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'Bandhani' (tie and dye fabric) of
Jamnagar, Mandvi
and Bhuj are famous for their intricate
designs and patterns, which are used, in wedding outfits called as
'gharchola odhni' and sarees. The tie-dyed fabrics of Gujarat
are perhaps the best produced in India. Also known as 'Bandhej', it is
produced on superfine cotton 'mulmul', muslin sometimes combined with gold
checks and motifs worked in the 'jamdani' technique.
Dyeing is a hereditary art. In the past cloth was dyed in colours
extracted from trees and flowers. The Sarkhei suburb of Ahmedabad was one
of the indigo manufacturing and exporting centres.
TIE N' DYE: THE PROCESS
The highest intensity of Bandhini dyeing is in
Kachchh, but some of the best works are
from Jamnagar and Saurashtra, on the
Southern coast of Gulf of Kachchh. The
printed portion of the fabric are pinched and pushed into small points and
then knotted with 2 or 3 twists of thread. The knotted parts remain
uncoloured and the fabric is dyed in the lightest shade first, retied and
dyed in the darker colour.
The fabric may be tied and dyed several times, depending on the number of
shades in the final colour scheme. The price of the 'bandhani' depends not
only on the fabric, but also on the number of times it has to be tied and
dyed and on the intricacy of the design.
BANDHANI SAREES: THE POPULAR WOMAN ATTIRE
The Bandhani, tie and dye variety of sari is a very popular women's wear.
It involves an intricate process of tying knots on the fine white fabrics,
which are dipped in colours. The hues of deeper shades are used over the
previous ones to form the coloured background of the cloth.
'Bandhani' sarees are easily available in all the bazaars and shopping
centres of Jamnagar and here you can
also find them brocaded with fine gold thread zaris.