Initially I had titled my
research paper as: Challenges and learning opportunities for Himroo of Aurangabad.
As I was refining the paper further, the title felt more like an essay and less
like a title. So I changed it to Himroo: A Soul Clenched
Why such a title? It is
inspired from one of Pablo Neruda’s poem called Clenched Soul. Because I
believe when circumstances give you a clenched feeling, or when you clench your
teeth, it is time to fight back for yourself and make a significant change
against the unpleasant circumstances you have been facing. Currently this is
what Himroo of Aurangabad is facing – some unpleasant circumstances.
Himroo became a part of my
life since 2007 when I was studying post graduate program in NID. For past 11
years it was an on and off relationship with Himroo which began as a craft
documentation project, then a photo shoot project, a craft publication project
and so on. In November 2018, with a clenched soul I decided to end this
relationship by presenting a design research paper at INSIGHT 2018 –
A Design Research Symposium at NID, Ahmedabad.
Indeed a clenched soul of
Himroo and a clenched soul of myself form two different metaphors here. But
life is that way – sometimes quite hopeful and not always determined. I go with what Rumi
says, “Be like a tree and let the dead leaves drop.”
The research paper will be part of a publication by NID soon.
Sharing few images and slides of my presentation here.
I began and concluded the presentation with images of women Himroo weavers as they are the only hope for the craft to survive and sustain further.
This letter has long been
pending and I thought today being the first National Handloom Day is an
appropriate day to write. Thank you to GOI for marking such a day!
Firstly, I must tell you
that you really boast my ego when you send pictures of your recently developed
art and craft products or newly bought saree for my review! I feel that my
little enthusiasm for textiles has seeped into the family as well. It is a nice
feeling!
About a month back you
shared some images of a Paithani saree you were gifted. Thank God it was a gift
and you did not spend your earnings into that fake Paithani! But I feel depressed
about the whole scenario that the person who bought it had no knowledge that
she is buying a fake one and moreover the person who sold it is also unknown or
has misguided purposely. I know it is
very difficult for a lay man to know the difference between the authentic and
fake especially in the market today where there is a duplicate of almost
everything. Polyester is sold as silk, print is sold as ikat and a jacquard is
sold as paithani!
This is not Paithani!
Photographs sent on whats app by Mihir.
I remember ajji’s paithani that you have. What a
beauty she is! The fine interlacing of silk and pure gold… indeed a rate treasure!
As you know the most
promising part in a paithani is its pallu decorated with motifs of peacocks, parrots,
lotus’ amongst others and peacock being the most favourite. It will also be
nice to know and acknowledge the tedious labour involved in the making of it, the
skilled craftsmanship and the tradition which has seen centuries turn by.
Here are some pictures of
making of the paithani, though these make no justice until the process is
described in detail. But I do not intend to convert this letter into a thesis
on Paithani!
Photographs by Haris Pathirikodan at Aurangabad, Maharashtra
Unlike the rosogulla that is going through a debate
on whether the GI rights are to be claimed by West Bengal or Orissa, the
Maharashtrian Paithani has received its GI rights long back in 2010. These
rights not only confirm the geographical area but also the historical origin,
appropriate process of making and uniqueness of the craft.
The weaving of a paithani
is such that it can be woven only on a handloom and not on a power loom. It is difficult to give a brief explanation. So here are some basic specifics by which you can identify an authentic paithani:
1.The motifs on the
pallu have same color on the front and back side
2.The pallu is a
flat and even surface. No variation in thickness.
3.No threads at the
back side of the pallu are cut.
Traditionally, a paithani sari has motifs woven on the border and pallu both.
Keeping in mind affordability, revisions have been made where the motifs
appear only on the pallu.
When you buy a traditional
handloom saree, you not just buy a piece of cloth; you invest in the age old heritage
of India and you sustain the second largest employment sector of our country. Isn’t
that a wonderful feeling already?
Hope this letter inspires
you enough to share the idea of identifying, buying and using authentic traditional handwoven
textiles.
Ending this letter with a
poem by the weaver-poet Kabir
Weaving Your Name
I weave your name on the
loom of my mind,
To make my garment when
you come to me.
My loom has ten thousand
threads
To make my garment when
you come to me.
The sun and moon watch
while I weave your name;
The sun and moon hear
while I count your name.
These are the wages I get
by day and night
To deposit in the lotus
bank of my heart.
I weave your name on the
loom of my mind
To clean and soften ten
thousand threads
And to comb the twists and
knots of my thoughts.
No more shall I weave a
garment of pain.
For you have come to me,
drawn by my weaving,
Ceaselessly weaving your
name on the loom of my mind.
No!! People, this is not snow…but definitely looks like drizzled snow. This is cotton! Cotton fiber on the roads of Aurangabad!!
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I spent few days of last month in Aurangabad with some friends for study and documentation of Himroo and Ajanta Caves. On our way to Ajanta, we encountered lot of white things something snow like lying all along the roads. It was cotton! Then we observed that there were lots of trucks carrying loads of cotton on the way. Tons of cotton freshly from the farms loaded on to the trucks was on the way to the ginning and processing mills and a ginning mill was just on the way.
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Ginning is the first process that cotton undergoes to shape up in form of cotton yarn. Ginning is separation of cotton seed from the fiber and pressing the fibers into dense bales weighing about 500 pounds. These bales are then sent to spinning mills for further processes. These trucks were very well packed for safe travel of the cotton from the fields to the ginning mills. But some small holes in the huge packaging made some of the fiber fly away and take its place in the air or along the roads to amuse enthusiastic people like us. We then realized that these small portions of fibers actually made a huge quantity stretched along about 50 km.
Vacuum tunnel and other machinery to carry cotton
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Cotton bales
Aah!! Cotton is one of the most expensive natural fibers and also one of the most versatile. Rite from cotton farming to cotton weaving, it undergoes maximum processes and thus increases its value in terms of economic growth. Gujarat being the maximum producer of cotton in India, we have also read (may or may not have experienced) about the suicide cases of cotton farmers in Vidarbh, Maharashtra. Then Gandhiji spoke and propagated the cotton Khadi movement which he believed to be a self sustained industry for poor India.
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Well… lets space out the serious things and get a bit amusing! We were thinking what could be done with so much fiber lying around?!! And these were few sustainable ideas we came up with…but unfortunately we did not do any of these. So here it goes… we collect this fiber lying around on the ground and make a separate truck to carry this. We were sure that we could minimum get one truck full of cotton fiber if we did so. Then get this cotton ginned and spin yarn out of it. Now that this was a sustainable design idea, the cotton would thus be hand-spun and hand woven. And then various products could be made and marketed at the same time to make this small sustainable design project to function! Being a group comprised of a textile designer, a fashion designer and an advertising/branding building designer we all had a special part to play in this project. Isn’t it a great concern through design thinking!!! Well, we encountered just one such place where there was so much of cotton fiber lying around near one ginning mill. Think of many other such places and more and more of cotton!! This is something that I learned during DCC (Design Concepts and Concern) course handled by Prof. M. P. Ranjan at NID and I was happy to re-live that enthusiasm again!!
Now coming back to the ginning mill... there are some pictures of the fun we experienced...
Mountains of cotton
Locally made tri-axial woven basket to carry cotton
