Handmade in India

Crafts of
KACHCHH
Clay relief work
Painted terracotta
Kachchhi embroidery
Rogan painting
Applique
Namda-felt making
Leather work
Wood and lac turnery
Wood carving
Arakh printing
Silver work
Subclusters of
KACHCHH
Kachchh district:
Abdasa,Anjar
Bachau,Banni
Bhadarvi,Bhuj
Dhamadka,Dhorda
Dinara,Dumado
Gagodar Gorewali
Hodko,Khavdae
Lakhpat,Lodai village
Ludiya,MAndvi
Mundra,Maringna
Nakhatrana,Todia
Nirona village
Rapar,Zura village
RESOURCES
Crafts Raw Materials Sources
Clay relief
work
Painted
terracotta
Kachchhi
embroidery
Rogan
painting
Bandhani-tie-resistdyeing
Bandhanitie-resistdyeing
Applique
Namda-felt
making
Wood and
lac turnery
Ajrakh
printing
Chikni mitti or babro mitti -
mud
Mirrors
Geru-red clay
White clay
Black clay
Silk threads
Silk floss
Dyed cotton
Castor oil
Cotton cloth
Silk cloth
Woollen shawls
Coloured thread
Old pieces of cloth
Mirrors
Wool
Cotton
Wood-Babul , Khau(Wild
olive), Roido(Tecoma
undulata)
or Neem(Azadirachta
Indica)
Lac, Chemical colours
Wool(Block making)
Cotton cloth
Natural dyes
Kaalo Dungar
hills
Markets in
Bhuj/Khavda
Khavda,Bhuj
Bhuj
Markets in Bhuj
or Khavda
Ahmedabad
Surat
Bhuj
Old or unused
rags
Bhuj,Kapadvanj
Bhujodi,Lakhpat
Or Bikaner in
Rajasthan
Bhuj
Bhuj
Bhuj
Silver ware Silver Bhuj
Bell making
Iron,copper,Brass,Cotton
and wood
Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad
Bhuj
KACHCHH DERIVES ITS name from the Kachchho or
tortoise-like form of its seawater surrounded lands.The
landscape exhibits an unusual degree of eco-diversity due to its
inclusion of arable plains,grasslands,marshes,mangrove forests
and desertsd as well as the salts flats,coral reefs and creeks of
the Little Rann and the Gulf of Kachchh.This complex
geography is inhabited by several pastoral communities,many
of them semi-nomadic herders of camel and sheep,who
migrated from Sindh,Baluchistan and even as far as Afganistan
to this region nearly five centuries ago.The crafts of Kachchh
are deeply integrated into the lifestyle of the communities who
practice and utilize them;in addition to serving as a means of
earning and employment,they are also a creative expression of
each community`s distinct cultural life and identity.Many of
the utilitarian products are transformed into visual
identity.Many of the utilitarian products are transformed into
visual signifiers of caste,occupation,age,gender and marital
status through the incorporatin of motifs of specific
deitied ,shrines,festivals and animal or vegetal forms that are
exclusively associated with a particular group of peoples.
ACCESS
The airport at Bhuj has regular flights to Mumbai;the city is
also well connected by rail with Ahmedabad and Vadodara as
well as with Gandhidham,the station that links Kachchh with
the other districts of Gujarat.Every village is accessible by
road.
1. The interior wall of this hut at Ludhiva is ornamented
with a combination of clay reliefd with mirror inlay and
folk painting.
2. The Rabari motif known as bavaliyo is desired from the
jungle baval,a plant that grows profusely in the Kachchhi
region.The motif,created through the interlaced stitch is
usually used in repetitions of 3,4,8,12 and 16.
3. Once the paanu(punched upper) and the thaliya(base)are
fitted with the pointed end and working
downwards.Poplin in red,green and blue are cut into
strips and stuck on and then backed on a large red piece.
4. A Kachchhi lady repairing the cowdung plaster or lipan
on the exterior wall of her hut;this process is repeated
annually at the time of the festival of Diwali.