 'V' shaped, and these are attached to the metal rings in such a way that two adjacent metal rings are attached to the same "V" shaped ends, one at each end. Then hollow frustum shaped zinc pieces (pan) are attached at the bottom and sides of the bag with the help of coloured threads passing through the inside of the bag.
.. The borders of the patta are provided with piping using black coloured cloth and these are decorated with woollen balls of different colours~
A sketch of finished zo/ana is given below.
ZOLANA . I
\
\
IV. Chunchi
Stage 1: This is a small folded bag to keep pan, supari etc. The full size of the bag is generally 10 cm.X 30 cm. having three or four pouches. If a bag with 3 pouches is required then chhatya cloth is cut in the sizes 10 cm. X 30 cm., 10 cm X 20 cm., 10 cm X 10 cm., and 10 cm. X 5 cm. Then embroidery work is done on these pieces in such a way that the embroidery covers only those portions of these pieces Which show up in the finished product. The designs generally used for embroidery in chunchi are hathphoo/,bangadi
1
\ \
52
I.
bharat, chandar vaja/o and designs of animals and birds like elephant, horse, dog, peacock etc. Thereafter lining with mangji cloth is provided on all the pieces.
Stage 2: Once the above work is over, the pieces are arranged in such a way that the largest piece (10 em. X 30 cm.) comes at ,the bottom and the piece of size 10 cm. X 20 cm. comes just above
'that and so on. These pieces are so arranged that the three outer sides of all the pieces come in a line one above the other. These sides are then stitched together and piping is provided on the edgeslJsing black coloured cloth. The top of the bigger piece is then cut into triangular shape and the edges stitched. -Then a piece of string is attached at the top end of the bag so that this can be tied when it is rolled. The three edges of this bag are also decorated with woollen thread
..balls of various colours. A sketch of chunchi is given below.
CHUNCH!
V. Khalchi
Stage 1: It is a cloth bag used to keep bread. For making this bag chhatya cloth of size 45 em X 45 em., another used cloth of the same size and mangji cloth also of the same size are required. On the chhatya cloth, the used cloth and the mangji cloth are placed and these are attached to one another by making running stitches on these cloths using thick white thread. Rows of stitches are made in the cloth from inside in such a way that only white dots of th~se stitches alone appear on the outer side of the
chhatya cloth These stitches will make rows of dots on the outer side of the chhatya cloth and these dots will so appear that the dots Ih alternate lines wlJf be symmetrical and the dots of the two adjacent hnes will be alternate The foHowing sketches will make the position clear
c:=:::JC:====== = =======
INNER SIDE Figure
Stage 2 Based on these whtte dots appearing on the chhatya cloth embrOIdery designs are made uSing dlfferent coloured threads by JOining these dots In a zig-zag manner and this method of making design IS called hernng-bone (vegarane)
Stage 3 The embroidered square piece of cloth is then ornamented With black piping of 1 5 cm width on four sides Then thiS is folded In the
53
KHALCHI
shape of open postal cover White dOing so the edges of the folds Just touch each other and do not overlap so that the piping of all the sides are
~ 0 0
0 c 0
0 0
0 0
0 0 0
0 0 c
OUTER SIDE Flgun~ 2 r
0
0 0:)
C>
c 0
vlslbfe even after folding the sides Three sides of these folds are then ~itched leaVing one Side open to be used as folcJer. The joints of the sides are then decorated with sea shells The finished bag will be square in shape and wAI resemble , postal cover The tip of the folder IS provided with a smng and woollen balls are attached at the end of the string The comets and the centre portion of the side of the bag opposite to the side where the folded edges are stitched are decorated with floral deSigns USing small sea shells A sketch of a finished khalchl is given below
J. .'
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-. ".:-
. . '.:.- .
54
. PIa1e 20: ~ished items - DalJlni (left) and khalchi (right) "In daran/ sea shells are attached on the four corners and in the centre:"
Plate 21: Finished item Daran; This was prepared more than 50 years ago
/ Page: 55 "
Page: 55
VI Daram
This IS a piece of cloth used to keep raw atta, the mrxed atta ready for making chappatl and the
Sabab (middle portion)
Border pieces
Comer pieces
Stage 1 First the ehhatya cloth is cut according
to the above sizes Then the border pieces and
comer pieces are attached with sabab as shown in the sketch below to make one Single piece of
sIZe 60 cm X 60 cm DARANI -®J-
1 5abob (mlddk! portion)
2 Border p lecQC; black
3 COrf'llH piQces red
L, pIping
Stage 2 ThiS piece is prOVIded with lining uSing
one piece of used cloth and one piece of mangJl cloth to make the daram suffiCiently thick These three pieces are stitched together adopting the, same type of strtches used In khalchl The
embrOidery wor1< Is also the same Thereafter the edges are ornamented wrth piping uSing red coloured cloth for boruer portion and btaek coloured cloth for corner portion to rnake the
effect of contrast of colour To make the daranl look attractive sea shells are attached to the four
corners and in the centre
VII Gadano
ThiS IS a square cloth generally used to cover dnnkmg water pots plates wrth eatables etc
during festIVe occasions ThiS IS made In
55
pollpat (Pot/pat IS a wooden plank circular In
shape to spread chappatJ) The different parts of the daran! and the chhatya cloth required for
each part are as follows
Red chhatya cloth of size 40 em X 40 cm (one piece)
Black chhatya cloth of SIZe 40 em X 10 em. (four piece&) Red chhatya cloth of size 10 em X to em (four pieces)
drfferent sizes viz 30 em X 30 em I 375 em X 375 em, 45 cm X 45 em etc according to requirement The I process of making thiS item IS
Similar to that of ctaranf In datanI sea shells are attached on the four CC>rne1s and in the centre whereas In gadano sea ,heUs and woollen balls
are used on the Jour t1ders pnty A sketcti of gadano IS gIVen b>elow
.!!iM~ ~ I Sobllb (midlllllpDrlion)
2. Blllck eardey P MIce,
3 Red CO'll\Hpil!cl!~
4 Sea. - she lis
5 Woolen balls
VIII Pat
ThiS IS used for playing an Indoor game For
making pat red chhatya cloth IS used and for lining
mangjl doth IS used
Stage 1 First 4 pieces of chhatya cloth In the
sizes 15 cm X 30 em and one piece of s~e 15' em X 15 cm are cut Then 24 squares in each piece of size 15 em X 30 cm are designed in
thre€ rows wrth 8 squares In each raw using cploured threads to move coins used as pawn in this game These squares are then filled with embroidery wor1< and the design used for this
embrOidery is valyanarphool Same designs are
Plate 22: Gadanos in different sizes and designs
"Sea shells and woollen balls are used, on the four borders only,"
I Page: 58 I
prate 23: Pat which IS used 10r playing an 'indoor game
-t "Page: 58
57
'- Plate 24: Finished items • Kotha/i in the centre with two different sized chunchis on its either side
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Plate 25: KothaJo • an old piece prepared more than 50 years ago
Page: 58' ,
Page: 58
provided In all the four pieces of size 15 cm X 30 em In the square piece the design hathphoo/ls
embroidered Stage 2 After completing the embroidery work these are provided with lining Then the four pieces of size 15 cm X 30 cm are JOined with the square piece of 15 cm X 15 cm one on each Side Then the borders are hemmed with black coloured thread A pouch IS also made In the central piece to keep the dice and pawns when the game IS over A sketch of pat IS given below
P~T
This IS a small bag of size 20 cm X 15 cm for
KOTHALI
58
keeping money and other small personal belongmgs Red chhatya cloth IS used for making this bag A piece of chhatya cloth of 40 cm X 15 em IS taken and It IS provided wIth lining using mangJi cloth Thereafter embroidery IS made applying the same method adopted In khalchl Then the cloth of 40 em X 15 cm IS folded Sideways and the two Sides are stitched and hemmed keeping the top portion open The top border IS also hemmed At one corner of the open end a loop IS made with thread and a cloth string is attached to It, After keeping money and other Items. the mouth of the bag IS tied tightly using this string Big bags of sI1e 60 em X 52 5 em are also made, though rarelY, and I these bags are called kothalo, which serves the purpose of a sack to bring articles from weekl~ market The lining and embroidery In thiS bag IS made In the same way as
in kotha/, But in between chhatya and mangJi 'cloths thick used cloth IS provided to make the bag strong enough to carry heavy things Woollen balls are also attached in the four corners to make the bag look attractIVe
FOLDED KOTHALl
Items not in vogue now
In addition to the articles mentioned above a few other items like shmgadi, tikwa, talwarkho/, masala kothall, gala, fan, vakhara, dhalkholJ, ghoongato, bedspread etc were also produced In the very long past But these Items are not produced now and the present generation has no clear Idea as to how these Items are to be made However, specimens of these Items are available With Shn S S Jadhav The photographs of these Items Indicating the purposes for which these articles are used are Included in this report
Designs used for embroidery
The follOWing are the deSigns used for embroidery
1 Kundalu Akada
2 BaJort Akada
3 Balori Bhat
4 Masuryafjalt
5 Ekdant Bajori
6 Zundalt Balon
7 Masuri
8 Balori
9 Hathphool
10 Ghoderkhur
RUNNING STITCH
59
11 Bangadl Bharat
12 Rumalt Bhat
13 KattaJalt
14 Sasyardat
15 Valyanarphool
16 Chandar Vafalo
17 Sapan
18 Banyan
19 Ba}phoo/
20 Figures of birds, animals, trees, sky, swastlk etc
It IS very difficult to explain how these designs are embrOidered and a few of these deSigns are not being used now To enable the readers to have an Idea about the popular and commonly used deSigns the sketches of a few deSigns are given below
RUMALJ BHAT
60
RUNNING STITCH
ZHUNDALI /BA~ORI
SMOCKING STITCH
EKOANI BAJORI
CROSS STITCH
M~thod for making wooten balls KUNOALU AKAOA
Plafe26:
BANGAOI SHARAT
Shingadi (on the two extreme) and tik~
fin the middle) - These were used to deck the horns and forehead of the bullocks
Page: 59
62
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,.,,27:
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(aheath Wom by
marriage ceremony
, +
for digger) and patta bridegroom. during
Page: 59
Plate 28: Massla kothaJi - Bag with pouches to keep spices I
I
/ Page: 59
\
Plate 30: Fan - A device waved in the hand to create a current of air
Page: 59
P'_ 29: Gala - Head-wear used by Banjar. brides In
olden days Page: 59
Plate 31: Vakhara - A sheet used to spread on the floor for persona to sit during festive occasions
Pagr. 59
Plate 32: Dhalkholi~ . Used to cover the shield (a piece
of armour carried on the arm
body against attack by others)
Plate 34: Bedspread
to protect the Page: 59
Page: 59
64
/
Platel33:
J , I
Ghoongato . Head cover \ use'd by brides -
during marriage ceremony Page: 59
BhaJa (spear) with bhalakhol
tip)
I I I
65
Plate 37: Kothali and chunchi with modifications to use these as small purse, shoulder bag and a bag to keep letter • ... What is needed is minor alterations in the style and pattern of the finished products to suit the modern requirement:'
Page: 81
I
, I \
\ Pieces of cloth embroidered with designs - Sapari, chandar valyal1arphoo', and birds, animals and flowers
Plate 39: Embroidered pieces bajori akada
Page: 59
Page: 59
, ,
These are all traditional designs used for generations and no new designs have been added to these at any later stage There IS also no myth and legend associated with the designs except that this art belongs to Rajasthan and the forefathers of
67
the BanJaras might have taken their clue from their surroundings, the colours of the setting desert sun, the forms In nature and even the patterns In the wind-blown sands and translated thrse mto exqUisite designs
CHAPTERV
MARKETING
MARKETING SHOULD INVOLVE seiling of the finished products by the producers to the consumers direct or with the help of any outside agencies like brokers, commissioned sales-agents or middlemen In the past the finished products of Baniara embroidery were not in the market at all except the purchase of tne finished products by the BanJara people themselves on rare occasions from others In their own tanda when they were In urgent need and had no time to make these Items themselves According to the old BanJara custom, dunng marriage, the parents of bndes should give along with one set of kachali and phetiya other items like gadano, darani, khalchl, kothafl, kothafo etc and a bullock to the bride-grooms and it was on these occasions that the needy families generally used to purchase their reqUirements from others In their own tanda on paying the cost or to get these Items prepared by others for them by supplying the raw matenals and paying the labour charges Thus, In the past, the Banjara embrOidery products never crossed through sales the boundaries of the respective tanda, where these were produced It was only when an elderly Banjara woman named Smt Goplbal Sangram Jadhav of Chalisgaon tahSil came In the scene of BanJara embrOidery, a little more than a decade ago, that the finished products of Banjara embroidery attained the status of marketable Items though no noticeable headway In the boost of sale of these Items could be achieved even now An extract of the statement given by her to the Development CommiSSioner of Handicrafts dUring the celebration of cottage handicraft week from 8-15 December, 1982, which has relevance In thiS context, IS given below "Just as I had learnt at my mother's feet, I undertook to teach embroidery, espeCially to children As I made every effort to learn anything new from every one of my generation I think people began to refer me as an
69
e~pert' My son Sanchandra, who had learned the embrOidery too, is now a grown up man and he began to venture to the cities to exhibit and sell In 1980 my work got recognition and an award at the State Handicrafts Week Exhibition In Bombay In 1981 I was called to Deihl by the All India Handicrafts Board and asked to demonstrate my craft on a televIsion programme and the final crowning of all my efforts was to receive the National Award In 1982 My son and hiS Wife Kalavatlbal have both been given state awards and pnzes already, but more together we have got together and formed a co-operative organisation The Banjara Vlkas where we all work together and sell together and share our profits
So In the last years of my life I am at least free of anxiety of how to feed my family I am confident that my children Will continue to keep our BcanJara traditions too, and follow our steps and earn laurels for the family and our tribe"
The enqUines made dunng the field VISit reveal that there IS no exaggeration In the statement except that the formation of the co-operative organisation IS stili only In paper It IS only because of the tremendous and arduous work done by Shn Sanchandra Jadhav, son of Smt GOplbal Sangram Jadhav, and hiS Wife Smt Kalavatlbal that the products of thiS craft, which were earlier confined only to the BanJara people, could be brought out and reach even other countries
The promotion of the sale of the BanJara embrOidery products was Initiated by the above Jadhav family and even now they alone are Involved In thiS, as could be ascertained from the local enqUiry, and no other person IS procunng and seiling these Items The entire credit for
populanslng the Banjara embroidery products goes to the Jadhav family and Shn Sanchandra Jadhav IS the kingpin In the matter It was at his Instance and efforts that stalls were opened In the handicraft exhibitions conducted In India and abroad to populanse the Banjara embroidery Items and he claims that there are customers even In foreign countries for these items Anyway, the demand IS not to that extent to persuade the Banjaras to take up this craft on commerCial baSIS and even now the BanJara women engage themselves In this craft only as a pastime when they get leisure after attending to household and other works and there IS no awakemng among the Banjaras that thiS IS a Viable craft haVing marketing potential
Exhibitions of banjara products
As per the details collected dUring field VISit It IS understood that the Banjara embroidery Items were first exhibited In the handicraft exhibition held In
Bandra, Bombay In 1979 under the auspices of the Directorate of Industnes, Maharashtra In that exhlbl1:1on the Items were only displayed and no sale counter was opened Orders for the supply of vanous Items were said to have been received as a result of thiS exhibition
The next occaSion when the Banjara embrOidery Items were exhibited was In the handicraft exhibition conducted dunng 1980 In Kumaraswamy Hall, Bombay by the Handicrafts Board The duration of the exhibition was for 5 days and It IS claimed that articles to the value of about As 10,000/- were sold Apar:t from these, stalls for the Banjara embroidery Items were said to have been opened In vanous places In India like Deihl, Calcutta, Ahmedabad, Nagpur, Goa, Bangalore, Madras, Coch,", Tnvandrum and other cities and towns In the exhibition of handicraft Items organised by the Development Commissioner (Handicrafts), Government of India and Vlshwa Karaglr Panshad, Maharashtra OutSide India, the Banlara embroidery products were displayed In the exhibitions conducted In Sydney and Melbourne In Australia by the Vlshwa Karaglr Panshad,
70
Maharashtra with the financial assistance of the All India Handicrafts Board These exhibitions were conducted for the selected handicraft Items like Banjara embroidery, metal work, madhubanl painting, patta painting, kalamkan and terracotta The exhibitions In Sydney and Melbourne were for a duration of 21 days and 6 days respectively It requires no speCial mention that the Banjara embroidery stalls In all these occasions were opened and managed by Shn Jadhav He claims that after the exhibition in Australia he IS receiving enqUiries from ot~er countries regarding the availability of Banjara embroidery Items At present Banjara embrOidery Items 1re available for regular sale In the Central Cottag~ Industry, Bombay and Tnmurty Emponum, Bombay and Deihl and the finished Items for these regul~r sales are being supplied by Shn Jadhav himself and no one else IS Invulved In thiS
Marketing of the finished products
As mentioned supra the BanJara people at large, except the Jadhav family, are even today Ignorant that their craft has already made strides towards marketing and the above family alone IS taking Interest In the propagation process They have their own limitation and large scale progress can be achieved only With the enthUSiastic mass Involvement Now the sale of finished products IS transacted only through Shn Jadhav He also supplies raw matenals to the BanJaras and gets hiS requirements prepared by them on payment of labour charges
This being the position the exercise In collecting data from the Banjara households regarding the marketing of the finished products can only be futile due to the Ignorance of the Informants about thiS matter The quantum of finished products brought to market IS also very negligIble However, an attempt was made In thiS direction The details collected on the number of households producing handicraft Items claSSified by quality produced and purpose for which produced are furnished In the tables below
71
Table V - 1
Number of households produCing handicraft Items and the purpose for which produced
Purpose for which produced Name of Number
Item of For self use For sale
house-
holds Regular For Less than 10-25
domestic cere- 10 pieces pieces produ-
use mOnlal- per annum per clng
occa- annum this
slon Item For Thro- For Thro
cash ugh cash ugh
mld- mid-
dle- dle-
men men
2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Phetlya 55 48 8 18
2 Kachah 46 37 4 16
3 Zolana 18 14 7 14
4 Pat 11 9 4 5
5 Kothah g 8 2
6 Chunchl g 7 5 7
7 Khalchl 3 3
8 Daranl 3 3
9 Gadano 3 3
72
Table V - 2
Number of households producing handicraft items, quantities of each Item produced in a year and the purpose for which produced
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Name of
Item
Kachall
Zolana
Pat
Kothah
Chunchl
Khalchl
Daram
Gadano
Total
No 01
house
holds
produ
cing
the
Item
2
55
46
1S
11
9
9
3
3
3
Total
quan
tity
prod
uced
ma
year
3
166
170
41
43
19
27
4
18
9
497
It may be seen from table V 1 that 19 households have made phetiya at the rate of less than 10 pieces per annum for sale, while 17 households have made kachal/ at the rate of less than 10 pieces per annum and one famdy at the rate of 10-25 pieces per annum for sale Zo/ana has been made by 14 households at the rate of less than 10 pieces per annum for sale These figures indicate that there IS
For sell use
Regular
domes
tiC use
4
90
99
16
9
10
9
4
18
9
264
Purpose for which produced _______ _
For
cere
mOnial
qcca
$Ion
5
14
17
8
7
6
52
For sale
For Through
cash mlddle-
men
6 7
3 59
52
17
4 23
9
12
9 172
demand In the market mainly for the Items phetJya, kacha/I and lo/ana, and even among these, kachall has more demand It has already been mentioned In Chapter I of thiS report that with the present trend of fashion the kacha/I of the BanJaras Will become one of the hottest seiling Items If necessary Improvements In the dress to SUIt the present requirement are made and thiS IS substantiated by
the above marketing pOSition though much has yet to be done to boost the market of Banlara embroidery items Barring the above items pat, kothall and chunchi have also market, though in a very reduced scale, while other Items like kha/chl, darani, gadano etc have no market at all and the production of these Items IS only to meet the personal requirement of the producers Another
73
pOint to be noted is that the only source of market IS through middlemen and direct sale to the customers by the producers is negligible The direct sale of phetiya, kachali and pat (column 5) IS to other BanJaras In the same Village and there IS no (lirect sale of these articles in other Villages, towns and cities as is eVident from the following details collected through field investigation
Table V - 3
Number of households producing items classified by place of sale of articles
Name of Number of article households
prodUCing Inside these village Items
2 3
1 Phetlya 55 19
2 Kachali 46 18
3 Zolana 18 14
4 Pat 11 6
5 Kothah 9 2
6 Chunchl 9 7
7 Khalchl 3
8 Oaram 3
9 Gadano 3
Except one household which has produced kacllall at the rate of 10-25 per annum all the other households have produced vanous Items only at the rate of less then 10 per annum ThiS IS a very poor state of affair and much has to be done to
Number of households reported haVing sold these Items Other Towns Cities vill- (Name) (Name) ages (Na'lle)
4 5 6
raise this craft to the status of a profitable occupation The Banjaras who are engaged In the craft have at present no idea about the margin of profit they are getting in their work In fact there is no element of any margin of profit to them. Shri
74
Jadhav is the only middleman in the sale of the finished products. He collects orders and according to requirement he gets the work
executed through the craftspersons by paying them the cost of raw materials and the labour charges, If they supply the finished products, or the labour
charges alone, if the raw materials are supplied by
him
Labour charge and price of each item The labour charge for each item and the price of
each finished item as per the data collected dUring
the survey are as follows
Name of Item
1. Kachali
2. Phetiya
(a) Lepo piece alone
(b) Lawan piece alone
3 Zolana
4 Chunchi
5 Khalchi
6. Dara",
7 Gadano
8 Pat
9 Kothali
10 Kothaio
Labour charge
As 50/- to As 75/- for a finished item
As.145/-to As 175/depending on the nature
of deSigns to be embroidered
As 5/- per piece
As 3/- to Rs 4/-per foot depending upon the natute of the design embroidered
As 40/- to As 50/- for a finished item
As 25/- to As 30/- for a finished item
As 70/- to As 100/for a finished Item
As.75/- to Rs 100/- for a finished Item
As 30/- to As 40/- for a finished item
As.150/- for a finished item
As 10/- to As 15/- for a finished item
Rs 200/- for a finished Item
Price of the
finished Item
As 100/- to As 150/-
As 250/- to As 400/-
As 75/- to As 125/-
As 50/- to As 75/-
As 150/- to Rs 200/-
As 200 to As 250/-
As 75/- to As 100/-
As 300/-to As 350/-
As 25/- to Rs 40/-
As 300/-to As 350/-
The man-days required to make each item cannot be estimated because this work is not done on a full time basis and is being done only during the leisure time as stated ear1ler The environment to lure the
75
Banjaras to adopt their embroidery work as a full time occupation has not so far been created and there Is a long way to go to achieve this
CHAPTER VI
CRAFT AND EMPLOYMENT
Origin of the craft
IN MAHARASHTRA STATE Gazetteers on Jalgaon District, while describing the unsettled tribe 'Vanjans', it is stated as follows "Their petticoats are seldom washed and look like a well-worn quilt The women's tight-fitting bodies and the full petticoats, their silver ornaments, plaited Into their hair and falling over the cheeks, their huge sliver anklets with gingaling bells and the tiers of IVOry bracelets lend them a strangely picturesque appearance" 1 This reference raises a doubt as to whether the embroidery work In the dress of the Banjaras was so prominent and attractive to catch the eye of others, as othelWlse, there would have normally been a reference of this In the gazetteer Perhaps this may be an omiSSion also The circumstance created by nomadism compelled the Banjaras to make their own dresses and this work was done exclUSIVely by the females While doing so they applied the artistic skill by making embroidery work In the dresses to spend their leisure time, which they had In abundance, as the female members of the Banjaras, when they were nomads, had no work other than household duties, while the men folk alone were engaged In their traditional trade of transportation of merchandise The idea of embroidery work might have struck accidentally, influenced by the environment In Rajasthan, and this might have been developed and improved In the long run by tnal and error method Thereafter, a stage might have come when they developed this handicraft to a considerable extent and might have absorbed it in their tradition as a symbol of identity of their community in any part of the land Even now the craft IS being taught through perceptor disciple relationship promoting
oral tradition When the BanJaras began to settle in fixed places and engaged themselves in other occupations like cultivation, agricultural labour etc the women also began to extend helping hand to the men in these occupations and this curtailed
considerably their leisure time to attend to the embroidery work, which is really very labOUriOUS, tiresome and time consuming With no returns and thiS has pushed thiS traditIOnal handicraft to wane leaVing at present the SUrvival of thiS craft in the hands of a very few persons belongmg to BanJara community
The Banjara embroidery had been an Inseparable part of Banjara culture for generatIOns and In the olden days thiS embroidery work alone was the source to prOVide dress to the BanJara women and other articles of daily use as mentioned In the earlier chapters As nomads moving from place to place the Banjaras carried thiS craft With them and when they settled in different parts of the country they continued the practiSing of thiS craft from the time of their settlement there Shn AJIt Mookerjee In hiS book 'Folk Art of India' makes a reference to the BanJara embroidery In Andhra Pradesh as follows "Andhra Pradesh IS also famous for its silk brocades or amrus and Its mixed silk and cotton brocades or hlmrus Apart from these and other woven fabriCS of exquIsite deSigns, the embrOidenes of the State are equally attractive Among these the pnde of place goes to the work of the Banjara tribes Their embroidery IS very similar In pattern to that of Kutch and Kathlawad areas The common stitches used are the ordinary satin or the herring-bone Mirrors are often used for decoration" 2 It may be seen from the above that the pattern of Banjara embroidery is the same
1. Government of Maharashtra, Maharasthra State Gazetteers, Jalgaon Dlstnct (Revised Edition), 1962 - P 156 2 AJIt MookerJee, Folk Art of India published by Clan on Books associated with Hind Pocket Books, New Deihl, 1986 - P 46
77
everywhere It also substantiates the claim of the people in the surveyed area that this crafts which Is practised In different parts of the country, has a common ongln In the surveyed villages the craft is claimed to have been practised by the Banjaras
ever since they settled there
The Banjaras had never considered their embroidery work as an employment oriented craft
For centuries their females have been aOlng this work during 'their leisure time to meet mainly their personal reqUirement, since in the past, the social custom demanded them to wear their traditional costumes which they could not purchase from outside and hence they had to make these items themselves It was their custom to make the articles which they required for daily use like bags, money purses, pot-covers etc However, this position has changed considerably and at present only the elderly Banjara women are generally wearing the traditional costumes and most of the youngsters have switched over to skirts, saris and blouses
In the data collected during 1981 Census the Banjara embroidery has not been recorded as the primary occupation or secondary occupation indicating that even those Banjara women, who are attending to their embroidery work, have not given this the status of an occupation and they consider it only as a part of their household duties In the field Investigation also It was found that the number of persons who have claimed Banjara embroidery as their occupation is qUite insignificant and it could be understood that the Banjaras are even now unaware that their craft has employment potential They are also not bothered about this, as IS eVident from the data collected Among the non-workers In
the selected households there is not even a single case where one is seeking employment All the
78
non-workers fall jn the categories of infants, full-time students, housewives and other dependants The inference is that they have opportunity to engage themselves in cultivation or agnculture labour or other items of work They can be attracted to take up this craft as a profession only If thiS IS made lucrative when compared to other occupations in which they are now engaged
As already d,scusseQ in the prevIous chapters only one Banjara family, IS striving to propagate thiS craft But they lack the co-operation and Involvement of others and this, prevents this family from achlevang noteworthy,' success In the
I
development of thiS craft and to make it employment oriented So far their" arduous efforts could achieve only the exhibition a'nd sale of the finished products in India and abroad and in organising training classes in Banjara lembroidery ThiS is no where near the desired goal and much has yet to be done to make Banjara embroidery a handicraft worth the name The potential for mass production of Banjara embrOidery items IS already there and what is required IS to prOVide financial assistance to the craftspersons and to find out regular market for the finished products If these are done the Involvement of more and more people in this craft will be automatic At present the craft is not employment oriented to any extent and none except 2 females has returned thiS craft as her present occupation The above 2 females might have returned Banjara embroidery as their present occupation as they were working at the time of the survey as instructresses in the training classes for Banjara embroidery organised in their villages These training classes were not of a regular nature and their engagement as instructresses was also only for a specified penod So they might also have engaged In some other occupatIOn when the training classes were over
CHAPTER VII
CONCLUSION
THE PREVIOUS CHAPTERS present a vivid picture of the origin, development and the present position of the craft After what have been stated earlier, this chapter, even in the hands of an optimist, if ends in a note of high hope, it will be credulous and self deceit One has to face the stark reality and, therefore, one Is willY-nilly forced to write the epilogue of tragedy, a dirge on the extinction of this craft in the years to come unless some concerted effort is made unitedly by the Banjara people to save their traditional craft
The households surveyeq altogether present a look of unconcern about matters that may Improve the craft They do not know what is to be done to rejuvenate the craft They do not evoke any interest in the suggestions for the improvement of the craft, perhaps out of abysmal ignorance and stolid apathy The ray of hope for the resurrection lies only in the interest shown by the Jadhav family for the development of this craft They are fighting a lonely' battle for more than a decade ThiS was initiated by Smt Goplbai Sangram Jadhav about a decade ago with the assistance of her son Shri S S Jadhav and her daughter-in-law Smt Kalavatl Jadhav In appreciation of the craftsmanship and contribution of Smt GOPlbal Sangram Jadhav for Banjara embroidery, she received In 1982 a certificate of merit and cash award of As 1000/from the All India Handicrafts Board under the Ministry of Commerce, Govt of India For his outstanding skill in Banjara embroidery Shri S S Jadhav twice received trophies and cash awards of As 1000/- during 1984 and 1986 from the Maharashtra State Handicrafts Board During 1986 Smt Kalavati Jadhav won the first prize and a cash award of As 300 / - for her outstanding skill in handicraft in the state level handicraft competition conducted by the Maharashtra State Handicrafts Board Their personal achievements in the field are
79
commendable. But they could not so far succeed in putting the craft in the road of steady progress and prosperity They are stili optimistiC and confident But time alone will tell whether thiS craft can survive the still Impending danger of Its extinction by overcoming Its inherent drawbacks in the finished products manufactured following the age-old methods Without making any Improvements and perfections in the deSigns and patterns and their high cost when compared to the substitutes available in the market at a much cheaper rate and in a more attractIVe style and pattern So far no attempt has been made to bring any perfection in the products which are now very crude in appearance and It is understood that no such plan IS in the offing
This craft SUrvived for centuries only due to the Intense love of the Banjara people in their tradition and due to the linkmg of the products of this craft with the social custom of the Banjaras Economic aspect never played any role In its SUrviVal But time has changed and now we are in the era when everywhere the social customs and traditions cherished dearly for several centuries are subjected to drastic changes due to the alround mama for modernization In everything and the Banjara people are no exception to this The traditional fervour among them has almost waned and such a stage has now come that they will practise their craft any more only If it IS made lucrative This can be achieved by organised efforts to create marketing faCIlities for the finished products If this can be achieved the Involvement of more and more persons In the work and the mass production of matenals will automatically follow as there are even now suffiCient number of craftspersons Commensurate with the demand more and more persons will be attracted towards this craft lured by
money and will acquire expertise in the craft But this seems to be an uphill task
Though the persons In the surveyed area altogether present a look of unconcern about the matters that may Improve the craft as mentioned earlier, there are atleast a couple of them who take real interest and have their own suggestions to improve the present position Their suggestions are as follows
1 There should be more training classes almost of a regular nature with one year duration and in this one year the teaching part of the training should be restricted to the first hpJf The second half should be utilised for the production of the finished items and the raw matenals required'should be supplied by the organisers of the training
2 Co-operatIVe societies should be formed and these SOCieties should supply raw matenals to the workers and collect the finished products on paying remuneratIVe labour charges to them
3 Government shOUld open show rooms in malor towns and cities exclusively for Banlara embrOidery products and should prOVide facilities for marketing these Items In foreign countries
4 Those who are engaged in the craft should be given loans to purchase raw materials
5 Keeping the Banlara designs Intact the traditional articles now produced should be replaced by other Items like frocks, tops, curtains, bed sheets, pillow-covers etc
The traditional Banlara embroidery has already been recognised by the Government and as a result the All India Handicrafts Board and the Maharashtra State Handicrafts Board are encouraging the BanJaras by assisting them to conduct training classes and by giVing cash awards, trophies and
80
certificates to the experts in the craft in handicraft competitions and exhibitions as an incentive What is actually lacking is the involvement of sufficient number of persons to exploit fully the facilities that are being provided by the government and to create an enVIronment to involve the government more and more in the development of this craft Even the training classes at present, it is felt, are not properly utilised and the trainees, it seems, are mainly interested in the monthly stipend they get and the spirit to perfect their skill utilising the facility provided is found, lacking This position should change and a spirit should be inculcated in the minds of the Banjaras tq develop their traditional craft to make it an: additional source of income As far as market IS concerned a break through has already been made by exhlpiting the hitherto unknown Banlara embrOidery products in various places in India and abroad Even there are per"¥lnent sales emporia In certaih cities like Deihl and Bombay Through the concerted efforts of the Banjaras they can form co-operative societies ,and push up the finished products to the market The government on their part can extend a helping hand to them wherever necessary and the demand for thiS also should emanate from the concerned people At present on the part of the government it will be worth thinking whether the Banjara embroidery products can be made available in the Khadl Gramodyog Bhavans throughout the country as thiS will go a long way to find market for these Items Once a steady market is established the rest is easy and will be almost automatic To achieve thiS goal the prime reqUirement IS the concerted efforts of some dedicated workers in each Banjara tanda to promote and develop this craft by creating an awareness among their own people to keep alIVe and develop their traditional craft and to convert it Into a source of income for their betterment Unless thiS IS achieved the assistance and patronage prOVided by the government will not be of much use The suggestion to replace the traditional products by other Items, keeping Intact only the embr~ldery part of the craft, seems to be SUICidal for the simple reason that once the traditional items like phetlYa,kachali, lo/ana etc are replaced by frocks, tops, curtains and bed sheets these can no
more be called the Banjara embroidery products Even in the traditional craft the finished products have as much importance as the embroidery part, if not more, and if anyone of this is lost then every thing IS lost Further the embroidery part alone cannot compete with the handicrafts like lace work, kalamkari, kasuti, SOZnI jamawar embroidery, chlkankari and the like and hence this attempt Will spell doom to this traditional craft So what is needed IS minor alterations in the style and pattern of the finished products to suit the modem
81
reqUirement Use of fine textured cloth as raw materials can also be considered
In short the rejuvenation of the craft lies entirely in the hands of those among the Banjaras who are capable of organising thomselves and inculcating the required spirit in the minds of their folk to achieve this goal It is their choice alone which may give it renewed lease of life or may declare the verdict of death for the craft One will pray them to come as a Messiah in the present critical juncture
SI No
1
1.
2
3
4.
5
6
7
8
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Name of author, publication, publisher, year of publication etc
2
Report of AI/India Banjara Sevak Sib" held on 24th to 26th August 1966
Ran/it Naik, Report of All IndIa Banjara Study Team, AIBSS, 1968
Edgar Thurston, Castes and Tflbes of Southern India, volume IV, Cosmo publications, Deihl, 1909
Government of Maharashtra, Maharashtra State Gazetteers, Jalgaon District (Revised Edition) 1962
RegIstrar General, IndIa; Language Hand'Book on Mother Tongues m Census, Census of India, 1971
Apparel, The ClothIer's Digest, volume 2, NO.8 August, 1983 (The official journal of the Clothing Manufacturers Association of India)
Government of Rajasthan, 'The Crafts of Rajasthan' designed and produced for the Department of Tourism, India Tourism Development Corporation
and printed at Process Pnvate Ltd , Madras, Dec 1984
Ajlt Mookhefjee, 'Fork Art of rndla' published by Clanon Books, associated with Hind Pocket Books, New Deihl, 1986
B3
