The art of shibori was introduced to India in the early 20th century by Nobel Laureate, Rabindranath Tagore, although the technique for fabric manipulation and dyeing existed for ages, with the most common being
Bandhani. It is now practiced in craft clusters in Delhi, Rajasthan, and Gujarat though the quality and mastery of shibori is very much advanced in Japan.
Regionally-developed techniques for fabric manipulation and dying have existed for ages in the sub-continent; the most common among them is bandhani.
Bandhani is derived from the Sanskrit word which means to tie, and it makes use of almost every color, with the main colors being, red, yellow, blue, green, and black. developed during the Indus River Civilisation, where the earliest evidence of dying dates back to 4000 BC. Though, today we are familiar with the typical bandhani style of concentrations of small dots dates back to the 6th century AD where proof of this style is found in the Ajanta caves.
Bandhani makes use of almost every color under the rainbow, though the main colors used are red, yellow, blue, green, and black. Nowadays Bandhani practiced only in the areas where it was developed – Sindh (Pakistan), Punjab, Gujarat, and Rajasthan (India). Bandhani is a technique of creating patterns in cloth by covering small pinches of fabric with thread and creating geometric patterns through the concentration of small dots. Another popular technique practiced in India is the Leheriya, which means,waves of the ocean. The leheriya is practiced in a few areas of Rajasthan and is created through a method of rolling, folding and re-rolling fabrics to create a wave.
In the contemporary day, you can find clothing made from shibori textiles with several brands in India. Our brand AMAR KOSA is vastly indulging in ethically sourced Natural Handloom fabrics like cotton, linen, hemp, flax, silks, and even organic cotton; infused with Hand block printing, Shibori, or Tie & Dye.
