Kalamkari Painting is very much an ancient and exquisite art work of painted and printed fabrics. Kalamkari literally means "pen work" and this art form is hand painted and block printed with the use of vegetable dyes.

This Indian art has evolved in the last 3000 years and this legacy has been handed down from generation to generation. In Andhra Pradesh, the art of kalamkari is very much synonymous with two ancient cities like Masulipatnam and Srikalahasti.

Masulipatnam style of Kalamkari mainly features Persian influence with intricate and delicate forms and motifs commonly used were trees, flowers, creepers and leaf designs.

With the Dutch influence, kalamkari art was started on bed covers, curtains and garments. Most of the household showpieces are usually placed according to colour schemes and even themes such as animals, nature, floral , spirituality, etc are used.

Srikalahasti Style of Kalamkari

Srikalahasti style of kalamkari painting is influenced by Indian temples. Paintings of epics such as Mahabharata, Ramayana, Puranas, etc. and deities such as Krishna, Brahma, Ganesha, Durga, Kiratavinyaarjuna, Lakshmi, Rama, Shiva and Parvathi were the main subjects.

Technique

The technique of Kalamkari paintings involves resist dyeing and hand printing. There is lot of treatment being done before and after the painting on the fabric. Kalamkari literally means, Kalam - pen & kari - work, i.e., art work done using a pen. The artists use a bamboo or date palm stick pointed at one end with a bundle of fine hair attached to this pointed end to serve as the brush or pen.

Vegetable dyes are used on cloth to color the drawings. The dyes here are obtained by extracting colours from various parts of plants - roots, leaves along with mineral salts of iron, tin, copper, alum, etc., which are used as mordants.

Kalamkari Painting widly imbibes itself with Hindu mythlogical themes from epics like Ramayana, Mahabharata, Srimad Bhagwat and Puranas. The unique thing about these painting is that no two panels are similar. Vegetable and mineral pigments are being used here to create these paintings. The specialty is that the finished products are mellow. Bright colours are used but the finish is not gaudy.

The art of painting using organic dyes on cloth was popular in several parts of India, but this style of Kalamkari flourished at Kalahasti (80 miles north of Chennai) and at Masulipatnam (200 miles east of Hyderabad). The Kalamkari tradition exclusively consists of scenes from Hindu mythology. Figures of deities with rich border embellishments and decorations were created for the temples. In Masulipatnam, the weavers were involved in the block printing art, while at Kalahasti, the Balojas (a caste involved in making bangles) took to this art.

Owing to the Muslim rule in Golconda, the Masulipatnam Kalamkari was influenced by Persian motifs and designs, widely adapted to suit their taste. The outlines and main features are done using hand carved blocks.

The finer details are later done using the pen. Under the British rule the designs as well as the end use of the fabric differed - for garments as well as furnishings. During this period floral designs were popular. The artisans were made to create even portraits of Englishmen. The Kalahasti tradition which was developed in the temple region mostly concentrated on themes from the Hindu mythology, epics (Ramayana, Mahabharatha), images of Gods and heroes.

Karrupur is a style of Kalamkari that developed in the Thanjavur region during the Maratha rule. The Kalamkari work gave further uniqueness to the gold brocade work in the woven fabric, which was used as sarees and dhotis by the royal family during the period of Raja Sarfoji and later Raja Shivaji.

After independence of India, the Handicrafts Development Board had took up the task of reviving this art, which had dwindled due to lack of buyers

. The specialty is that the finished products are mellow. Bright colours are used but the finish is not gaudy. The fabric looks better and better with further washing, with the designs standing out even better against the background.