Traditional Folk Art - Kantha Embroidery

One of the oldest and most famous forms of Indian embroidery from West Bengal and Orissa.

Rural women practice this embroidery and pass it on to generations and it is also a common dowry tradition. These women not only embroidered the Kantha work on appeals but in décor also.

The best thing about Kantha is that it didn’t need any additional ornamentation to make it look amazing and the reason it can be used in different forms and for various purposes.

History

Searching history first story believed that the earliest written record is earlier than 500 years ago. The poet krishnadas kaviraj wrote in his book Sri Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita how Chaitanya’s mother sent a homemade Kantha to her son in Puri. Kantha had quiet beginnings in the rural setting of Bengal and almost vanished in the early 19th century.

Another story is believed that Lord Buddha and his discipline use old rugs with different kinds of patchwork to cover themselves and this gave the Kantha embroidery its origin. The material used for Kantha embroidery was old sarees, lungis, or dhotis that have been through many washes and were unable to wear. It is the income source for the village women for long period.

Kantha is an example of folk art with the combination of many factors that create cultural identity.

Types

 Traditionally the simple running stitch is used for Katha embroidery, with the period, Kantha involves more elaborate patterns Named ‘Nakshi Kantha Nashik Kantha Is made-up of motives influenced by religions, culture, and the life of the woman stretching them.

 Kantha Being the folk art, reflects folk beliefs and practicesof religion idea, themes And character from mythology and epic, the social and personal life of the people.

 a specified form of geometric pattern is called par tola. It has influenced by the Islamic art which focus on geometric patterns.

 Lik or Anarasi kantha Is practiced in the champnawabganj and jersore area Of Bangladesh. There are numerous varieties of this form.

 Lahori Kantha. Or wave Kantha Is divided into 3 sub types first sojo a straight or simple, second kavtar, khupi is a pigeon coop or triangle and third motif a diamond forms.

Sujani Kantha this type is popular because of its motifs and updated flower and vine patterns.

Carpet Kantha or cross stitch was introduced during the British rule in India by the English.

process

 To make Katha cloth, the fabric is first cut to shape and layered to achieve desired size and thickness. 

the layers are spread out on the ground then the artist stitch some large loose stitches around the edge of the fabric. The final stage is then made starting in a corner and making it shorter inside.

 for the par tola Geometric Katha, the stitching count is done from memory, no drone pattern is done.

for the nakshi Kantha, the pattern was outlined with needle and thread. Some types of Kantha Wooden blocks were done to outline the pattern. 

today patients are first drawn and then copied by tracing paper onto the fabric. Kantha the traditional cotton fabric was much easier than silk fabric due to the property of the fabric.

Today’s Kantha

in practice, Kantha artisan surfers the same exploitation as the other artisan is facing. but good thing is that more designers and governments becoming conscious of the importance of their work which will give Kantha embroidery a boost and flourish in near future.