Colours from nature
THE ART AND CRAFT OF NATURAL DYES: Shakuntala Ramani; Pub. by The Kalakshetra Foundation, Tiruvanmiyur, Chennai-600041. Rs. 1000.
IN THE beginning was colour, colour which was and is spiritual and colours dictating seasons and moods conveying the very language of the soul. Colour derived from natural sources is the theme of the book under review.
With her expertise, years of research and hands-on-experience at the Craft Centre in Kalakshetra as its Chairperson, Ramani has brought out this valuable and informative book on the tradition of natural dyes which goes way back in history.
Natural dyes
In the ancient world the only dyes known were those from plants, trees and natural elements. Colours derived from nature have a certain depth which chemical dyes lack. Though it is impractical to revive all our age-old practices with the versatility of man-made products in the market today, herbal products cannot be sneezed at; more so because indigenous herbs continue to be used in the 21st Century in food, cosmetics and medicines.
It has reached such a screaming pitch that in the fashion world "vegetable dyed fabric" has become a fashion fad with a heavy price tag and eco friendly is a done-to-death word today.
Dyes in art
Natural dyes were taken into the realm of art as well, in the form of wall hangings and murals in fabric and paper in the temples of Andhra, Madhubani in Bihar besides others. The primitive tribes used them for decorating the body. Today henna leaves (mehndi) are used to paint beautiful patterns on the hands and the feet.
Once the art of weaving fabric was discovered, plant juices were used to colour fabric. An early text like the Brihat Samhita describes dyeing techniques. A distressing fact recorded by Ramani is that for two millennia, there has been no written record for recipes for natural dyes and the secrets have been handed down generations as an oral tradition.
Classification of dyes
Ramani explores the identification, extraction and the usage of dyes classified under three heads — vegetable, mineral and animal origin. "Kadaka poo" gives out a yellow colour; but did you know that it is the gall of the insects, which infest the tree that gives the deep yellow colour?
The chapter on dyeing lists recipes for natural dye preparation with references to the base materials one could use and the preparation of the fabric before it goes into the prepared dye and also some useful tips on successful dyeing. A compendium on natural dyes is a useful addition.
The beautiful colour plates serve to enrich the written matter.
Revival of the tradition
The future for natural dyes according to the author looks bleak since neglect and possible indifference have reduced the palette of vegetable dyes and a thousand-year-old tradition rusts. Ramani recommends that systematic studies be carried out to identify colour yielding plants and insects, which would make this craft a vigorous cottage industry and even if it were to cater to a niche market it would be a viable answer to chemical dyes. The technology of using the ancient natural dyes calls for serious study, which would enable us to retrieve to some extent the information lost.
In the words of the author, craft traditions reflect the soul of a nation and rooted as they are in the cultural ethos of the nation, natural dyes need no reason for their existence and importance in the lives of the people.
SABITA RADHAKRISHNA
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