Bagru Hast Kala Printers

Hand Block Printing Process

Jaipur is perhaps one of the most culturally rich areas of Rajasthan. From this city, the Chippas moved to Bagru around 300 years ago. They made it their home, and one of Rajasthan's most important centers of hand block printing. The Bagru prints are very similar, but the latter employ a narrower range of colors. As a matter of fact, Bagru prints are more famous for their exceptional quality of being eco-friendly. Even today, artisans use traditional vegetable dyes for printing the cloth. Like, the color blue is made from indigo, greens out of indigo mixed with pomegranate, red from madder root and yellow from turmeric. Usually Bagru prints have ethnic floral patterns in natural colors. Bagru prints form the essential part of the block printing industry of Rajasthan. The village fabricates some of the fabulous bed covers and other materials.

In Bagru prints, the colors are picked carefully. Each has a separate significance. For instance, red is the color of love, yellow of spring, indigo of Lord Krishna, and saffron of the yogi (seer). The wooden blocks that are used are made of teak wood. And traditionally, vegetable dyes made of madder, pomegranate rind, indigo, and turmeric are used. These have now been largely replaced by chemical dyes. Often, the fabric is dyed before it is printed.