Asian Journal of Home Science

Ritu Agrahari ¹, Kanwaljit Kaur Brar ¹

Affiliations
1 Department of Apparel and Textile Science, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana (Punjab), IN

Abstract

The Indian handicraft sector forms a major part of the rich cultural heritage of the country. Lucknow has carved out a name for itself in the field of chikankari craft. The number of chikankari artisans in Lucknow runs in thousands, yet the sector remains unorganised with no medical insurance, social and financial security. The chikankari artisans, especially those working for private enterprises, faced many difficulties regarding lack of skill up-gradation and direct marketing of the products. So, the prime objective of the study was to investigate the problems countenanced by chikankari artisans. A self-structured interview schedule was administered to a sample of 300 artisans who were randomly selected from the five blocks of the Lucknow district. Low wages as per intricacy and skill of work (66.00%), irregular payment (54.66%) were the major financial issues of the artisans, besides facing work related health problems like backache (36.33%), cervical spondylosis (4.66%) and eye strain (41.00%). No artisans got the medical benifits from any of the organizations/enterprises. They were vulnerable to exploitation due to poor marketing intelligence (29.00%), and irregular orders (10.67%). Inadequate transportation facility (39.32%), poor road infrastructure (81.00%), and poor electric supply (78.00%) led to wastage of time and low productivity. For the upliftment of artisans, government needs to develop more clusters, organise trainings and workshops for skill development and enhancing marketing. There is utmost need to address to these problems.

Keywords

Embroidery, Chikankari, Artisans, Problems Experienced.

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Ritu Agrahari ¹, Kanwaljit Kaur Brar ¹

Affiliations
1 Department of Apparel and Textile Science, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana (Punjab), IN

Abstract

Embroidery adds grace and elegance to the articles of everyday use. Indian embroidery takes its inspiration from nature and the products of various regions reflect the colours of the flora and fauna of that area. Chikankari embroidery is one of the most ancient textile decoration style, crafted in the city of Nawabs, Lucknow. The present investigation made an attempt to study different types of flat stitches used, their variations and different types of embroidery threads used by GOs, NGOs and private enterprises (PEs). All three GOs, and ten NGOs in the list of Development Commissioner (Handicrafts) Office, Barabanki, Lucknow, and thirty PEs comprising of fifteen enterprises from each of the Aminabad and Chowk market areas were randomly selected for the investigation. The study is based on primary and secondary data collected from the chairpersons/owners of Chikankari organizations/enterprises through interview technique and observational method. Majority of organisations/enterprises were using polyester and mercerised cotton embroidery threads for embroidery. There were fifteen types of flat Chikankari stitches including their variations and styles. Daraz-work was not found to be used by any of the organisations/enterprises.

Keywords

Chikankari, Embroidery, Threads, Flat-Stitches.

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Ritu Agrahari ¹, Kanwaljit Kaur Brar ¹

Affiliations
1 Department of Apparel and Textile Science, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana (Punjab), IN

Abstract

Chikankari embroidery is one of the most ancient textile decoration styles. It is a distinctive integral part of the city of Nawabs, Lucknow. It is the intricate art of doing fine and delicate embroidery on cloth by hand which is known for its sheer excellence of skill, texture and delicacy. The present investigation made an attempt to study different types of embossed stitches and their variations used by GOs, NGOs and private enterprises (PEs). Three GOs and ten NGOs in the list of Development Commissioner (Handicrafts) Office, Barabanki, Lucknow, and thirty PEs comprising of fifteen enterprises from each of the Aminabad and Chowk market areas were randomly selected for the investigation. Primary data were collected from the chairpersons/owners of chikankari organizations/enterprises through interview technique and observational method, besides the secondary data. There were seventeen types of embossed chikankari stitches and jali-work including their variations and styles, but only eight of these were being used in the embroidery. Majority of PEs (80.00%) carried out jali-work, though it was being done in only 40.00 per cent NGOs and 33.34 per cent GOs.

Keywords

Chikankari, Embroidery, Embossed-Stitches, Jali-Work.

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