Punjab - Art, Culture & Heritage @ whatisindia.com

Art is described as a creation or expression of something beautiful especially in a visual form and Arts and Crafts as a phrase means decorative designs and handicrafts. In this field, also, Punjab has the hoary and distinguished tradition which its people have maintained in spite of vicissitudes of time.

Mud Works

There is no limit to the creativity of Punjab's craftsmen. They have this panache for turning seemingly dull materials into masterpieces of art. Take as simple a thing as mud for example. Plastering the walls with mud and drawing ferns, plants, several other fascinating motifs has been a way of life of the woman of Punjab.

Weaving and Embroidery

Weaving of Durries (cotton bed or floor spreads) in myriad motifs and designs especially by young girls in the villages has been a long tradition in Punjab. These are also woven in stripes, cheek boards, squares, motifs of birds, animals and even plants as a part of dowry.

Needle work of Punjab is unique, it has beautiful names because of its associations with beautiful aspects of life and the beautiful designs which the dexterous fingers of Punjab's proverbially beautiful women create have such a wealth of forms and motifs that they defy enumeration. Some of these are called Baghs, literally a garden, Phulkaris, literally flower work, rummals, scarfs. The patterns of needle work done on the bed spreads, chunnis, dupattas (these are head covers) and shirts and Salvars, are still different. Needle work on phulkaris is done on a deep colored cotton cloth with striking silk threads. The threads is pierced upwards from underneath the cloth into free-hand motifs, while in the Baghs and Rummals such cloth is worked on the top side only. These were traditionally used for wear but now are exported as wall hangings and sewn as jackets etc.

Punjabi hands fans like the Japenese are almost typical and their leaves are made in much the same way as phulkaris etc. are made. The shoes made in different parts of Punjab out of self lured leather have different traditions. Light shoes were considered the best and to explain this aspect the cobblers used to say that even the sparrows can fly with them. Earlier shoes which have come to be known as Punjabi Juttis throughout the world were embroidered with gold and silver wires all over in different patterns covering every parts of the pair so that it looked as if it was made of solid gold and silver. Now even when golden and silver threads are used to embroider these shoes, the quality of these world famous shoes is still maintained.

Wood Works

The wood work of Punjab has also been traditionally famous. Artistic beds with comfortable, skillfully made, back rests fitted with mirrors and carved colorful legs called Pawas, low seats called Peeras, Peerian were made by carpenters in almost every village. Their skill has passed into folk songs (Raati rondi da bhij gaya Ial bhangoora) weeping last night my red Swing became drenched. Furniture designed in Punjab and boxes, toys and decorative pieces made out of wood are exported. In giving lacqueur finish to wood crafts, in adorning it with colored mirror and in engraving wood, inlaying ivory (now white plastic only) the workmen of Punjab have been renowned. The onslaught of high technology is putting a premium on the arts and crafts in the modern era and it will require special efforts to preserve them for posterity.

Basketry

The weaving of the vegetable fibres and the making of wicker articles for daily use are among the oldest creations of human hands. The evolution of products made of vegetable fibres is still preserved in the living tradition of rural products made of osier bast, straw commonly known in Punjab as Sarkanda, interwoven with bast, reeds, rushes and corn husks. The craft of basketry is widely practiced all over Punjab. After shaving, thin straws of this grass, are woven into beautiful carpets, curtains etc.. Among these products the hand fan is very popular and fascinating on account of its curled shape. These fans are popularly known as Peshawari Pakkhe. The ones smaller in size are very fine and delicate. These are called Kundaladar Pakkhi on account of their curled ends.

Phulkari

Phulkari work is one of the most fascinating expressions of the Punjabi folk art. Women have developed this art at the cost of some of their very precious moments of leisure. They have always been very fond of color and have devoted a lot of their time to colorful embroidery and knitting. It has also been customary for parents and relatives to give hand-embroidered clothes to girls in dowry. Punjabi women were known for embroidery with superb imagination. Phulkari is something of which Punjab is justly proud and is also noted as the home of this embroidered and durable product.

In the Phulkari work, the whole cloth is covered with close embroidery and almost no space is left uncovered. The piece of cloth thus embroidered is called baag meaning a garden. If only the sides are covered it is called chope. The back ground is generally maroon or scarlet and the silken thread used is mostly golden. Color schemes show a rich sensitiveness. Some Phulkaris are embroidered with various motifs of birds, animals, flowers and sometimes scenes of village life.

Phulkari, meaning flower work, is a spectacular style of embroidery peculiar to Punjab, and an essential part of everyday life. Almost every ceremony in which women participate is given a touch of additional color and richness by the use of phulkari on account of its being considered auspicious

Leather craft

Jootis Color, beauty and utility combine to form the central theme of the well-known leather jootis (shoes and slippers) of Punjab. Rich gold and multi-colored threads are used to decorate and impart a royal touch to a variety of jootis crafted from leather of different shades.

Punjabi Juttis are embroidered with gold and silver wires all over in different patterns covering every parts of the pair so that it looked as if it was made of solid gold and silver. Now even when golden and silver threads are used to embroider these shoes, the quality of these world famous shoes is still maintained.

Pidhis

At Kartarpur, Jalandhar and Hoshiarpur, craftsmen and women create pidhis (low, four legged woven stools), which are both functional and artistic. In a marvelous display of skill, the pidhis are first carved out from wood, and then covered with lacquer and woven with threads of different colors. Other lacquer ware products of Punjab include table lamps, dolls, and attractive scratch work surahis. Wood workers at Hoshiarpur and Kartarpur specialize in making artistic furniture with intricate designs. In those golden days when artisans received royal patronage, the wood workers of Hoshiarpur particularly were specialists in inlaying ivory. With motifs and ornamentation drawn from life around them Patta (leaf), dodi (bud), jhari (bush), flowers and animals and birds-the wood workers created masterpieces that found their way to the homes of those who had an eye for skill and beauty.

Parandis

The parandi craftspeople have refined their art and now produce wonderfully attractive parandis in a number of colors and designs Parandis can be purchased almost everywhere in Punjab, but Jalandhar, Amritsar, Nikodar, Hoshiarpur and Ludhiana are amongst the places where the greatest variety can be seen.

Folk Toys Making
The earliest hand-made toys of Punjab can be traced back to the Indus Valley Civilization, dating from 2500 to 1700 B.C. These bear a remarkable resemblance to the traditional toys of a much later period which remained popular through the ages till recently when factory made toys found their way to the villages.

The traditional toys usually depict animals, equestrian figures and wheeled vehicles, all of which, though varying in quality and intended for different purposes. They can be used as playthings by the children and as decoration pieces by the adults. Toys of cloth stuffed with cotton are still made by the women in the villages. Dolls, birds and animals are some of the common subjects. These are embellished with colorful additions of beads, buttons, feathers, tinsels and tassels and also with cowries. Sometimes the body of the toy is appliqued. The material used in this folk art reflects the dynamic spirit of improvisation. Besides their ornamental quality these toys have a sentimental value as well as emotional appeal.

The popularity of the clay toys is diminishing day by day but still there are to be seen sporadic instances of miniature dolls in clay, animals and kitchen utensils, roughly colored with kharia mitti and decorated with motifs in bright colors.

References:

http://punjabgovt.nic.in

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