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The Patola has survived empires, single Ikat here; the step-like designs echo the architecture of stepwells a thousand years old, symbolising descent into the origins of life and lifeblood, water in the desert while the sharp, triangular shapes are drawn from temple architecture, shikharas (spires), which serve as a connection to the divine; they accord protection to the wearer and create a sense of the continuity of life. Each diamond, the Ratan Chok or jewel square, wards off the evil eye and bears witness as a guardian. It symbolises clarity and strength, representing not just cosmic order but also the temporal domestic courtyard, and houses a radiant eight-petaled lotus, Ashtadal, which signifies spiritual awakening and the radiance of the sun through which life thrives, protected by divine order.  The dot at its centre, the glint of the diamond, reminiscent of the Bindi, is the origin of life, the unchanging divine spark; its being white in the border denotes Sattva, a core of...

Coastal Odisha, where curvilinear single Ikat Khandua silk is woven, is the ‘Gift of Six Rivers’, a hexadeltaic region where the fish is tied to spiritual beliefs and to everyday life. While the fish is, inescapably, a manifestation of wealth and fertility in a very literal sense given how much people in the region rely on it for sustenance, it also resonates far more deeply.  Scripture tells the tale of how Matsya, the first avataar of Lord Vishnu, the sustainer of life, saved the king, Satyavrata, from the great flood by directing him to build a ship which could carry the world's living beings. Matsya then guided the ship through turbulent waters to the Himalayas; Satyavrata returned only after the waters receded, coming to be known as Manu, the first man.  The great flood was a manifestation of the cycle of the destruction and the renewal of the universe while Matsya came to symbolise not just protection but also salvation and the triumph of life, the ability to navigate it...

  Standing on one bank of the Brahmaputra, it's not always possible to see the other and, somehow, the feeling that brings can give one a sense of perspective about one's own (insignificant) place in the grander scheme of life, and a sense of reassurance: nothing one does is likely to change the balance.  The colours here are traditional non-tribal Assamese colours: pastels against a light paat background. (Traditional Muga is often embellished with bright primary and secondary colours but newer all-over jewel tones are little more than an attempt to make inroads into external markets.) The blue recalls the sky and the river, tranquillity overhead and depth beneath the surface (although both the skies and the waters can be ferocious) while the pink signifies nature's abundance; blue, the spiritual and pink, vitality.  The uncompromising geometrical lattice acknowledges cosmic order and the interconnectedness of life, the vines representing the tree of life, and the eight-...

  Banned a few decades ago, Dhebaria Rabari embroidery has seen a resurgence in recent years. Styles are simpler, the essence remains.  The ban had been imposed because the embroidery, part of a woman's trousseau, had become so intricate that weddings were often delayed. Apparently, women also sometimes used the embroidery to delay early marriage; a form of resistance implemented by taking years to complete their embroidery. The community, traditionally nomadic, has lived in the deserts of Western India for centuries. The Kairi, a raw mango, the central motif here, stands alone signifying auspiciousness and fertility. The tip may invoke a bud through Persian influences symbolizing endurance, bending but not breaking, in the desert’s harshness. The Kairi is placed in an explosive layout from which rays emanate, placing the woman who wears the garment, a saree in this case, in the role of one who brings abundance and sustains the family. Although they are reminiscent of the sun,...

  Madhubani art, traditionally painted by women in the Mithila region primarily in Bihar on the walls of their homes, is characterised by horror vacui; every square inch of the ‘canvas’ is filled. Large motifs are surrounded by smaller ones, each one of them meaningful.  Contemporary Madhubani art has moved from being restricted to domestic murals to becoming corporate art and, often enough, saree embellishment whether printed or painted. The women at the borders of this image on a Tussar saree represent the vitality of the community, and the preservation of cultural heritage. A peacock, possibly the vehicle of Saraswati, the Goddess of Learning, is its heart; although Her vehicle is usually a swan or goose, in some Eastern traditions, it may be a peacock. However, the art isn't limited to just one peacock; the central motif is hemmed in by other peacocks towards the bottom of the piece representing the dance of life.  Goddess Saraswati is, in Devi Bhagavata Purana and Va...

Traditionally, these artistic sarees weren't sold, they were often women's dreams and diaries, although the art form can be bought easily nowadays. The birds represented freedom, parrots were associated with (secret) love, roosters (and hens) with domestic abundance, and peacocks with royalty. White was purity, terracotta strength, and green, nature; the tree of life. The flowering vines, the interconnectedness of life, the fence a border (protection or prison, depending on one's perspective), and running stitch, the constant reliable flow of a river's waters. The bird's eyes were often sewed on last, bringing the birds to life, just as idols are often animated.  Read a Nakshi Kantha correctly, and you'll probably learn more about the embroiderer than you would through hours of conversation with her.  And these diaries, they're safe — they're devoid of meaning to most. Reading specifically into this kantha motif of paired birds drawn from a verse in the ...