Textile Treasures of Gujarat

Ahmedabad is the largest city in the state of Gujarat and has been shaped by both Hindu and Islamic traditions which can be seen within its architecture, crafts, religious monuments and cuisine. This morning, we will start our day with a Heritage Walk in the city. Wander through the Old Quarter, explore the old bazaars, capture the traditional heritage houses and architecture and visit the 19th century Swaminarayan temple and Juma Mosque. Continue to Ghandi’s Ashram, one of the many residences of Mahatma Gandhi. It was from here that Gandhi led the Dandi March, on 12 March 1930.

The day continues with a visit to the Calico Museum of Textile, home to an outstanding collection of Indian fabrics and textiles.

We start the day with a visit to Shreyas Folk Museum, a tribute to the indefatigable spirit of the Gujarait women who have added remarkable value to the Gujarati heritage with their soulful crafts and imagination. Displayed here is the art from various communities such as Kathi, Rabari, Ahir, Mer, Kandi, Vania and more. As we explore the museum, we’ll admire the colourful works of embroidery, wood carving, bead work, costumes and paintings. Later we’ll participate in a Kalamkari workshop, an ancient style of hand painting done on cotton or silk fabric, also known as Mata Ni Pachedi. The Mata-ni-Pachedi textiles capture various valued symbols and beliefs on a piece of cloth.

After lunch we’ll enjoy our first workshop with Karin in the hotel.

Set on the edge of the Little Rann of Kutch, the sleepy village of Dasada is a renowned bird watching destination bound by the Dasada Wildlife Sanctuary. Today we start our journey to Dasada, visiting a number of places en-route. Our first stop is Rani Ki Vav, an historical landmark approximately 3 hours from Ahmedabad in the town of Patan. This magnificent stepwell is designed as an inverted temple and adorned with 1,500 sculptures. The masterpiece of architecture is the only stepwell to be declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

After admiring the stepwell we will continue to Patan’s Patola Museum, ran by the Salvi family. Here we can witness Patola silk weaving in action as we watch a demonstration on the loom.

Our day continues to the Modhera Sun Temple, a Hindu temple in the village of Modhera. This temple was built from 1026 to 1072 CE and is a spectacular example of Salanki architecture. Admire the intricate stone carvings.

Later today we check into our resort Rann Riders in Dasada.

Today we will enjoy a jeep safari at the Wild Ass Sanctuary, home to the last of the Indian wild ass and the largest wildlife sanctuary in India. During our safari, we will see other kinds of wildlife including wolves, desert foxes, jackals, antelopes and birds.

We will return to the hotel for lunch before visiting a nearby village to see Kharapati Rabari embroidery. Rabari or ‘Rahabari’ means one who lives outside, and many of these communities live in circular huts known as ‘Bhunga’. Although they are a cattle rearing community, they also engage in embroidery; the men tend to work with leather whilst the women embroider garments and accessories. The different communities of Rabaris can be identified from the type and placement of embroidery on their odhanis, veils for head and shoulders. Rabari embroidery is characterised by chain stitches and a generous use of mirrors and the only material used is a simple needle and thread.

Today we will travel to Bhuj, a historical town known for its picturesque lake and ornately decorated houses. This town also features an array of ancient temples and palaces, including the magnificent white Shree Swaminarayan Temple, the Gothic-style Prag Mahal Palace and Aina Mahal, an 18th-century palace covered with mirrors and pieces of Venetian glass. It is an excellent place to exploring the surrounding villages known for their traditional handicrafts.

We will stop during the journey for lunch at a local restaurant and, later today, when we arrive into Bhuj, you’ll have time at leisure to explore the town.

This morning, we will visit a local artisan’s studio and learn about Bandhani, an expression used to describe textiles designed using a tie and dye technique where a plain fabric is tied tightly using thread in multiple locations prior to dyeing. This results in simple or complex patterns consisting of dots, squares, waves or stripes. Continue to Salim Wazir Textile Museum, a personal collection amassed over 50 years including examples of textiles and embroidery from India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and central Asia and Kanthas from Bangladesh. We’ll see that these textiles are embellished with threads of precious metals, intricate bead work, coins and motifs of flowers, birds and elephants.

We will stop for lunch at a local restaurant before heading to the village of Bhujodi, one of the major textile and craft hubs of the region. A large part of the Vankar community resides here and today we will visit Vankar Nanji Bhimaji, one of the traditional woollen and silk shawl weavers of the village. The demand for shawls has increased and not only do they sell products to some of India’s stores, but they also ship abroad to France and Italy. These shawls are popular due to their sustainable process from using natural dyes and creation of the shawls entirely by hand.

Our day continues in Bhujodi as we see some more Rabari embroidery before returning to our hotel in Bhuj for the evening.

Today we will participate in an embroidery workshop at Kala Raksha. This is a famous textile NGO with a focus on different art work with the use of embroidery. Kala Raksha’s emphasis has been on empowering women in the region by developing their skills in textile handicrafts.

Later in the afternoon we will enjoy a second workshop with Karin.

Nirona village is famous for the making of copper bells. This morning, we will visit and experience the skill-intensive process of tuning the bells. After, we visit Abduk Gafar Khatri, who belongs to the last remaining family of Rogan artisans, and watch him use a metal stick and some castor-oil based colours to create vivid compositions.

This morning we will travel to Ajrakhpur, a village in the Kutch district of Gujarat. Here we will see the age-old tradition Ajrakh, a unique form of hand block printing. Block printing is an ancient Indian textile tradition that has been kept alive in villages, and to this day provides a sustainable livelihood to the local families. The wood-blocks are hand-carved in elaborate designs and each colour is printed with a different block to complete the motif, with as many as 16 blocks to create a five colour design. Each piece of fabric is hand-dyed, block-printed and finished at Real Handicrafts Ajrakhpur. The textiles are treated with vegetable and mineral colours and used extensively on shawls and bedsheets. Every piece is unique.

After lunch at a local restaurant, we visit the Living and Learning Design Centre in Ajrakhpur, a pioneering new effort of the Shrujan Trust to preserve, revitalise and promote the wonderful craft heritage of Kutch. The galleries here highlight the variety of crafts – from textiles, pottery and stone craft.

Today we return to Ahmedabad. The long drive will include a number of stops to stretch our legs. This evening we arrive back at the House of MG hotel.

This morning, we drive to Pethapur village and witness the making of the Wooden Blocks that are used for the block printing seen previously.

After lunch, return to Ahmedabad and enjoy your final workshop at the hotel with Karin.