Life in Jaipur
In Jaipur the aesthetic sense of the people is evident from the skilled traditional arts and crafts. Each art has a heritage with it. For any tourist, the visit to Jaipur or any part of Rajasthan is incomplete unless he carries a few of the artistic and attractive handicrafts. The artisan's keen eyes for beauty is reflected in their arts and crafts.
The presense of kings meant that the crafts got the royal patronage to sustain them, with the kings setting up karkhanas, workshops for textiles and carpets, wood carvers and stone masons, miniature painters and goldsmiths. Jaipur is at the heart of this treasure house of crafts. Offering a magnificent spread from tie and dye textiles and enameled silver jewellery to pottery and painting. Here craft is a precious heritage that is carried down from father to son through generations, skills have been refined through years of work and this love and pride in their work gives the crafts that special quality of uniqueness and beauty.
The presense of kings meant that the crafts got the royal patronage to sustain them, with the kings setting up karkhanas, workshops for textiles and carpets, wood carvers and stone masons, miniature painters and goldsmiths. Jaipur is at the heart of this treasure house of crafts. Offering a magnificent spread from tie and dye textiles and enameled silver jewellery to pottery and painting. Here craft is a precious heritage that is carried down from father to son through generations, skills have been refined through years of work and this love and pride in their work gives the crafts that special quality of uniqueness and beauty.
The people of Jaipur like any other part of Rajasthan are known for their colourful attires. The streets and market places of Jaipur still witness scenes of turbaned Rajasthani men, moving around with their women, who are dressed in swirling skirts called lehengas and odhni or veil with flashing Meenakari (enamel) jewellery that bring to life all the colours of the desert. These colourful fabrics are either printed in dyes or embroidered and seldom worn plain. Sanganer and Bagru, the two towns on the outskirts of Jaipur, specialize in traditional block-printing textiles, wherein wooden blocks carved with floral and geometric patterns and symbolic motifs are dipped in vegetable colours made from extracts of flowers and minerals and then hand printed and dried.
The printers of 'chhipas' are famous for their skills in blending colours. Their hand carved wooden blocks are so precisely chiseled that they become pieces of art by themselves and are often bought by visitors to be used as decorations in their homes. The tie and dye fabrics show the magic of hands. Usually women do the knotting of the cloth in intricate patterns and after dyeing the cloth opens out into amazing designs in varied colours dots, circles and squares, waves and stripes.
The printers of 'chhipas' are famous for their skills in blending colours. Their hand carved wooden blocks are so precisely chiseled that they become pieces of art by themselves and are often bought by visitors to be used as decorations in their homes. The tie and dye fabrics show the magic of hands. Usually women do the knotting of the cloth in intricate patterns and after dyeing the cloth opens out into amazing designs in varied colours dots, circles and squares, waves and stripes.
Jaipur is also famous for semi-precious stones. The work of cutting and polishing precious stones in different shapes and designs is one of the oldest crafts of Jaipur. Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh gave patronage to this work and established a separate market, Johari Bazar for the trade, which is still a major center for jewellery and precious stones business. The gems of Jaipur fetch a very high value in the international market. In contrast to this delicate craft there is also the chunky, earthy silver jewellery in ornate tribal designs that are loved by women all over the country. Rajasthani women wear silver from their ankles to their wrists and right up to the top of their heads. A rakhri for the forehead, nath for the nose, paijeb for the ankles along with a necklace, waistband and a large set of lac bangles worn almost all over the arm are among favourite possessions of Rajasthani women.
However it is the enameled jewellery that is unique to the city. It is said that enamelling on goldo is being done in Jaipur since the times of its foundation but it got an impetus during the reign of Maharaja Ram Singh. Even today, there is a separate colony of the craftsmen Jadiyo Ka Rasta where excellent craftsmen can be seen working on gold. This craftsmanship known as Menakari, has established itself globally. The same work would also be done on ornamental daggers, sword hilts, goblets and boxes.
However it is the enameled jewellery that is unique to the city. It is said that enamelling on goldo is being done in Jaipur since the times of its foundation but it got an impetus during the reign of Maharaja Ram Singh. Even today, there is a separate colony of the craftsmen Jadiyo Ka Rasta where excellent craftsmen can be seen working on gold. This craftsmanship known as Menakari, has established itself globally. The same work would also be done on ornamental daggers, sword hilts, goblets and boxes.
In Indian culture, bangles are supposed to be auspicious for ladies especially married ones. Maharaja of Jaipur, Sawai Ram Singh helped to flourish this craft and formed a separate colony for the craftsmen. Maniharon Ka Rasta. Besides, bangles, a number of other articles are also being made of lac, which is adorable.
Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh had given patronage to stone carving. He had made a separate colony for the sculptures, which is known as Silawaton ka Mohalla, the colony of sculptors. Earlier only temples and houses used the skillfully sculpted images and penals of marble but now this cottage industry has taken new dimensions. Now statues of gods, goddesses and animals, carved penals, shallow dishes ashtrays and lidded boxes are being made here. The statues are so intricately carves that one can mistake them for being living things.
The charm of the decorative leatherwork done here is hard to resist. The leather is tanned and dyed and then embroidered, punched, studded and stitched into sturdy shoes, bags, and lampshades. The typical Rajasthani jooties worn here have a bright-embroidered top and delightful curving tip at times with bright tassels hanging from it. While camel hide is treated and made into unusual bottles and satchels.
Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh had given patronage to stone carving. He had made a separate colony for the sculptures, which is known as Silawaton ka Mohalla, the colony of sculptors. Earlier only temples and houses used the skillfully sculpted images and penals of marble but now this cottage industry has taken new dimensions. Now statues of gods, goddesses and animals, carved penals, shallow dishes ashtrays and lidded boxes are being made here. The statues are so intricately carves that one can mistake them for being living things.
The charm of the decorative leatherwork done here is hard to resist. The leather is tanned and dyed and then embroidered, punched, studded and stitched into sturdy shoes, bags, and lampshades. The typical Rajasthani jooties worn here have a bright-embroidered top and delightful curving tip at times with bright tassels hanging from it. While camel hide is treated and made into unusual bottles and satchels.
Jaipur is the home of glazed Blue Pottery, which has its origins in Persia. Its distinctive feature is that no clay is used. It is made of a mixture of fuller's earth, quarts and sodium sulphite. The special turquoise blue colours come with addition of Copper Sulphate and the deep Blue from Cobalt Oxide. The blue pottery articles like flower bases, pots and jars, surahus, lampstands and even doorknobs are decorated with traditional and arabesque motifs of animals, birds & flowers and are a shopper's delight.
Another craft that originated in Persia is that of carpet weaving. The rulers of Amber-Jaipur took a great interest in carpets and built up a large collection of 16th and 17th century Persian and Mughal Carpets. The Carpet industry in Jaipur started only in the mid-19th century when carpet making was introduced as a jail craft. Amjer and Bikaner were also selected as carpet weaving centers. Find hand knotted carpets are created here in both Persian and Indian designs. Jaipur's heritage in carpet weaving can be seen in the museums that display a magnificent range of rare carpets. While the more practical dhurries are woven i most villages. A durrie is a cool light Rug. Rajasthani durries are smooth and closely woven. Durries making dates back to very ancient days in India, which had been popular in eastern and northern Rajasthani.
Another craft that originated in Persia is that of carpet weaving. The rulers of Amber-Jaipur took a great interest in carpets and built up a large collection of 16th and 17th century Persian and Mughal Carpets. The Carpet industry in Jaipur started only in the mid-19th century when carpet making was introduced as a jail craft. Amjer and Bikaner were also selected as carpet weaving centers. Find hand knotted carpets are created here in both Persian and Indian designs. Jaipur's heritage in carpet weaving can be seen in the museums that display a magnificent range of rare carpets. While the more practical dhurries are woven i most villages. A durrie is a cool light Rug. Rajasthani durries are smooth and closely woven. Durries making dates back to very ancient days in India, which had been popular in eastern and northern Rajasthani.
The craftsmanship on ivory and sandalwood allures tourists. The craftsmen first design them with the help of traditional tools and then chisel them to securing living figures. The table lamps, jewellery boxes, toys, mirrors, buttons, photo frames, flower pots and other articles of sandalwood made by the skilled craftsmen of Jaipur have become essential parts of interior decoration in India and abroad. Toy makers of Jaipur make Elephants and Horses of stuffed cloth decorated with tinsel & embroidered fabric. Paper mache birds and animals are available in different sizes and colours, and make an interesting buy.
Rajasthan has carved a niche for itself in the arena of painting. Rajasthan's fascinating miniature paintings are renowned the world over. The miniature paintings of Jaipur started developing during the reign of Raja Man Singh but it reached its zenith under Sawai Pratap Singh towards the close of the 18th century. The artists got much incentive that it marked the dawn of a new era in paintings. More than a dozen painters worked in his Savrat Khana to produce hundreds of miniatures. The use of gold water for embossing and pearls and other precious stones for decorating the paintings also started. Rajasthani paintings combines the exuberance of bright primary colours with the vigour of strong, bold lines. Early paintings illustrated religious and rhetorical texts such as Bhagavata, Purana, Gita Govinda, Ramayana and Rangamala. From the mid 17th century, court portraiture and genre scenes gained importance. A variety of social, religious and ethno-cultural differences gave rise to many distinct schools, the four major ones being Mewar, Marwar, Hara (Bundi-Kota) and Dhundhar (Amber-Jaipur). Several minor ones include Kishangarh, Alwar and Ajmer. Each school has an inimitable and distinctive style.
The Pichhvais are cloth paintings hung in temples. They are done in dark rich hues on rough hand-spun cloth that have deep religious roots and are devotionally rendered by the painters. While the simpler phad paintings in folk motifs are used as illustrations by minstrels singing the legendary tales of the land. The murals are done in the folk art style
The Pichhvais are cloth paintings hung in temples. They are done in dark rich hues on rough hand-spun cloth that have deep religious roots and are devotionally rendered by the painters. While the simpler phad paintings in folk motifs are used as illustrations by minstrels singing the legendary tales of the land. The murals are done in the folk art style