Dhamadka - a "work from home" place

2008 was when I first visited Dhamadka and I seldom knew that over the years it would become such a special place for me, like a second home – the one after my mother’s.  

Traditional home to the ajrakh prints of Kutch, Dhamadka has been a place of work for natural dyes and hand block prints for me. Ajrakh to me is much beyond its process, it is more about the people who make it and how they use and cherish it in their daily lives. 

Along with work, living at Jabbar bhai’s place with his family, getting served with fresh gujju delicacies day in – day out, evenings with mehendi sessions and nights under the starry sky is what makes it a home away from home. Working in Dhamadka is like working from home and I make sure I do it at least once (3 to 4 days) every year!

Here is a small photo essay on Dhamadka... 

Indigo dyed fabrics drying under the sky

Wooden blocks / Ajrakh printed fabrics

Fabrics dyed in red kept for drying / Tools for clamp dyeing. 

Flowers / Floor at home / Indigo ground

Washed fabrics / Young dyers Ujeer and Mohammad / Detail of Ajrakh printed fabric

Fabric being washed / Jabbar bhai / Booklet for process of Ajrakh