Handmade in India

1,2,3,4a,4b The
Dasavatar on
ganjifa cards.
5 Detail of a
wooden-box for
storing playing
cards painted in the
ganjifa style.
GANJIFA CARDS
Production Clusters
Sindhudurg district:
Sawantwadi
Products
Playing cards
Dasavatar
Nine planets
Zodiac signs
Tarot cards
GANJIFA ARE CIRCULAR playing cards made from paper that is
covered with a mixture of tamarind seed powder and oil,painted and
coated with lac.Darbari cards have decorative borders and Bazaar
cards are without borders.It used to be a popular pastime at the
Indian courts.The classic Mughal ganjifa with its 96 cards and 8
suits penetrated into the social milieu of India and the Deccan that
later,with its themes and characters from Hindu mythology,gained
widespread acceptance.The most popular was the Dasavatar with ten
different circular pieces depicting the ten incarnations of
Vishnu.These form a set along with painted
cards of Vishnu`s weapons.Ganjifa cards were introduced
in Sawantwadi after its ruler,Khem Sawant Bhonsle
III,heard of it from scholars of the Telengana region.The
Chitari community in Sawantwadi,known for their skill in
lac ware and wood craft,learnt to make these cards.They
are no longer used to play games but used as gift items
and educational aids.
Tools
Naralachi-karwanticoconut
shell
Wooden plate
Lacquer
Babhicha-dink-gum
arabic
Painting brush
WOODEN TOYS
Production Cluster
Sindhudurg district:
Kolaon, Sawantwadi
Products
Toys
Cars
Horses
Bullock carts
Small utensils
Fruits
Tools
Powered Lathe
Marpa - File
Kotya - chisel
Jigsaw, Hammer
sander
Sandpaper
Inset Bullock cart.
SAWANTWADI is popularly
identified with lakda chi
khelni,wooden toys that are made
from the locally available mango
tree.Though the craft is
traditionally done by the Chitari or
Chitarikars,
other communities have also adopted this craft due to its
commerical success.The toys are made by several
techniques:wood and lac turnery,by assembling flat shaped
pieces and by sculpting solid wood.Seasoned mango wood is
turned into cylindrical shapes wih chisels and,its surface
finished.At least four to five toys are turned together on the
lathe at a time.Before removing the turned items,lac mixed
with colours is applied to the finished surface.These are
separated and the base of each item is finished with a
sander.Toys are also made by cutting different profiles with the
jigsaw,which are later assembled into a whole product.The
cutout pieces are finished on a sander,smoothened with
sandpaper,painted and assembled.
Fruit such as mango and vegetable items are sculpted and
painted.
Individual pieces with different profiles will be assembled to
make a bullock cart.
Painted ceremonial wooden
plateform.
Traditional cutter with a painted
platform.
Kitchen set:
miniature utensils,cooking implements and rolling pin are made by wood and
lac turnery.