Originating in a princely state of Himachal, the Chamba Rumal is an intricate and delicate piece of folk art that was once the preserve of royalty. By Ankita Jain

In the old days when there were no distractions like television, the mobile phone and other gizmos, women and men enjoyed working at craft or using the needle to create pieces of beauty. But they soon got lost in the warp of time, and some organisations worked to revive lost art.

The Chamba Rumal is one of those crafts. It originated in the then princely hill states of Chamba, Kangra, Basohli which are now part of Himachal Pradesh. Whenever royalty or rulers encouraged craft, it flourished and when they stopped, the craft died out. The passage of time dealt a blow to the craft which languished until Delhi Crafts Council (DCC) came into the picture. A series of workshops, setting up of centre, training local women in the craft and exhibitions at regular intervals in different parts of the country formed part of its concerted efforts to revive the ancient craft. The ongoing exhibition Raas: Chamba Rumal, life to a Dying Art is a continuum of that exercise. “Fortunately, the skill remained. Only the affinity between the rumals and the paintings had got lost. The material and usage had got debased and it just became embroidery,” says Purnima Rai, General Secretary, DCC.

To revive the dying art of Chamba Rumal embroidery, DCC took up the challenge almost a decade ago. “A detailed study of old rumals in the collection of various museums across the country and abroad was undertaken. It is a matter of pride that all aspects of the revival have been painstakingly addressed over this time. Therumals that are currently being recreated in our centre, Charu in Chamba, are of as fine in quality in terms of technique, materials and overall aesthetic appeal as those found in museum collections,” said Anjana Somany, President, DCC.

She further added, “Having accomplished the original mandate, our focus invariably turned to how we could take this project forward and innovate with the craft as it was very necessary. It was with this in mind that DCC decided to embark on a series of special workshops throughout and experiment with contemporary themes.”

The exhibition is showcasing a range of these handcrafted rumals along with honouring artisans and craft persons who have endeavoured to keep this unique art form alive. The NGO is also offering guided tours to help discerning art lovers get an in-depth understanding of this unique art form.

The word Chamba Rumal implies a peculiar visual art form that represents unique embroidery done on a hand spun cloth with untwisted silken thread, which is greatly inspired from pahari painting. The motifs were inspired by Mughal miniatures of the 18th and 19th centuries. They look like paintings translated into embroidery. Another great source of inspirations were the paintings on the walls of the Rang Mahal in Chamba.

The tradition of this kind of pictorial embroidery was known and practised in some areas of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu which remained once important centres of pahari painting.

 Needle and thread

Most of these paintings were done on the walls of the residences of the ladies of the court. Each painting was lined with a floral border. Pahari miniature artists, usually men, drew the outlines on fine hand spun and hand woven unbleached muslin. Traditionally, women of the upper classes then embroidered upon these compositions using untwisted coloured silk floss. The double satin stitch technique used is known as do-rukha and ensures exact duplication of the image on the reverse. Though the craft was popular throughout the State, it was in Chamba due to long unhindered patronage of its rulers that it came to be known as Chamba Rumals.

The embroidery of these Rumals is based on religious themes with Hindu deities, floral motifs, birds and animals. Many of them have Krishna themes. The embroidery was done with silk thread using satin stitch in bright colours especially if the theme was folk art, on hand spun fabric like mulmul.

 “It is possible that trained miniature painting artists drew the outlines with charcoal and guided the women on the colour schemes. The rumals were used to cover offerings made to Gods, and during marriage festivities to cover presents gifted between the bride’s family and the groom’s. Some of the rumals had the game of dice embroidered on it.”

The NGO, Delhi Crafts Council, revived this dying art, and had reproductions made. “We are helping the artisans of this art work on a commercial scale by providing them platforms and opportunities for marketing their products outside the state,” shared Anjana.

The traditional route

Elaborating about the usage of this rumal in earlier as well as modern times, Purnima said, “Chamba Rumals were traditionally used as decorative pieces for covering platters, as gifts for auspicious occasions and for offerings to a deity. During weddings, rumals are exchanged between the families of the bride and groom as a token of goodwill. This art was practiced together by men and women.

On display

The oldest dated rumal belongs to the 16th century and is said to be embroidered by Bebe Nanki, Guru Nanak’s sister. You can still see it in the Sikh Shrine in Hoshiarpur district in Punjab and the one done on the theme of the Kurushektra battle is now displayed at the Victoria and Albert Museum in london.

The exhibition with live demonstrations is on till April 8 at Indian Habitat Centre