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Sanganeri Block Printing- History, Process, People

Sanganeri Block printing is a specific kind of hand block printing that originated from Sanganer, a small village on the outskirts of Jaipur characterized by floral and nature themed patterns. 

It was turbulent times of late 16th and early 17th century when war was waging between Marathas and Mughals which forced the artisans of Chippa community settled in Gujarat to find a safe haven and practice their craft. They found their patronage under the royal family of Jaipur who were looking for an opportunity to make Jaipur a thriving trading center. The timeline of events coincided with migration of Chippa artisans and thus they were invited to settle and practice their craft in and around Jaipur. 

Chippa, an artisan caste who predominantly were a section of Khsatriya, the warrior caste in search of new livelihood options settled in Nagaur region of Rajasthan, trained themselves in the occupation of dyeing and printing clothes and later dispersed themselves in nearby kingdoms to practice their craft of printing. That’s where the community got its new name as etymologically the word Chippa is derived from the word Chappa or Chaapna which means print or to print. Migrated Chippa communities due to political upheaval caused by Maratha-Mughal war were allocated lands in Sanganer, Bagru and Jahota villages due to the presence of already practicing dyers and bleachers which worked in their favor. All these settlements made a mark for themselves independently in subsequent years in the printing industry by making best use of resources around them and creating their unique identity. That’s how the famous Sanganeri, Bagru and Jahota prints came into existence around 400 years ago and are still thriving. 

What made Sanganeri prints different from other two was its proximity to royal family which inspired their selection of motifs and abundance of water available from river Saraswati which gives unique radiance to Sanganeri printed fabrics. In the earlier years of genesis of block printing in Sanganer, Chippa community worked for three types of patrons, nobility and courtiers, temple devotees and everyday general clients. The most sophisticated printing and dyeing methods were applied in royal attires. Even the selection of motifs for these patrons were quite noticeable as the motifs used for temple devotees and general clients were mostly inspired from indigenous flora and fauna whereas for royals and courtiers there was frequent use of inspiration from foreign flora and fauna as well. With time when Sanganeri print got exposure of foreign clientele, it introduced more designs and innovations in its craft

If we talk of Sanganeri print and its reputation in present time, its decorative floral patterns are known as Buta and Buti, Buta being bigger motifs and Buti being smaller ones, Bel(Creepers) and Jaal(floral nets) motifs which set it apart from other block printings. Buta and Buti are designed in two ways, first being the natural style where designs consisting of flora and fauna are produced in their natural forms like lotus known as Kamal Buti, Mango known as Keri Buti and Peacocks known as Mor Buti to name a few. The other style is the decorative style which is a classic example of artistic imagination where the motifs are arranged in a way to give an impression of altogether different shape. For example, Bichoo Buta where flowers and leaves are arranged in a specific manner to give it a shape of Scorpion, similarly other shapes like Dagger known as Katar Buta etc. among many others. As far as Bel(Creepers) is concerned, it is running patterns of leaves and flowers composed and set between two parallel running strips in an Interlace manner. They are composed as a unit and the border is made by repeating this unit. Along with Botanical motifs, motifs of Peacock, Parrot and different birds were also used to create a Bel in a rhythmic character. Some examples of Bel motifs are Keri(Mango) Bel, Sugga(Parrot) Bel, Morani(Peacock) Bel etc. Jaal (floral nets) motifs are created by meticulously composing natural motifs in a pattern that creates a floral pattern all over the fabric and gives an impression of a net. Earlier these were made by the composition of flowers and leaves, but later on birds and animals were also used as motifs. Some of the traditional Sanganeri Jaal are Keri (Mango) Jaal, Gulab(Rose) Jaal, Patti(Leaves) Jaal etc. 

For the dyeing process, Chippas of Sanganer rely both on natural and chemical dyes. Earlier natural dyes were the go-to choice for Sanganeri prints where red and black were most common colors followed by yellow, blue and green which were easy to extract from natural sources. With growing competition from screen printing and demand for more color variants from customers forced block printers to incorporate chemical dyes as well in their printing technique. Major natural dyes used in Sanganeri prints are Lac, Harda, Indigo, Rhubarb, Kamala, Manju phal, Catechu, Pomegranate, Madder and Aal which in combination with different mordants produce a wide range of colors. Lac is extracted from Lacifer lacca insects and yields reddish and purple shades with tin and copper mordants. Harda is prepared from fruits of Harda plant and yields yellow and grey shades with aluminum and ferrous mordants. Indigo is obtained by fermenting leaves of Indigofera tinctoria and yields bluish shades. Rhubarb is prepared from Himalayan Rhubarb shrub which yields yellow and orange shades with alum mordant. Kamala is prepared from the deposit on flowers of Kamala tree which yields yellow shade and can also be used as a mordant. Manju phal is prepared from nutgalls of Manju Phal tree which yields cream and grey shades with alum and iron mordants. Catechu is obtained from bark of Indian gum Arabic tree and yields brown shade. Pomegranate dye is obtained from its fruit rind and yields yellow shade. Madder is extracted from the roots and bark of the Madder plant which yields red and pinkish shades. Aal is obtained from the root of Aal three which also yields reddish shade. 

As far as printing technique is concerned, there are four major methods used by Chippa printers of Sanganer. 

 1. Direct method, in which blocks with specific patterns carved on them are dipped in dyes and are then placed directly on clothes to leave an impression. 

2. Second is the resist method in which clothes are printed first with resists made of clay, resins or wax which resists the dyes to settle on clothes when clothes are dipped in dyes. 

 3. Third is the discharge method in which certain patterns are discharged or removed by chemical process using bleach so that it can create design in itself or something else can be printed over to give it a unique look. 

 4.Fourth is the Rogan method which also is the most elaborate process and was used for royal patrons only in earlier times. Here the  outlines are printed first with Rogan obtained from castor oil which is then mixed with different dyes. Then the outlines are   overprinted with powdered gold and silver to get the desired effect. 

At present there are about 3000 artisans practicing this craft in the town of Sanganer near Jaipur. In 2010, Sanganeri print received the Geographical Indication tag to protect its unique identity and safeguard it from piracy. We at Fyoli Fyoli are pleased to present a range of sustainable products made using rooted techniques in azo free and natural dyes and help take forward the legacy of timeless Sanganeri prints.

Written by Anjan Singh with contribution by Meenu Devrani

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