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INDIAN TEXTILES
Textiles are amongst the oldest techniques mastered by
the human race. Studies of the evolution of man from
hunters to food gatherers to nomadic and agrarianways
of life, have used the art of weaving as their mainstay.
Woven fibres created the first shelters, the beginning of
architecture. The stitching of leaves shaped the earliest
container,
patram
.
Textiles, because of their inherent nature may not have
survived, but it is their impressions left on clay pots that
confirm that they have been part of the technological
evolution from pre-historic times. The analysis of a
fragment of woven and dyed cotton adhering to a silver
jar excavated at a Harappan site indicates that not only
was cotton spun and woven but the use of mordants
in the dyeing process was practised. At the same time,
a number of drop spindles and large dye vats have
been found at the Harappan port of Lothal as well as at
Dholavira, both on the coast of Gujarat.
Throughout the world, a number of origin myths are
associated with the art of weaving, as are references to
philosophical concepts. In India especially, a large part
of the vocabulary and imagery of philosophical and
religious thought is taken from textile terminology.
Yantra
, the esoteric design used for meditation is
derived from the Sanskrit word for the loom. Till today,
the ritualistic
kushti
(sacred thread), woven by the
Zoroastrians, is woven on the loom that is known to
them as
yantra
.
Sutra
, to string together, is the name
for the Buddhist texts.
Grantha
, a sacred volume is
derived from the word to plait, to knit together.
Tantra
originates from the word for the warp,
tantu
. The main
warp beam is known as
stamba
, and that is the axis
mundi connecting all the parts together. Early surviving
fragments and visual documentation are clues to the
limitless ingenuity of the makers of these textiles, as are
references to the craft in oral literature and mythology.
Beyond surface designs, textiles have also played a
symbolic role in the country’s social and cultural
landscape; their importance recognised at major life-
cycle rituals and significant events. At the same time,
many of these textile traditions are still practised in the
country, demonstrating their continuities with the past.
In the evolution of textiles, we see the world influenced
by the movement of people. Nomads created rich
textiles to personalise their space and many of their
traditions were passed on to the people where they
settled. The
Heer
embroidery of the Kathiawar was
linked to the influence of the Huns, who migrated
across Central Asia with one group entering Gujarat
in the 5
th
century AD. The
Heer Chaklas
embroidered
by the women of the Kathis are linked to their origins
from the Epthalites, a branch of Huns, who were sun
worshippers.
Textiles also became an important item of trade from
an early date in India, as seen in excavations at Lothal,
a Harappan port in present-day Gujarat, it controlled
much of the trade with the outside world. Seals and
ceramics from the Indus valley found in Mesopotamia
testify to trade with the Middle East. The
Puranas
mention the ‘Mountains of Moon’ and the source of
the Nile as the ‘Country of Amara’, or Ethiopia. Lothal
was not only well organised to receive goods but also
to supply them, as can be seen by the presence of dye
vats and kilns for preparing carnelian and agate beads.
Examples of these beads in various stages of cutting,
polishing into different shapes have been found at
Lothal indicating that lapidary work was carried out
in this area, and agate beads undoubtedly of Indian
origin, have been found throughout the classical world
and Southeast Asia. Today India continues to have the
richest range of textile techniques and some of the finest
master weavers and designers continue this tradition.
Indian textiles have enchanted the world for centuries,
whether it is the exquisite fineness of the weave, the
detail in the intricate embroidery, or the rhythmic
repetition of a block printed pattern. A traditional
textile conveys to the knowing eye a great deal not only
about the creators, but also about those for whom it is
created. The materials used, the weight and texture of
the cloth tell us of the geo-climatic conditions in which
it was made. The woven motifs, the use of pattern and
colour, convey the origin stories, a people's cultural
history and symbolic implications.
The simplest pattern of the checked cloth is linked to
the sacred grid, which was the basis of the
mandala
,
the fire altar, the multiplication of nine squares was
navagrah
, the protective symbol. The chequered
squares are created by the movement of equidistant
parallel lines horizontal to the earth, crossing with
parallel lines moving skywards and cutting across the
horizontal space, forming an enclosed sacred space.
The
puja
sari and
angavastram
used throughout
southern India is woven in checks of red and yellow
that signify
rajas
and
satvic
, that together create the
ritually pure and powerful cloth. This chequered cloth
called RMH (Real Madras Handkerchief) became
an important ritual cloth in Africa, where it has been
exported from very early times. It continues to be used
for rites of passage in West Africa especially amongst
the Kalabari of Nigeria. It was also known as guinea
cloth, because of its monetary value.
Further, the square
rumal
was given greater power by
inscribing on it the name of Allah, or the
suras
from the
Holy Koran, as well as renderings of the double sword
of Hazrat Ali, a gift to him from Hazrat Mohammad.
One of the most powerful garments was the protective
talismanic jackets and those made in India were highly
regarded. Magical powers, especially of older women,
were also associated with the use of locally available
vegetables and minerals used in dyeing. The dyers were
often also healers. Indigo was processed by them and it
became an important skill, which they mastered.
Along with the silk route, the spice trade route by sea
was equally important. Traders exchanged their textiles
for spices, which grew in abundance on the islands.
They carried their religious beliefs and practices, which
were absorbed into the local traditions.
Some of the earliest surviving examples of Indian
textiles are actually found among the pieces traded to
centres such as Niya in Xinjiang, China, or Fostat near
Alexandria in Egypt and Southeast Asia. In more recent
history, are the highly coveted pashmina shawls and
chintz
fabrics that were traded to England, Europe, and
Southeast Asia. As political, artistic and commercial
developments evolved between regions, textile
technologies were also shared. Silk making came from
China, while from Central Asia came the loom with
the overhead harness, created by the Naqshabandis.
Disciples of the Pir Bahu-din-Naqshabandi, they first
went to Surat from Bukhara, and then to Varanasi and
Aurangabad making elaborate gold brocades. The
tiraz
khanas
, or Islamic weaving ateliers of Syria created the
extra weft brocade, which was introduced into India.
Key to the survival of India’s hand-woven textiles was
patronage and demand, from simple homespun
khadi
to elaborately patterned silks. The creation of some of
the most remarkable textile pieces in India were largely
those conceived for the country’s rulers and chief
courtiers. Their extensive labour, combined with costly
materials, required the kind of patronage that only
they could afford. Foremost amongst these were the
Mughals, but also to a lesser extent those of the Deccani
sultanates, Rajputs and Marathas. As patronage ebbed
and British colonial rulers tried to impede weavers from
working and enforced imported fabrics on Indians,
support for the craft diminished.
Over the years, textiles have been handed down
within families as precious heirlooms. Alongside public
museum collections of textiles in the country, private
collectors have also emerged. The Sarabhais started
the Calico Museum, Praful and Shilpa Shah - the TAPI
collection, Jagdish Mittal - the Jagdish and Kamla Mittal
Museum of Indian Art, and O P Jain - Sanskriti. Against
this background, Jasleen Dhamija’s collection is one
woman’s journey that reflects her involvement with the
technical, aesthetic and non-verbal language of textiles.
Arranged in four groups – sacred, nature, female and
male – they speak across boundaries to that which is
essential to our lives.