Rajasthan Batik, Batik Painting In Rajasthan

Batik work is a tie and dye technique of textile painting. The craft has been cultivated in Rajasthan for almost 2000 years now. The word batik itself means 'wax composition'. To have a beautiful batik piece, the dyer needs to clearly visualize the end product. Only then can he/she proceed to actually create the design and dye the cloth providing the necessary shades and effects.

Traditionally the designs used to represent religious and cultural motifs and floral patterns of blossoms and leaves, buds and fruits but off late the demands of the younger generation have added contemporary and newer designs. Batik is generally done on cotton and silk textiles besides cambric, poplins and voiles. Batik patterns are created in three steps. Firstly a rough design is sketched on the textile and the portion that requires dying in one color is chosen. The remaining of the textile is coated with molten wax. This process is known as waxing. The waxed areas do not absorb the dye. Now this textile is dyed in the chosen hue and when dry the fabric is dewaxed by ironing or immersing in hot water. This process is repeated several times to introduce various colors into the fabric. So finally a colorful textile of exquisite designs and vibrant hues is obtained.

The crackling effect is a unique feature of batik and is caused by the creases in the wax. The wax is usually a combination of paraffin and bee wax (70% and 30 % respectively). The dyes used traditionally are natural pigments and herbal dyes. Indigo, for example lends a blue while henna a pale orange. Black, green and red are some other colors used. Nowadays many synthetic dues have replaced the natural ones. Apli, Bagroo, Barmer, Jaipur and Sanganer in Rajasthan have the most enterprising batik dyers in the state.

Last Updated on 01 December 2011