Silver Filigree

ାରକସ

tarakashi

taarakashi

by Shobhit Katikia

Prologue The status of ‘Design’ as a term in India is not sub rosa which is hardly coherent to the common public; thus National Institute of Design, Vijayawada was brought to action so as to walk aside National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad in 2014 with a prodigious goal to be the torch bearer of design education in India and stimulate the abstraction of ‘Design’ in every Indian mind.

“India has a tradition and a philosophy familiar with the meaning of creative destruction.”, said the Eames on their visit to India. It is an undiscovered lode of sparkling inspiration and profuse knowledge. It houses a pandora’s box of indigenous techniques and applied arts which can solve some profound design dilemmas that the country is facing on a daily basis. Starting from the Bijou and stupefying ‘Lota’ to the gargantuan and intricate ‘Taj Mahal’, every aboriginal artifact under its shelter is befuddling and praiseworthy. All it needs is a bunch of excited miners with some shovels to dig out the hidden treasure of unique techniques and methods that have strengthened the backbone of Indian sense of aesthetics and functionality.

Craft documentation is a modus operandi engendered by NID to bring out the very essence of primordial aesthetics that has been passed and circulated through generations. With the course of never resting time, some of those crafts are losing their heart and deteriorating into oblivion. This is an attempt to keep them breathing and accentuate their value. The tool of observation and active participation is used to capture the delight and joy of making the craft as well as the challenges and pain points lying within. In the age of heavy molds, machines and hefty industrial processes, there’s still a vast land or lacuna for those primitive hand techniques which can boost the definition of ‘Design’ into a level unimaginable.

Hat Tips For a fact, it seems like a debt that could never be paid to National Institute of Design which provided such a brain transfiguring idea exposing people to the vast depository of undug knowledge lying right within their nativity. I consider the overwhelming amount of empathy and emotional attachement with our ingenuity gained through this course an elusive boon that could have hardly be achieved while keeping the pace of our footsteps limited to the corridor of the Institute.

It also is the page where I would like to pay my sincere gratitude to those artisans who took a major division out of their patience and tight schedule only to answer my never-ending questions. The most significant share of thanks must go to our faculties who not only ushered us through all the prerequisites and performance processes, but also were there to answer all the silly and trivial questions at the middle of their vacations just so that this book could be brought into a reality.

My heartfelt apology to those who I caused discomfort during the whole process; like the crowd that got mad because of my honking, the rickshaw walas who felt bad just because they could not drive faster and never meant to cause a road-block and all the others who felt uncomfortable of getting me their photos.

At the end of the page, a couple who would never take my regards for they feel like it’s the affection that should never be thanked, who put up with all my daily tantrums as well as provided me with a lot of water; Baba and Mama.

CONTEN ODISHA

Introduction History

Geography

F l o r a a n d Fa u n a

Natural Conditions Homo-Sapiences To u r i s m a n d Tr a n s p o r t Political System Arts and Crafts

C U T TA C K Introduction History To p o g r a p h y We a t h e r C o n d i t i o n s Maritime History Religion Industries Education Noteworthy Personalitie Odisha Highcourt Compound, Cuttack

Cuisine

NTS 02

03

06 07

Fa i r s a n d F e s t i v a l s

41

Arts and Crafts

43

INTRODUCTION T O S I LV E R F I L I G R E E

Furnace

127

Silver Rope

130

Silver Caps

132

09

The craft destination

51

Preparing Athaa

135

10

The workplace

53

136

12

Craftmen Profiles

55

Formulating the Acid Solution I n s p e c t i o n Wo r k f l o w and Material Sensitivity

138

Why a Ship?

140

13 14

P R E P A R AT I O N Procurement of Material

67

Processing of material

68

17

Melting

71

19

Wire Forming

77

20 21 24

s

ADDITIONAL I N F O R M AT I O N

MARKETING Introduction

144

Jewellers’ Profiles

145

Process

148

TA A R A K A S H I

25

Making the frame

92

34

Khanja

100

35

Jhalei

104

36

Detailing and assembly

110

39

Cleaning and Polishing

122

PRODUCTS

150

CHALLENGES

152

C O N C LU S I O N

154

Odisha

The Wheel at Konark

75% Literacy

ODI S H A

9 BIGGEST STATE th

Gaining it’s name from the prakrit (the middle indo aryan language formerly spoken in ancient India) term, Udra Bibhasha which roughly means the territory of Udra, the native people who set up the foundation for today’s Odisha, it has sustained a lot of dramatic events yet prevailing over all of them and it’s soul standing strong, still and sublime.

The Konark chakra is one of the wheels carved in the ratha (chariot) shaped Konark Temple, one of the 6 sun temples in india with 8 major and 8 minor spokes filled with profound intricate stone carving within. It stands for the never-ending forward movement of the state even through the hardest times; furthermore, it stands as the definition for the affluent skills and techniques those artisans of Odisha possess as well.

02

21 LOK 4.3 Crores People SABHA, 10 RAJYA 31% OF SABHA FOREST 40 ROYAL BENGAL TIGERS It has Odia as it’s official language which is one of the most ancient languages spoken inside Indian border, acclaimed as 1st Indo aryan language to make it as the 6th classical language by the government of India in 2014. its a language which has got similarities with the northern aryan languages like, Bengali, Hindi etc.in terms of pronunciation and application while it’s script has a dravidian influence over them having well bent sophisticated curves within their form.

It uses Konark chakra as it’s symbol to define it’s stand not only within India, but across the oceans.

ODISHI Dance

It’s a huge server containing a lavish amount of stories about the things it possesses; like it’s significantly unique temple architecture, it’s art and crafts, it’s geography, it’s decked out rituals et al. and sometimes multiple for a particular one to cause a stir in the atmosphere. They are just screaming to get paid some heed.

O DI S H A

03

History

07

Dhauli Peace Pagoda, Bubaneswar

History of the state starts even prior to 261 BCE when Mauryas used to rule over the lands. Ashoka had fought a battle involving a massive amount of bloodshed during that period known as ‘The battle of Kalinga’. Looking at the terrifying aftermath of the war, once dreamt of being a world leader, King Ashoka was heart-moved and had adopted a peaceful nonviolent life as a Buddhist. During his rule, he had persuaded ample amount of buddhist influence over the land and had made numerous Stupas, Dhauli being one of them, still stands erect on the surface of the state. Post that period, numerous other kings had attacked and built several monuments to aware the mass about their religion; for example the carving of jain caves at Udayagiri by Kharavela. The region kept on getting juggled by numerous dynasties and kings like Samudra Gupta, Shashanka and had been divided due to civil wars and other major influencing factors till the Somavanshi Dynasty started uniting the parts into one. The region was followed by the rule of Eastern Ganga dynasty whose kings made the Jagannath Temple in Puri and Konark temple as well. Ultimately, the land had been ceded by Alivardi Khan into the Maratha Empires in 1751. In between, there were numerous attacks on the hindu temples including, the Jagannath temple of Puri by the Mughals as an attempt to destroy the courage of the unbeatable Paaika Army Force.

ODI S H A Britishers took away the southern part of the state as result of 1760 Carnatic war and rest of it during the Second Anglo Maratha War. But the Britishers were served with a large number of disputes and rebellion from the natives. Few remarkable names from the list include Birsa Munda, Beera Surendra Saye, Jayee Rajguru etc. who foamed the mouths of the caucasians.

But during the English era, Odisha was broadly mixed with other states like Bihar, West Bengal etc. So under the torchlight of ferrocious leaders like Gopabandhu Das,

Madhusudan Das

04

Madhusudan Das etc. Utkal Sammilani was formed with a goal of a UniďŹ ed Odia speaking territory in 1903. The sheer pressure from the organization led the government to form the Bihar Odisha Province in 1912 and ended up the separation of current Odisha from it on 1st April of 1936 based on linguistic grounds with the governance of Sir John Austen Hubback. The remarkable day is still celebrated as Utkal Divas as a Government holiday all over the state.

Succeeding the independence of India in 1947, 27 princely states signed for the addition into Odisha.

Lingaraaj Temple, Bhubaneswar

ODI S H A

Geography Odisha lies on the east coast of India having bay of bengal to it’s east and spreading from Subarnarekha river in it’s north to Rushikulya to it’s south. It has a coastline of 450 kms having 4 ports within it’s track; out of which Paradeep Port is a major Indian port dealing with extensive import and export of goods. The coast also houses Chillika, the largest brackish water lake in Asia serving as a vast field for numerous seafood farmers.

Two Elephants in Shimilipal

Odisha is a state of farmlands having 60% of agriculture dependent population. It is majorly because the coastal plains are opulent with the fertile slits deposited by the six of it’s major rivers. Its one of the major rice producing state in the country and is rich with various other types of cultivations such as cotton, rubber, vegetables et cetera.

Three-quarters of the state is covered with mountain ranges and extensive forests (covering around 31% of all the lands), which give an address to a number of native tribals and a large number of biological species. But agonizingly Odisha is losing it’s green wealth at a rapid pace to timber smuggling. It has numerous tiger reserves and wildlife sanctuaries as well as a national park on it’s surface which serves as a hope for the entire state.

Paradeep Port

06

Flora and Fauna As portrayed in the previous page, Odisha harbors one third of it’s total top as the dense forest which accommodates countless biological specimens. Shimilipal National park itself has 1078 types of plants, 55 types of mammals, 304 species of birds and 304 from reptiles. It holds mammals like barking bear, common langur, four horned antelope etc. and most importantly, Royal Bengal Tiger. As per the last tiger census, there were 40 tigers here on black and white. Besides, Odisha is a habitation for 130 species of wild orchids which is a pretty big numeric. It has a zoological park as well as a botanical one for biological research and observations. The wildlife covers a large number of reptiles like king cobras, tricarinate hill turtles; the state also has a Mugger crocodile breeding program in Ramatirtha. In addition to that, It houses two wildlife sanctuaries dedicated to those crocodiles.

The highly populated plains house some common animals like stray dogs, cats, crows etc. The homo sapiences have domesticated cattle to fulďŹ ll their diary needs Looking at the amount of rice produced in the state, Central Rice Research Institute was laid down in Cuttack at the banks of Mahanadi to help hybrid the paddy plants to boost the productions for the farmers. Apart from that, Kalahandi district produces high quality cotton in abundance to cater the various textile activities like Cuttacki and Sambalpuri ikkat sarees.

ODI S H A

08

The coastal brackish water lake, Chilika serves as a resort for thousands of migratory birds like Eurasian Wigeon, Greylag Goose, Goliath Heron during winters flying from places like Caspian Sea, Lake Baikal and Russian Surfaces. The lagoon also has a small population of endangered Irrawaddy Dolphins. The Rushikulya convergence serves as vast field for a number of Olive Ridley turtles to lay down their eggs for incubation.

Shaal Tree

Olive Ridley Turtles

But with every jewel in it’s place, the habitat is challenged by some major threats like deforestation, hunting of animals and birds, illegal export of plants etc. which are causing serious pain to the local government and is affection the wealthy green vault of the state.

Natural Conditions Odisha, being a hot and humid state, however, witnesses 4 meteorological seasons i.e. Winter, Pre Monsoon, Southwest Monsoon and Northeast Monsoon. But locally the people believe to experience 6 seasons; Greeshma (summer), Barsha (Rainy), Sharata (Autumn), Hemanta (starting of winter), Sheeta (Winter) and Basanta (Spring).

Odisha is a cyclone prone state recording an affection from 5 super cyclones and 7 very severe cyclonic storms till date starting from 18th century. However, the terrain has deployed several coastal plantations to decrease the effect as well as is equipped with several cutting edge technologies for accurate tracking of the cyclone, awareness to the public and evacuation procedure. It also experiences numerous floods each year due to heavy rainfall and a complex network of rivers and their tributaries. However, the damage has effectively been controlled with a rise in the number of dams barrages.

Hirakud Dam, the longest of all, serves as a Dyke for the population and cities breathing around Mahanadi.

It rains cats and dogs during the monsoon and being a coastal state, Odisha also experiences irregular rain caused by the low pressures in the Bay of Bengal. But, despite, the internal and western part of the state onlooks a dearth in rainfall and water during Summer and the crops sustain a huge damage every year.

Aftermath of Cylone Phailin

Recent Flood in Mahanadi

ODI S H A

10

Homo-Sapiences 2011 census showed a 14% increase in the population resulting the ďŹ gure into nearly 4.3 crores of which approximately 50% people serve as male, an equal amount serving as female and a very few being transgenders. The population is scattered in the towns, villages and the valleys with fertile lands.

The dominant ethnic group is the Odia speaking mass with people from other linguistic groups being the minorities.

However, most of the people know Hindi as a linguistic medium to interact with the incoming mass from outside the border.

The mountain valleys serve as an address for a number of ancient tribes like Bonda, Saanthaala, Munda, Kandha etc. who use their vintage style of living far from the vanguard technologies and sophisticated health care services of the towns. Although they majorly depend on cultivation to earn a living, in addition, they hunt wild animals as well for their food.

The areas like Koraput, Kandhamal, Kalahandi etc. accommodating those people suer from a low literacy rate.

However, government and some private organizations are trying their best to get those people into the mainstream.

A Bonda Female

But the forests and the valleys have become the perfect place for Maoists to hide, who are labeled anarchists loaded with arms and ries. and apparently causing big trouble for the administration.

OD I SH A

11

Chillika Lagoon single handedly allures a plethora of tourists who come to indulge themselves within the several unique islands it houses and it’s extravagant migratory birds showcase and the aquatic mamals.

Nalabana, Chilika

ODI S H A Rathajaatra, Puri

Tourism and Transportations Odisha comes under the East Coast section of Indian Railways having a network of tracks connected to all the major cities. It has an International Airport in Bhubaneswar with flights to all the airports on demand in India and a very few for cross borders. Almost every village is connected through roadways and the National and State Highways connect popular places within. All those transportation facilities handle a hefty amount of tourists visiting various places within it’s perimeter.

The tourist places include a large number of religious temples including the historic Konark temple, a UNESCO world heritage site and a number of soothing beaches. In addition, numerous tourists like to relish the fresh air within it’s vast forest and wildlife and the number of waterfalls they possess. Some prefer the company of the native tribes in Koraput and Kandhamala etc.

The state has a lot of accommodation provisions starting from Dharamshalas to 5-star hotels and resorts to house the affluence of incomers during even peak times like major festivities; e.g. Rath Yatra.

Konark Temple, Puri

12

O D I SH A

13

Political System

State Assembly Hall

The state contributes 21 members to the Loksabha and 10 to the Rajya Sabha every 5 years. It has a legislative assembly consisting of 147 members to govern itself. The mass enjoys a well decentralized political system starting from The general bodies to Panchayat as it’s smallest unit running through Municipality and Jilla Parishads stirring up every environment once in a gap of 5 years. The elections are contested by various national and state level parties as well as local independent individuals. The state has witnessed a number of ruling parties post-independence including the current ruling body, BJD.

ODI S H A

14

Arts and Crafts As it’s ancient name, Utkala gets it’s name’s meaning to be affluent in terms of Kala (Arts), Odisha en-houses a number of performances and applied arts to beautify it’s wealthy cultural bank. Most common and popular examples include Odishi Dance, a classical dance form originated from the Hindu temples within the state, Silver Filigree work of Cuttack, the Ikkat sarees of Sambalpur. To complement all those, there are some less known wonders like Chhau Dance, Paika Dance performed by the ancient natives living in the villages and the high lands etc. Maniabandh Paata Saare, Pattachitra of Raghurajpur and the rich stonework.

The state also has witnessed some of the influential and fruitful writers like Godavarish Mishra, Fakir Mohan Senapati, and Pandit Bhima Bhoi, who defined the definition of Odia literature by streroiding it with numerous Prose and Poetries. But most of the ancient scriptures include things dedicated to the gods starting from Jayadev’s Gita Govinda (the lullaby for Lord Jagannath) to Sharala Das’s Mahabharat and Tulasi Das’s Dandi Ramayan, as they belied their knowledge to be god gifted. The legends of those authors are still narrated in every house of the territory.

Chhinnamasta Devi (A pose from Classical Odishi Dance)

989 CE

JUDICIAL CAPITAL

since

Silver City

Cuttack ୫୨ ବଜାର

OLD CAPITAL

The City of Brotherhood

THE

Fort ୫୩ ଗଳି

C U TTAC K

17

Cuttack is known for it’s vast network of narrow streets (gali) which amounts the highest in Odisha.

Sometimes, the streets are just as wide as 5 feet. The streets and ancient buildings within the city showcase a plethora of marketplaces, and wholesellig shops who claim to have everything that Odisha has seen till date. And to feed evidence to the claim, the city has a voracious appetite for marketing.

People buy stuffs ranging from as small as a sindoor container to huge electronic equipment irrespective of their financial status. It all originated from cuttack being the ancient capital thus serving as a vast ground for trading both indigenous and foreign objects in it’s history. All those things have gotten it it’s well famed name, ‘The city of babaan bazaar and tepan gali’ (The city of 52 markets and 53 streets).

CU T TACK

Cuttack is the second largest city of the state also having a glorious past of it’s service as a capital to the state since it’s foundation in 989CE by the Keshari dynasty. Gaining it’s name from it’s existence as a fort, Cuttack still has the remains of it’s identity as Barabati Fort, an archeological site excavated by the government in recent pasts. The defiled gate of the Barabati fort serves both as an identity and an emblem for the locals to be known throughout the state.

Cuttack is a noteworthy concoction of people from various linguistic grounds, the city holds a share of Sikhs, Bengalis, Telugus, Marwaris, and Gujratis as well as a large number of Muslims using Urdu. But it still has a vast community speaking native Odia as their first language which is used in every streets and home in the city. A large number of people living in Cuttack from their childhood use a type of Odia called Kataki Odia that uses a modified accent, some modified words and a lot of slangs within it’s set.

Cuttack has been known throughout the globe as the Silver City because of it’s eminent craft involving silver wires known as taarakashi. Hundreds of families belonging to the bania community have been using these techniques to make upscaled products with surprisingly intricate details.

With all those essence captivated within, the city still has a lot of troubles faced by the mass on a daily level to adress like the alarmingly increasing traffic withrespect to the narrow roads and hygine and healthcare issues, poverty. But the city is hell bent to tackle all those atrocities in the coming span of time having a crowd of stubborns as it’s backbone.

18

History The antiquity of Cuttack lays itself down as a military cantonment of The King, Nrupa Keshari as stated in the Madala Panji, A chronicle of the Jagannath Temple, Puri.

Archeological evidence suggest Cuttack turning into a capital of Raja Anantabhimadevadeva 3rd of the Ganga Dynasty in 1211 CE. Odisha saw Cuttack as it’s capital for a long period of time having the Suryavanshi Gajapati Dynasty, King Mukundadeva and even the Mughals and the Britishers en route after the end of Ganga Dynasty due to it’s secured geographical location which could make a defence on the capital easy. It also had the privilege to enact the seat of new Odisha Subah (Imperial top level province) under Shah Jahan.

It got under the British territory in 1803 as a capital of the Odisha Division. Even after 1948, when the capital was shifted to Bhubaneswar, it still acts as an administrative headquarters for the state.

Barabati Fort

CU T TACK

Topography Cuttack finds it’s sweet spot in the coastal region of the state being 20 kms north to the current state capital, Bhubaneswar. The town is a part of much larger, Cuttack District and surrounded by Mahanadi and it’s distributaries, Kathajodi and Birupa from 3 of it’s sides. It’s spread across an area of 192.5 sqkms and stands as the second biggest city in Odisha.

The city comprises of an ancient system of interconnecting narrow roads which causes a traffic jam on a daily basis, as a resolution to which, a residential township is being planned around the outskirts on the bank of Kathajodi known locally as CDA. The city is further divided into 59 wards for political and regional comfort involving better management of local disputes, maintenance of the area and organisations of elections.

20

C U TTAC K

21

Weather Conditions Cuttack experiences relatively warm weather with lots of humidity in the atmosphere as compared to other coastal regions like Bhubaneswar and Khordha. However, it gets affected by a heavy rainfall caused by both Monsoon airflow and the low pressure created in the seas. The rain often causes streets flood drenching every living and nonnliving thing drech top to bottom. It’s the most celebrated season in Cuttack because of the city’s inherited strong relationship with water. Also, Spread across two locally known Odia Calendar months, Ashadha and Shrabana ,the rainy season witnesses various much awaited traditional festivals like the Rath Yatra, Rajo and is considered an auspicious season for thousands of Shaiba (devotees of Shiva) to carry water from one temple to another to bathe their lord in the expectations of the grant of their Maanasika (Plead).

Summer and winter in the region are pretty harsh and straightforward having temperature as high as 47o C and alternatively as low as 14o C. The terrain also gets some conversance with a lot of weather-related issues like hefty amount of Sunstrokes during summer and waterborne and airborne diseases like cholera and chicken pox during the Rains and Winters respectively. The drainage system suers through a blockage due to heavy rainfall and the three bypassing rivers cause a ood to the lands with the swelling of Mahanadi during Monsoon.

CU T TACK

24

Maritime History The city is supported by a glorious past of rich marine communications having one of Odisha’s major river, Mahanadi passing by. Cuttack used to entertain as a humongous cross water market for numerous kinds of trading during it’s past. Sailors used to sail towards ancient islands like Java, Sumatra, Mala-dweep during the tide in the river and export the natively prepared trading objects.

Cuttack had a dedicated smaller ship industry during the British era to perform repair on wrecked vessels as well as building newer ones. By 1750, Cuttack came under Maratha rule and it grew fast as a business centre, being the convenient point of contact between the Marathas of Nagpur and the English merchants of Bengal.

As a remembrance for the triumphant trading history within the town’s locker, Balijatra, Odisha’s largest fair is organized every year on the bank of Mahanadi starting from Kartika Purnima of Odia Calander, the day sailors used to begin their voyage on.

As a salute to it’s well-heeled marine culture, the state government has set up a State Maritime Museum restoring the wrecked ship managing workshop once serving as the only point of marine interest for the Bengal Presidency. It has 10 galleries to showcase the city’s strong bonds with the water since it’s existence.

Baalijaatraa

C UT TACK

25

Religion Cuttack is a town of diverse culture with a miscellany of people from dierent backgrounds residing together; while most of them are the natives staying there from generations, rest are immigrants having numerous stories to tell about their meeting with the place. Nonetheless, the inhabitants are largely divided into several religions and their particular subdivisions irrespective of their origin. The mass is majorly divided into 4 major religions; i.e. Hindus, Musalmans, Sikhs, and Christians. A very few follow Jainism and Buddhism. As per the latest statistics are concerned, there are settle in 90% of Hindus, 7% of Musalmans and 2% of Christians and rest majorly being Sikhs and the other followers.

“

Islam was spread throughout the territory during the Mughal reign where conversion was in practice. According to the legends, during the attack of Kalapahada, the barbaric Mughal Commander, a lot of people from the territory got converted to the religion due to sheer pressure and terror.

“

The city has a number of masjids, dargahs and madrasas to oblige the community. The places like Qadam e Rasul and Jama masjid get crowded during the community festivals like Ramjan, Eid etc.

Cuttack holds a number of churches like the Church of epiphany and a very few Gurudwaras, popularly Gurdwara Guru Nanak Daatan Sahib to see to other religious minorities such as Christians and Sikhs respectively. It also houses a less known Digambar Jain temple for the Jain community. The churches hold cemeteries at dierent corners of the city, of which Gorakabar (meaning Cemetary for the whites) is the largest. The local Christian Organization also holds numerous educational institutes providing a concession for the Christians.

“

According to a popular story in the city, during the British era, there were a lot of stubborn Hindus who had turned down to accept Christianity as their religion. With the course of time, there was a cholera outbreak in Cuttack. As the Britishers had better medical facilities to comfort people, they took an advantage of the situation and started distributing the medication asking people to take them uttering the name of their God. People started to take the pills which were actually decoys and patently, nothing actually changed. Then the priests started distributing the actual medicines asking people to have them with the name of Lord Jesus. The naive population took it as a miracle and a lot of suffering people got converted to Christianity getting influenced by the act. A lot of people including the popular face Madhusudan Das wished to study abroad and as the Hinduism debarred the followers from traveling outside the country, they eventually lost their religion and were marked as Christians.

“

Goraakabar

CU T TACK

28

Odia Baptist Cuttack ChandiChurch Mandir

C UT TAC K

29

But, most of the population follow Hinduism as their religion, which was established by the several rulers from the dynasties such as Keshari, Ganga etc. With a religion having millions of deities to worship, the kings were roughly classified into major categories like Shakta (Worshipper of Mata Shakti), Shaiba (Worshippers of Shiva), Vaishnava (Worshippers of Vishnu) as maintained by the Eestha Deva/Devi (Prime God/Goddess) they were devoted towards. They had persuaded the people towards their own veneration during the course and had built several temples consequently.

“

The religion involves numerous strong beliefs and customs based on thousands of legends.

Such folklore narrates the construction of Cuttack Chandi Mandir, the most significant goddess of the city to be an order to the head priest of Kanika Region by the goddess herself in his dreams known as Swopnadesh.

“

Besides, there are several other temples for the religious community like Amarnath Temple, Dhabaleswar Temple, Jagannath Temples scattered all over the map. The city also holds a large crematorium at Satichaura for the interest of the mass.

Cuttack Chandi Mandir

CU T TACK

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The Jagannath Culture The name, Jagannath carries a union of two Odia words i.e. Jagat and Natha meaning the numen of the Universe. Thousands of Hindu Odias irrespective of their castes and devotions worship Lord Jagannath of Puri as their supreme leader from a time immemorial. The deities having 3 uniquely formed figures those are carved out of neem wood set an exceptional exception in the country where the idols are majorly made out of metal and stone. The Jagannath temple of Puri hides tons of stories and legend behind each of it’s minute detail to stir up the mind of the devotee. The Lord doesn’t only provide the people with religious hope, he serves as an ideology, a cultural idea, controlling and uniting every Odia heart towards a single identity regardless of their belief.

The temple has a large number of customs and traditions to be followed on a daily basis which is considered to make a mark on the daily lives of mass.

Cuttack takes a major influence from this divine culture setting up numerous palatial as well as minuscule temples all over the city. People name their newborns and even their shops after the worshipped. The deity holds a major impact over the state as a religious center.

Mahaprasad Prepared in Jagannath Temple

Temple Architecture The temples are considered the home for Gods and Goddesses which use the traditional architectural structure for buildings. All the temples consist 2 major buildings; i.e.

Deula, the place where the deities are seated and Jagamohana, The sanctum where the devotees wait and use to pray. Sometimes there’s also another building having a staired top, known as Pidhaa deula and some temples have a building serving as an entry gate to the main temple known as Prabesha Dwaara quite ornamented with different types of traditional art forms. Sculptures of different animals according to their mythological roles are kept inside the temple; e.g. Lions are used at the gate carrying the symbolization to protect the temple from outer threats. All the buildings share a form converging into a single point at the top like any other hindu temples in the country. One temple can contain many sub temples within it’s perimeter known as pindi.

All the temples have a Kalasha (an arrangement of connected orbs) at their top. It’s broadly used as a communication symbol according to the type of temple. If its a vaishnav temple, the kalasha will have a chakra (a wheel) while for a Shaiva temple, it will have a trishula (a fork) and atop shakta temples, the simple and plain kalasha is placed.

Jagannath Temple, Chandni Chowk, (During Rath Yatra)

CU T TACK

32

All the temples consist of a Neta (a triangular holy ag) attached to the Kalasha.

During old days when Shudras (the lower caste division) were not allowed into the temple, they got heartbroken and prayed to the almighty seeking for his darshan (Sight). The god himself/ herself told the clan leader in his dreams that he will be there at the top of every temple ying high and symbolizing the oppressed who are frail and weak yet strengthened by the environment to never bend down. And a sight of the neta from outside the temple will be equal to a sight of the actual deity.

Demolished Raam Mandir

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Caste System During older times when the kings use to rule the mass, Hindu society of the city was divided into 4 major castes; Bramhin, Kshatriya, Vaishya, and Shudras according to their duties and responsibility in the ecosystem. The Bramhins used to serve as the priests and used to teach while Kshatriyas used to fight and protect the kingdom. While the Vaishyas used to trade various objects within the society, the Shudras served the rest group as servants and perform activities like cleaning. For many years, the shudras had been oppressed by the society prevented from various amenities and always looked down to.

However, notably, the caste division still remains in Cuttack. They have got accommodation in the city according to the area their caste belongs to.

The streets have been named after their caste and sometimes, their sub castes like Behera Sahi, Mali Sahi. The first three classes have got mingled up in almost every field, but the shudra classes like Paana, Haadi, Keuta, Taanla are still looked down upon in the society. Though the government has reservations for them in various fields and they are no longer opressed, but they are still expected to clean the houses and streets and serve the majority as servants.

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Industries The Jagatpur region of the city serves as an industrial estate to the city running hundreds of small and large scale industries belonging to both government and private sectors. The area entertains some of the large food processing plants in Odisha like Pragati dairy industries. The area is a hub for various kind of metal works ranging from iron to aluminum

and sometimes brass. It exports a large number of parts and components to various bigger factories residing in Odisha.

Apart from Jagatpur, a few large-scale steel plants are there producing stainless steel sheets and pipes.

Industrial Pipeline to Supply Mahanadi Water

Education Cuttack holds a literacy score of 85% which is significantly more than the state average as well as a lot lesser than the whopping figure of 93% that the current capital Bhubaneswar scores. The city has hundreds of Government and Private schools to cater thousands of children with their primary level of study up to 10th. Most of the schools have Odia as a Medium of teaching. Some schools have the intermediate +2 level but there have established several colleges dedicated towards giving +2 level education broadly in 3 streams i.e. Arts, Science, and Commerce. Some of the notable colleges on the list are Ravenshaw +2 Junior College, Stewart Science college etc.

For higher studies, Cuttack has a handful of +3 level colleges which is a popular study pattern in Odisha and 2 Government and 1 Private run extensive Universities.

The state government managed Ravenshaw University that has a reputaion starting from as early as British era, the SCB Medical College, largest medical college in Odisha and The modern, Central Government run National Law University allure as 3 lustrous jewels on Cuttack’s educational crown.

Ravenshaw University

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Noteworthy Personalities Cuttack holds a virtuous list of several glorious names who are involved with it’s nitid past.

The unstoppable soldier and rebel who had made the Britisherscount on their luck during freedom fighting days, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose was born at Odia Bazaar and had spent his period of adolescence in the streets. The house owned by his father, Janaki Nath Bose is now converted into a museum having the collection of his childhood memories.

Madhusudan Das, who had taken an illustrious role in reformation and union of Odisha was a permanent resident at the Chandi Chhak. He had also run a shoe factory in here, named Utkal Tannery with a broad goal to promote the rich craftsmanship of Odias as well as make them industrially stronger.

Besides, the situation of High court of Odisha has given birth to a significant number of judicially successful prodigies.

Odisha High court Building

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Lifestyle The day starts as early as 4:00 AM in Cuttack when people start it o by daily morning exercises and gossip sessions.

Most of the middle-aged people are employed with either a government or a private job. A lot of people are Bepaari (businessmen) having small to large scaled shops.

Due to hot and humid weather, people generally prefer loose polyester or cotton pants and shirts which provides maximum undisturbed airow.

However, the females are bound with some traditional brakes making them wear saree. So they prefer their saree to be made out of cotton and the wearing style to be a bit loose.

The city holds numerous engaging entertaining mediums such as jogging trracks, play grounds, public parks at evrery locality to keep the mass away from boredom. Apart from that, there are various government and private institutions like shoping complexes, a mall and movie theatres for the occassional pleasure and requirement of the mass.

A recently opened Mall

Cuisine The city of the millenium is widely known for a snack called dahibara aloodum in every corner of the state.

Strange but its true that hundreds of People from nearby cities fly to Cuttack regularly just to have the taste of a plate full of authentic Dahibara. The dish is rather a simple one consisting curd soaked Vadas with a spicy potato curry atop. Sometimes it’s coupled up with some extra add-ons like bhujia, chopped onions etc.

Apart from Dahibara, people make traditional Odia cakes like Aarisaa Pithaa, Poda Pithaa, Mandaa etc. during festivals. However Pakhala, rice kept in water for a day is a major staple diet in almost every hold during the summers. It supposedly causes relaxation and restores all bodily fluid after a hot and humid day. Its often served with boiled spinach or baigana poda (mashed roasted brinjal).

Manda Pitha

The Muslim families make Mughal dishes like Biryaani and various kheers to celebrate during Ramjan and in the same way, the Christian community celebrates X-Mas making western style cakes and cookies and distributing them within everyone irrespective of their religion.

Aarisha Pitha

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Raghu Dahibara One of Odisha’s favorite delicacy, Raghu Dahibara aludam is a simple yet legendary dish made by Raghunath Behera, the owner and the chef who claims his signature dish to be a blessing of lord Jagannath himself. According to the assertion, its a boon that he gained from the Lord himself because of his devotion. However, it structured the dahibara culture in the state and nobody has ever been able to recreate his years’ old recipe.

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Fairs and Festivals Odisha known to be a place of bara masa teraparva (12 months and 13 Fesivals). So, Odias are best described as gala savvies. Festivals hold a significant locale in every Odia heart. People celebrate by making a number of sweets and visiting their relatives’ and friends’. Some go on a holy trip to some far pious place as well.

Balijatra, Odisha’s largest business fair is celebrated each year for 7 days during the winters to salute the 1000 years of the city’s glorious marine trading history. Various rides, Shows and Shops from almost every corner of the country to set up a stall and do some interesting money making while entertaining the crowd. The fair is spread across a span almost equal to 4 large football fields where there visits a crowd of 10 lakh people per day.

Baalijaatraa

Durga Puja

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Chariots getting prepared for Ratha Jaatraa

The most popular holidays celebrated in the city include Rajo, where people sacrifice their 3 days of holidays towards merry’making by riding the home made swings and devouring a numerous types of delicacies; Ratha yatra, a fascimile from the Jagannath Culture and tradition, where the deities from different Jagannath temples of the city go around on chariots to their recreation home, known as Sri Gundicha temple which involves thousands of stories and customs. Apart from that during autumn, Durga Puja is celebrated with lavish decorations and humongous idols of the goddess Durga all around the city. It’s a show that the city sets every year to sparkle a million eyes.

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Arts and Crafts Cuttack has obtained a significant role to enact on the stage when it comes to performing arts. The city has got the vintage Kala Vikash Kendra, one of a very few surviving theatres in the state and acting as an epicenter for various performance arts like dancing, classical music, and drama. The city holds Barabati Nritya Mahotsava (Barabati Dance Festival) each year which is one of the most significant platforms for the aspirants to give them a chance. The city has state’s only film Institute i.e.

Biju Patnaik Film and Television institute of Odisha running under the control of the state government.

The district administration holds a lot of district and ward level arts competition to make the school going children aware and interested about the same.

Apart from those, Cuttack, as a district showcases various crafts like Kataki Ikkat Saree, Bhatimunda Brasswares, Golden Grass Mats and the craft which the city gets one of its sobriquet, ‘the silver city’ from, Taarakashi.

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Kataki Ikkat The saree is prepared by a very few families in the villages like Nuapatna, Manibandha outside the downtown and are known throughout the state for their natural died red color (Prepared from shaal tree) and unique organic patterns such as Phula (ower), Shankh (conch) and various animals on them. The pata (saree) is called khandua pata and used to dress Jagannath up at Puri during various auspicious occasions.

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Brassware The Bhatimunda area near Jagatpur industrial estate houses a number of brassware making units who have been making them with hand tools since aeons ago. The units make Garaa (a lota shaped bigger water container) used in everyday household works in a village. They use traditional beating and forging method to manipulate the metal which requires a lot of time and patience

Golden Grass A very few families in Cuttack use the golden grass found abundantly in the region to weave into beautiful products like traditional shoes, ower pots etc. and majorly mats. The mats with various sizes are woven with jute ropes and used in almost every house of Odisha.

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Taarakashi The craft involves making product out of thin silver wire through various stages. The craft produces some decorative items like momentos, fruit baskets as well as ornaments like earrings, hair pins.

The craft holds a unique essential aesthetic value which is completely dierent than other metal crafts that attacts a number of customer

Introduction to Silver Filigree

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CU T TACK Taking its inspiration from the Indonesian technique of bending the metal wire into different shapes and making jewellery out of the wire mesh, the silver filigree work stands still in the modern world of advanced artistry and mechanical revolutions. The hundreds of year old craft used to flourish through patronage and hefty demand at a span from the recent history. Hundreds of families belonging to the Bania caste group in Cuttack depend on this sapid profession to earn a living.

The processes have been passed on to the respective heirs as well as the apprentices by the masters which get intervened for the good with more advanced methods and comfortable workflow.

which involves tightening of taara (wire). During the process, a product is formed through a very tight arrangement of wire mesh over a frame carrying the outline for the desired design. Because of this widely famous and unique silver craft, the city is popularly known as Roupya Nagari (The Silver City) throughout the country.

But like any other craft in India, this one is endangered too. The millennials are focused in looking for a job rather than carrying the craft forward. It’s not the mistake of anybody as the challenges for the craft are way too much.

However, looking at the demand for the filigree products,it’s safe to assume that oblivion is still years away from this vocation.

Taarakashi gets it’s name from the technique

But, why Taarakashi?

The answer is rather simple; Cost Effectiveness. Taarakashi products require at least 30% lesser raw material than the casted ones because unlike the solid products, Taarakashi objects carry a lot of voids within caused by the wire meshes. And as a cherry atop, it carries a unique style; an idiosyncratic aesthetic value that’s both visually pleasing and funtional.

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The Craft Destination Though the craftsmen performing taarakashi are scattered all around the city, the Mansigh Patna shelters a large number of them under a hood for hundreds of years. The place is at the heart of the city connected through a narrow street to it’s nearest market Mohammadia Bazaar.

The place is suitable for the Bania community to grow up together helping each other like lending of tools and machines and communicating about the labor price etc. The Area is also equipped with other amenities such as a wire pressing unit and most importantly, the location is just 1.4 kilometres away from Chandni Chowk. Cuttack’s major market dealing with trading of silver wares making it a lot easier for the craftsmen to get the order and deliver the product.

M O H A M M A D I A B A Z A A R , C U T TA C K

Location

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CRAFT D E S T I N AT I O N

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The Workplace As Don Norman would say, the workplace was not Unorganised but ‘Complex’. A plethora of things arranged in multiple boxes and shelves; according to their types and sometimes their uses.

Golden Grass mats are spread over the floor making a place for 3 craftspersons, called Kaarigars to sit and work on different workstations. Numerous short heightened tools are there for the convenience of working atop while sitting on the ground. There are 3 permanent kaarigars working full time i.e. 10 AM to 9 PM with 3 hours of break in-between; however, the workplace outsources external kaarigars when the workload is hefty.

The room is rather clumsy than cozy. While the workplace gets a fully fledged run, there remains hardly someplace for someone else.

But surprisingly the room is not at all uncomfortable either making the system efficient.

CU T TACK The workplace has a wall having pictures of not only Hindu gods, but also some Islamic inscriptions displaying the religious secularity of the city. Although being a Hindu, the chief kaarigar also worship those inscriptions regularly that according to the Hindu tradition.

The Pujaa (worship) is carried out twice a day and the work is begun only after that as a custom followed through generations.

The tools (dierent kinds of Chimutaa) arranged on a metal wire against the wall

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PROFILE

1

PRADIP KUMAR DEY CHIEF KAARIGAR Pradip has been working as a filigree craft man since he was 25 holding an experience of another 25 years. His father, Jibanananda Dey, a renowned artist used to run the workshop with a few apprentices and helping hands. Mr. Pradip used to observe him during his college days and thereby adopting the techniques one by one. After the death of his father, the workshop came under his authority as he was the only one among the 5 brothers to be interested in taking the craft forward while others joined in services in various fields.

As narrated by Mr. Pradip the state of the craft has changed dramatically since the era of his grandfather who used to make on-demand solid silverwares. His father was an artist who used to make taarakashi products by his own and went on shop to shop selling his works whereas nowadays, the craft is significantly dependent upon orders and patronage though the techniques and production rates have been roughly the same from that time.

PROFILE

2

D E E PA K K U M A R D E Y A S S O C I AT E K A A R I G A R Mr. Deepak, the enthusiastic youger brother of Mr. Pradeep Kumar Dey has been helping his older since he was in his college. He descibes himself as a failure flunking his dream of getting a suitable job. Having an experience of 10 years in the craft gained mostly from his father, Mr. Deepak specialises in every aspect of it starting from welding to making khanjaa. He works for his elder brother as a full time worker getting Rs.8000 as a monthly wage.

“Who become craftsmen? only the ones who have missed everything life has offered in the way.” goes the sailor narrating his voyage, “The craft has no future just as the people involved with it. You dont get a security, no incentive and the earning goes bleaker with every day of your old age. The amount of energy, time and patience required for the job is not even close to comparable with what you get out of it.”

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3

KRUSHNA CHANDRA SINGH A S S O C I AT E K A A R I G A R The 70 years old old man, having a work history of whoping 50 years had joined workshop as an apprentice under Mr. Jibananda Dey and turning into a full time worker later. The Yoda, even with his decreased body strength is a master of filling the frame with intricate patterns known as Khanjaa. He’s the fastest in the particular field having sensitive hand movement and certain knowledge. As a Keuta (fisherman) by Caste, he had always been looked down upon in the society during his past. Determined not to be a part of his hereditary profession, Mr. Krushna had joined the taarakashi squad when he was 20. He had always been quite satisfied with his profession as it served as an escape towards his prosperity and respect in the society.

According to the craft person, the currentgeneration is nothing but a bunch spoiled wanna be foreigners turning a blind eye to their own wealthy culture and traditions; thus leaving the craft in a vulnearable state.

LPG TORCH

THE WELDING WORKSTATION

SUAAGAA STICK AT H A A

C YC L E SPOKES

TURN TA B L E

ASBESTOS SHEET

The most used to workstation put into service for welding the parts together and heating of the objects. The asbestos sheet on the turn table (Used to reach every corner of the object easily without changing the posture) absorbs the heat of the welding torch resulting into no heat emmision that can ruin one’s day.

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THE FURNACE WORKSTATION DHALAA BUCKET OF COAL

WAT E R C O N TA I N E R

B H A AT I SHAALA

ANGAARA

PHUNKA NALI

The worktop is used for melting the material and molding kaathi (silver sticks) out of it as well as hardening the wire. It has a water container to bring down the heat of the charcoals so that they can be used again and it also serves as a great safety equipment if anything goes south

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KHANJAA TABLE

REQUIRED TOOLS

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FINISHED PA R T S

FRAMES TO BE FILLED

IRON P L AT E

WIRES TO BE USED

LOW H E I G H T STOOL This is the place where the frames having the outline of the design are ďŹ lled with complex patterns. The patterns are made out of thinner wire and placed tightly within the frame using required tools. The small table top prooves to be a great ergonomic solution for the workers who have been accustomed to working while sitting on the ground.

DEBRISES

POLISHING TABLE FOAMED WAT E R

LOW H E I G H T STOOL

Once the product is made, it’s polished to be given a glossy surface to the wire. The polishing is done with a brass bristled brush and an iron rod against the low table.

BRASS BRISTLED BRUSH

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DHOTI

GAMUCHHA

VEST

Used to wipe the sweat out from body

Clothing

LU N G I

Due to hot and humid weather, the craftsmen prefer wearing loose clothes like traditional dhoti, lungi as well as loose pants and shirts which can expose their body as much as possibleto the atmosphere. During nights which are relatively colder, they don loose shirts on their upper body while the lower body clothing remains the same

TA A RA KAS H I The art of taarakashi derives it’s luminence from a system of processes and their sub-processes to stand straight as an intriguing and eminent craft. These tedious yet effortwothy processes serve as building blocks to baptise the product with that most wanted ‘wow factor’. Every process is significant, uncompromisable and filled with a plethora of minute details. Its considered the responsibility of the kaarigar to take complete care of the each stage.

The process starts with an order from the Jewellers at the market as the craft heavily depends upon patreonage to fill it’s lungs. As narrated in the contents,

taarakashi comprises of two vital processes; Preparation of raw materials and Minting of the product. Those two processes come with their own set of smaller divisions like Melting of material, Building the frame etc. Once the product is ready and quality tested, it’s delivered to the market to gain public interest.

Sensitivity towards the material is a cardinal practice exercised throughout all the stages. The material is handled and applied efficiently in order to ensure minimum loss for silver is a very expensive material to waste.

Why Silver though?

Silver is used for the craft mostly because of it’s soft, malleable and highly ductile nature. The metal is significantly cheaper than it’s nearest ornamental competitor, gold with a high lustrous value. The metal melts down at a relatively lower temperature making it handy and comfortable to process.

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Preparation of Materials

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Procurement of material Distributors a.k.a. Gaadi buy silver bars weighing 1-2 kgs from the bank and mold them into biscuits of 500 g for the local karigars. The karigars get those silver biscuits from one of the six such gaadis in cuttack and further process them with their own tools and machineries to make taara (wire) from it. The karigars get proper receipt of the purchase indicating that the silver biscuit is legitimate.

The silver collected is of 90 carat having low lusture on the surface due to residual deposit.

They come in a size roughly around 8cm x 4cm x 2cm. a 500 grams silver biscuit as purchased from a gaadi

P RE PA RAT I ON

Processing of material

f ile

ch h en i

h amme r h e ad

h at u d i

TOOLS USED The silver biscuit is then cut into smaller pieces using appropiate tools and techniques for convenience and ease during melting. It is struck hard with a chheni (chisel) and hatudi (hammer) which requires enormous eort and produces a lot of metal ringing sound.

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The pieces having sizes roughly varying from 2-3 cms are then collected together and weighed to inspect the amount of material lost or for any missing pieces and then kept aside to be melted and re-formed into kaadi (sticks) so that the wire can be made out of it.

P RE PA RAT I ON

“The bar is broken into pieces so as to ensure that while heating, the temperature spreads uniformly rather than getting concentrated over one particular point. This makes the melting of material faster. In addition to that, one particular size of crucible can be used for every size of silver biscuit.�

The pieces derived from the 500g silver biscuit

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Melting

Taatiya (Crucible) and Ghodani (Cover) Used to contain the silver pieces while melting

Pa at a

P h u n ka Na l i

S h a n dua sh i

Ch at u

Phunka Nali is used to provide the initial airow while lighting the furnace up.

Shanduashi is used to move the crucible around and Chatu is used to manage the coal pieces (Grabbing and arranging) during the process and Paata is used as a stirrer when the metal melts Shaala [Left] and Bhaati (Furnace) [Right] used to heat the crucible containing metal

TOOLS USED

P RE PA RAT I ON

Thick petroleum oil known locally as mobil.

It doesn’t let the molten metal stick to the mold.

Dhalaa (Mold) Used to pour molten silver in order to give it a shape. There are different kinds of molds according to different needs. Some are used to make long kaadi (sticks) while some are there to make smaller ones. There’s also a special one to make silver plates instead of cylindrical ones.

Suaagaa Its a carbon compound which catalyses the heat when added

Coal Coal is used because of it’s capability to provide a lot of heat in less time and effort as well as it’s cost effectiveness

The silver pieces are collected in the taatiya (Crucible) and the furnace is layered with an initial layer of coal which is heated with the gas torch. Then the crucible is placed at the middle of the flame with another layer of coal around it. The shaala is rotated continuously to provide enough oxigen to the flame.

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The suaaga is added in-between the heating and the molten metal is stirred occasionally to ensure uniform melting and so that no piece metal is left, forming a lump. The crucible is covered with the ghodani to contain the heat as well as prevent coal pieces to fall inside

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The silver melts at a temperature around 1000 degree celcius. It takes around 500 grams of coal to melt down 250 grams of silver.

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The dhalaa is lubricated with a few drops of petroleum oil and the molten metal is poured into the mould using the shanduashi. Once the kaadi is formed, it’s taken out of the mold and cooled down instantly in the sulphuric acid solution.

Silver Kaadi (Sticks)

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Wire Forming The kaadi (sticks) are then taken to a mill to be processed further. The enormous machine presses the kaadi again and again to eventually form it into a wire. It uses a pair of rollers having decreasing depth of channels. The Kaadi is pressed through the first channel and eventually squeezed through others till the required radius of wire is achieved.

“The rusty old man is there since 1970”, says Anant Kumar Sahoo, the operator, “My father had bought this machine from hyderabad when I was a child and It was first of it’s kind in Cuttack. It comforted almost all the filigree workers by reducing their workload by 30%.”

The machine is optimised for silver sticks and plates. There are currently 2 such machines currently operating in Cuttack benefiting a large community of Tarakashi Kaarigars.

The wire forming machine

P RE PA RAT I ON

Wire Gause Used to measure and achieve the required amount of wire radius

The kaadi is inserted in the first groove

The pressed stick is moved to next grooves

Wire is moved to the final groove

Oil Dipped cloth It lubricates as well as cools down the wire

The formed wire is arranged into a coil

The formed wire is pressed into a flat one

The wire is hardened by heating and cooling down

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79 The machine has two kinds of pressing units. One is for minting wire and the other one forms flat and thin belts of silver. Both of them work on same principle.

The flat 0.5 mm thick wire, produced directly from the machine is used to make frames for the filigree work because of it’s durability and strength. It hold the intricate patterns made with thin and fragile wires.

The part forming cylindrical wire

The cilindrical wire is further processed in-house to get flat but thinner wire. Its used for the intricate ornamentation and filling of the tarakashi structure.

cylindrical wire

The silver belts produced at the other end of the machine play a paramount role when it comes to reinforcing the tarakashi structure.

They support and hold together the parts and decrease the fragility of the product dramatically.

The part forging silver belt

silver belt

0.5 mm Thick Flat Wire

Making The 0.25 mm Flat Wire The process consists 2 sub processes

MOST USED SILVER LINEARS

1. DWINDLING THE WIRE The cylindrical wire is further narrowed down using a mechanical wire pulling machine which makes it ready for flattening.

ALLOY PLATE

2. FLATTENING THE WIRE The thinned down wire is pressed using a manual hand driven pressing machine which presses the wire between two heavyweight rollers and forms the required wire.

0.5 mm FLAT WIRE

0.25 mm FLAT WIRE

Dwindling of the wire

Brass

h a mmer head

h atudi

plier

Oil It lubricates as well as keeps the wire cool during the process

HAND TOOLS USED

g ri n d i n g s ton e

Iron

Janta Used to pull out the wire through it. It serves as a standard for the wire of new diametre. The iron ones are no longer in use as it decays fast making the holes wider.

One end of the wire is grabbed and made a loop (the loop acts as a nice handle to turn the wire eortlessly). The end is made straight and sharpened on a hammer head with a hammer and a grinding stone respectively. The end is inserted into the desired hole of the janta and pulled from the other side by a chimutaa so that the wire passes through it with a little eort signaling that the wire can be narrowed down. The wire is then set on the wire pulling machine and the machine pulls the wire through that tiny hole giving it the required diametre. The thinner wire is then directed into a blank spool.

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The freshly minted wire is arranged into a coil and heated in the furnace till it turns red hot. The wire is then cooled instantly with diluted sulphuric acid solution. This makes the wire hard and it looses all it’s elasticity; thus making it easier to manage in future

P h u n ka Na l i

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Flattening the wire

The dwindled wire is pressed in a manual hand driven pressing machine which uses two vertically placed tight rollers to turn the wire into a at one. It requires overwhelming amount of muscular force to rotate the rollers while the wire is getting prepared

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Coiling and Hardening the wire

The attened wire is coiled and hardened by heating and cooling down. After taking out of the sulphuric acid solution, it’s dried with the remaining heat of the stove.

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Making Janjeera (Zig-Zag Wire) Half of the attened 0.25 mm wire are converted into zig-zag shape for making janjeeraa used during the ornamentation and ďŹ lling of the pattern in later stages.

A special kind of mini hand tool is used to form it which uses two cylinders with horizontal teeth teeth placed verticaly and complementiong one another. A lever is attached to the bottom gear allowing it to rotate by hand. the at wire is put through one end of the roller and the roller re-shapes it into a zigzag wire which is called janjeera.

The re-shaped wire is then heated and cooled down instantly to be made hard and more plasic.

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Devising the Alloy Plate

The copper plate is made outside as copper requires a lot of heat to melt down; which is hard and unecomomical to do with the in-house furnace.

Copper is bought from the scrap sellers and hammered to evacuate the free space within. Then it’s mixed with equal amount of silver and heated in a crucible. The moltem metal is stirred well and molded into a at stick of alloy

P RE PA RAT I ON

The stick is then taken to the formerly described heavy duty pressing machine which forms thin and long belts out of it.

The plate is used to make stronger parts of the product and reinforcing it.

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Taarakashi

TA A RA KAS H I

Making the frame

ch im u taa

pli er

c utter

heavy iron pl ate

hammer ru le r

Hammer is used straighten the wire. Chimutaa and plier are used to bend the wire and the cutter cuts it. The ruler is used to measure the wire in order to bend it and the iron plate serves as a base for all the work.

TOOLS USED

Keeping the design in mind, the wire is measured and marked and the bends are formed.

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The frame serves as an outline for the design of the product. Its made with the 0.5 mm at wire and it provides space for the intricate ornamentation inside. It consists the combination of numerous organic and geometric shapes. The shapes provide an aesthetic value to the product as well as strengthen the structure.

TA A RA KAS H I

The basic outer part of the frame is made ďŹ rst by bending the wire at points and forming it into a loop.

The loop is then closed by gas welding the two ends together using a binder called athaa which is a mixture of tiny zinc plate pieces, water and the before mentioned suagaa. A piece of zinc alloy is placed at the joint. The surface tension of water keeps the piece intact. The gas torch is used to melt the piece at the end, fuse the two ends together and close the loop. Suaagaa acts as an catalyst to accelerate the heat.

The loop is then dipped in sulfuric acid solution and cooled down. The prepared loop is then ďŹ lled with outlines of shapes at the later stage.

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Building the Internal Structure

P li e r

File

Once the outer frame is ready, The outline is filled with the shapes that come together to form the design. Different tools are used to mint those shapes. The plier is used to bend the wire whereas ring steels of different diametres are used to form the circles. The hammer and the heavy iron base are used to beat the wire into perfect shape

Smal l er Ring steel

Ha m m e r a n d Iro n B a s e

Big g er Rin g Steel

TA ARA K AS HI

97 A small piece of wire is cut and bent into a small circle which is to be used in the design.

Fractions of the wire are subtracted continuously till the desired shape is achieved. Then the wire loop is opened back into the wire. More wire pieces of the same size are cut according to the number of same shapes that is required.

The wire pieces are made into several circles of the same diametre. The technique acts as a very simple way for mass manufacturing.

Other shapes areformed using the above technique and the frame is prepared for welding

TA A RA KAS H I The frame with the internal structures are arranged on an asbestos sheet over a turn table. The asbestos sheet doesn’t heat up while the welding is performed as well as it does not allow the silver frame to stick onto it when heated.

On a different plate, zinc chips are cut from a belt of zinc mixed with Athaa (Glue), prepared from suaagaa powder and a little water. Zinc has a much lower melting point (about 450 degree celcius) than of silver (about 1000 degree celcius) thus fusing into the joints much before the silver starts melting and deforming. It also provides higher tensile strength to the joints once the welding is done, ultimately providing the structure with more durability.

The zinc pieces are then organised over all the junctions of the structure; each at one. The surface tension of the water present in the athaa help the chips to hold their position.

The torch is lit and the heat is applied all over the frame first. Then the flame is guided to the joints where the zinc chips are kept. The suaagaa present in the athaa acts as a catalyst to throttle up the heat resulting the zinc to melt faster. The sharpened end of a cycle wheel spoke is used to check and rearrange the elements for any error.

The welded frame is then put into diluted sulfuric acid solution to be cooled down.

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Khanjaa Here comes the most patientful and delicate job of silver filigree that makes the craft catchy and sui generis of all metal work. It involves bending the thinner wire into different patterns with hereditary essence and laying them down very carefully into the frame; thus making it crowded for beauty.

Khanjaa carries the meaning, ‘to fix things into something’. So the patterns are fixed and packed into the frame. The stupefying amount of mallebility that silver posesses comes handy over here. The wire is bent and pulled tight in order to make some of these patterns. The tiny pieces are tight fitted into the outlined shapes. The process not only defines the unity of the form, but also proves to be functional while carrying it around before welding. If the fitting is loose, there pertains high chances of the design falling apart.

The patterns used are exquisite and remain one of their kinds which were developed by the previous generations keeping in mind the repetition, rythm and harmony of the visual language they create together with respect to the limitations they posses because of the form and material.

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Making Chakree

The janjeera is attatched with the normal thin wire and given a spiral shape. The structure is tightened by ďŹ xing the index ďŹ nger at the centre and puling out the thin wire.

The cutter and the chimutaa (forceps) play an important role during this process as they help forming the shape precisely and awlessly.

TA A RA KAS H I

Jhalei This is the process where the inside-patterns are stuck with the frame. It’s a very fragile process requiring a lot of attention and concentration. The pattern can melt if the heat is not spread properly which can cause a major loss as silver is a relatively expensive material.

The prepared design is dipped in athaa (a mixture of suaagaa and water) and then covered with zinc dust (procured from zinc processing mills). The model is then brought under heat so as to make the zinc dust melt down into the joints and binding everything together and providing strength to the structure.

It involves several steps and each step comes with a package of apparent errors. Too much of water in the solution can take a long period of time to melt the zinc down whereas a little water can accelerate the heat thus burning down the silver. Likewise excess of zinc dust can block the holes making the model anaestheic while a little will lead to increase in the fragility of the design as well as making it prone to disintegration if the joints are loose. Attentive handling of the structure is also needed to be performed while dipping in athaa as there persists a change of the model getting dismantled.

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As the process requires a lot of athaa, the same is prepared by abrading the suaaga stick on either the floor or on a flat file. The paste is collected in a small plate and then transferred to a bigger container which can hold the model for dipping.

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The water of suitable amount is added to the pate and the designs are dipped in the solution one by one. Those are rinsed thoroughly with the solution by to and fro motion of the container.

The models are taken out of the container and prepared for the next process i.e. sprinkling of zinc dust throughout the surface.

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The models are kept over a sanduaashi so as to conďŹ rm no loss of the athaa in the process. Because, lesser amount of athaa can lead to non-melting of zinc particles. The zinc dust is sprinkled pinch by pinch till there gets laid down a thin layer of zinc dust all over the surface. The structure is then transferred onto a wire gauze (a wire gauze holds the heat thus speeding up the welding process unlike asbestos sheet) and then onto the asbestos sheet on the turntable.

The whole thing is heated slowly and steadily until the zinc starts melting and it becomes dry. The models are got down the turntable and re-dipped in athaa and the process is repeated until the zinc particles melt down completely. The design is then cooled down in diluted sulphuric acid solution.

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Detailing and Assembly Once the main frame and all the sub frames are ready and jeweled, they are collected together for the necessary tweaking which will allow them to serve as different components to be used for the fabrication of the final product. Each different product comes with it’s different need for assembly thus making each assembly process almost completely different than the other. Like the construction of a chakra requires different knowledge, skill sets and tools than of a Jagannath Statue. Here there will be discussed the methods for a Boita (boat) that carries the symbol of Cuttack as a marine history dipped ancient city.

It pivots around numerous sub-processes which include reforming and re shaping according to the final product, making details such as tiny support rings for roping of the sails, making the screws etc. which will support the overall form. attatching other components such as a base plate, the central mast which are made out of flat silver belt.

Every process may require some welding which binds the parts together as well as some movable parts are there making the product interesting as well as dismantlable which make it mobile.

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(Re)Shaping the hull

Both of the frames are reshaped using a ring steel and beaten by a hammer.

Then the front and rear edges are given an inclined angle using a ďŹ le so that they can ďŹ t in together.

A small piece of wire is then used to bind together the meeting edges of the hull.

TA A RA KAS H I

The hull is then kept on the turntable with the help of supports and tiny zinc pieces are kept at the joint and both of them are stuck together by welding. The same is done with the other end of the hull making it a complete unit.

The component is then cooled down with the sulphuric acid solution.

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Making the base

The base of the ship is made from a thin copper alloy plate called patra (leaf). The base is attened ďŹ rst by beating with a hammer and the plate divided according to the size of the base and marked with a sharpened cycle spoke. The plate is heated and hammered to remove the folds and the base piece is cut out according to the line.

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The base leaf is folded into half and the centre is marked with a cycle wheel spoke to be used in future for placement of the mast.

The base of the hull is rubbed on a ďŹ le to be made uniform without any bumps and kept upside down on the turn table.

Zinc chips are placed on the border of it and the base is welded. Excess of the silver plate is trimmed.

Using the ‘Bahi’

Bahi

TA A RA KAS H I

Bahi is a tool used to develop cylindrical and slightly conical shapes with smaller cross sections (which cannot be beaten out of ring steel) even when the structure is complete with the patterns within. Its like the opposite of a ring steel which uses concave depressions than convex surfaces. The tool has several semi-cylindrical channels and some unparrallel ones (for forming conical shapes.

To make the mast for the hull, a piece of silver plate is taken out and wrapped around a narrow cylindrical surface and beaten with a hammer while turning it slowly. This is to make sure that the plate is wrapped around itself properly without any aws making a rough cylinder. Then the whole piece of mast is beaten throughout being kept on the converging channel of the bahi making it nice converging slighly conical axis.

The already ornamented sails are beaten on the cylindrical depression to gain them a curvature.

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Setting up the Mast

A hole is created at the middle point of the base as marked before. Two tiny pieces of the thin silver plate are cut and one of them is wrapped around a cylindrical surface and beaten on an iron base to be given a slightly conical form. Its reshaped until it makes it through the hole and remains slightly smaller diametred than the base of the mast.

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The prepared screw is checked for the snapping into the mast and resized accordingly. The screw is then attatched to the other small piece of silver plate in a perpendicular fashion.

Once the screw gets cooled down, it’s inserted into the hole and welded with the base.

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Detailing out the flag The flag carries a very significant detail which proves be very helpful and functional as well as it adds to the overall aesthetics of the product.

These are 2 small rings just at the bottom of the flag stuck to the flag stick. They not only act as stoppers to prevent a part of the flag dropping inside the cylindrical hole of the mast, but also as a provision for further wiring of the mast with the hull which makes the structure balanced on it’s own despite of the presence of movable parts.

A piece of 0.5 mm wire is cut to be made the supporting stick for the flag and 2 small rings are formed out of the same type of wire and placed at their respectice places. Tiny zinc pieces are arranged over the joints and the parts are welded together.

The sails are set on the mast by direct welding and all the parts are assembled together for ďŹ nal inspection. Once its done, the parts are sent for cleaning and polishing.

TA A RA KAS H I

Cleaning and Polishing All the major processes finally come to an end with cleaning up and polishing the components. It requires some simple tools such as an iron rod, brass bristled brush, some chemical solutions like sulphuric acid and some natural organic stuff like itha phala (a locally collected fruit) with presence of a lot of water.

The components are made red hot with a gas torch and dipped in diluted sulfuric acid solution. The sulfuric acid disintegrates all the dirt particles from the models and reacts with silver in presence of heat forming a superwhite layer of silver sulfate over the surface which makes the product look visually appealing. The process is repeated 3 times to ensure every corner is covered with the white residue.

Ag + H2SO4

Iro n Ro d

AgSO4 + SO2 + H2O

The components are then collected and washed with water mixed with itha phala. The slipperiness of the solution proves to be handy while brushing off the surface. Finally the model is rubbed with a handy iron rod which gives the surface a shiny reflective finish so that together with the matte white surface inside, it gives the viewer a soothing display.

Ith a P ha l a

Bra ss Br ist l ed Br ush

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TA A RA KAS H I Ultimately, the pre-fabricated daudi (silver rope) is threaded from the ag to the holes in the hull.

The tension in the string makes the product stable yet convertible. This also gives the user an option to rotate the mast if he/she wishes to. The product goes through a ďŹ nal stage of inspection and scrutinizations for any apparent error or malfuntion as well as the strength and delivered to the sellers.

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Additional Processes & Informations

Maintenance of the Furnace The furnace used in melting the metal or heating substances is a quintessential jugaad being prepared in-house with a less investment for a superior usability.

The furnace is made with a teracotta pot used for planting (Gamla), radial iron grid and a batch of teracotta clay hoarded from the river bed. The pot gives the furnace a form and structure and the rack arranged at the middle of the pot supports the circular arrangement of the clay over it having a hole in the middle.

Another void is punched afterwards at the bottom of the pot once the top part is complete. It serves as an air inlet for shaala.

TA A RA KAS H I

But this home made commodity requires a bit easy service on a daily basis to give it’s 5 times back to the user. As the terracotta clay used to make the bhaati (furnace) is not baked to it’s strength, it developes several tiny cracks on it’s surface under the exposure to relatively a modicum of heat due to drying. So if ignored, those cracks can get bigger ultimately making the whole thing unusable. So those cracks are mended with clay slurry regularly to ensure the longetivity and durability of the furnace.

The clay slurry called lipa is prepared by mixing the fine grained teracotta clay (kaoline) with water. The clay is gathered from the banks of Mahanadi by the potters and sold. 2 kgs of clay is mixed with half a bucket of water properly and apllied on the cracked surface of the furnace. A cloth is dipped in the slurry solution to be used as a tool for it. Larger craters are mended by applying the sit down clay at the bottom of the bucket by hands.

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Once all the cracks and cratters get mended properly, The air inlet at the middle of the furnace top is cleaned for any remaining clay particles and pellets with a cycle spoke. The furnace is left to dry for a while before starting o with the next assignment.

Contriving the Silver Rope The daudi (rope) is prepared with a hand tool optimised for twining metal wire to form the same. The middle of the cylindrical silver wire is turned around a iron stick and the two ends are inserted into the hand tool. The string is pulled tight and the lever of the hand tool is rotated till it intertwines the two strings perfectly forming a nice rope. To be mentioned, it involves a prospect of over rotation of the lever which can cause the thread a breakage whereas an insuďŹƒcience in rotation can cas result into a loose one.

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Forming the Silver Caps (Hemispheres) The silver caps a.k.a. topa are used in various places during taarakashi for ornamentation purpose. They are made from little disks of silver cut from the copper-silver alloy. The alloy is presses into a belt which is divided into parts and each part is made go through a pressing and cutting machine which cuts small discs out of these belts. The dics are then processed and beaten in a bahi (a cube having hemispehric dipression of various sizes) with a hammer and a nail like iron tool called khila. The prepared caps are then used in multiple places in dierent products.

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Once the discs are cut, they are collected and kept together on a wire gauze . The wire gauze is then blazed on the bhaati (furnace) till the disks become red hot. This process is essential for the hardening of the material which makes it more platic and less springly. The discs are dipped in a steel bowl of water and the bowl is heated till the water starts boiling. The metal pieces are treated with concentrated Nitric Acid to remove all the dust particles and dirt. Parallely the bahi is set up and stabilized on a wooden platform. The discs are beaten on one of it’s hemispherical depression with khila and hammer till it gets turned into a nice little hemispherical piece. The process is repeated with all the discs one by one.

Preparing Athaa (Glue) As displayed before, athaa carries a paramount importance in almost all the process when it comes to taarakashi. Its nothing but a mixute of zinc chips, suaaga (a carbon component) and water. Both suaagaa and zinc belt (from which the chips are extracted) are collected from the local market. The zinc belt is ďŹ rst cut along the length and then the width making little pieces of it. The pieces are collected in a container and a small portion of water is added to it. Finally a tiny piece from the suaaga stick is broken an soaked in the water. The suaagaa is crushed and mixed in the concoction.

The zinc pieces are kept on the joints with a pair of forceps and gas welded . The suaaga present in the solution gives the heat a boost while the water holds the chip in place while planting.

TA A RA KAS H I

Formulating the Acid Solution Just similar to athaa, the diluted sulphuric acid solution is widely used in the craft as well. The bottled concentrated sulphuric acid is bought from the market. There are certain local providers who supply these to only kaarigars. A complete bottle of it is diluted in approximately one tub of water. Because of the absence of any provision to gauge it’s density with respect to water, it’s checked manually i.e. by tasting a bit of it. The kaarigar quickly tastes for the sourness of the solution for match with the conventional taste of it.

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The Inspection Workflow and Material Sensitivity “Even God himself is not infallible as he made humans” says Pradip Dey, the Mukhya Karigara (Chief Artist) of the work space, “But what’s important is how you deal and manage with the situation.” A problem of malfunction can pop up any time at any of the process. Leaving it unanswered not only causes the dissatisfaction of client, but it also brings in a bad name. So the workmen try their best not to let the fire catch.

And mending the issue requires a pretty lot of mind games to cater to things like minimum loss of time, energy and money. It doesn’t make sense if you try to mend a problem in a product ending up spending more than the amount of silver that makes the whole product. So material sensitivity carries paramount significance during the repair. If the damage is such that requires to fulfil a criterion like that, the product is better made from scratch. But thank god, such things show up once in a blue moon. But one thing worth observing is that client’s satisfaction is never compromised for the loss; no matter how big it is.

But then finding out a problem can equally be worrysome.

So for every completed product, there is a close inspection and a strength test performed. The inspection involves looking for lacunas in the khanja and other things while the strength test involves dropping the product on ground before polishing. Those things reveal the loop holes in the product which are fixed as soon as possible.

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Why a Ship?

Well, it’s would be a very percievable guess that the ship stands as a symbol for the city’s well discerned and apprecieated marine history. But the residents of the city believe it’s more than just a symbol with a multifarious but a solo interpretetion such as it’s a representaion for the city’s forward movement in the never ending sea of progress. The sails in the ship manifest the inhabitants who’re just doing their best to propel the vessel capturing what the environment has to offer without a single complaint.

The ship carries a triangular flag (neta) atop the mast carrying the cultural as well as religious symbolism.

The ship has had been used as a momento for the guests visiting the city from a quite a long period of time. And throughout all this past, one thing hasn’t changed at all; the unique design of it. The kaarigars believe, it would be a dishonour to the illustrious identity if its tampered with.

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Marketing

Birda Eye View of Chandni Chowk Area

M A RKE T I N G

Cuttack’s Chandni Chowk area has been a hub for silver trading since a long time housing hundreds of small and large scale jewellery shops; some being as old as 60 years. The area often exports various silver made products beyond the border spreading the essence of taarakashi all over the country.

The demand for the silver jewelleries has been decreased dramatically for people are getting more interested in buying golden ornaments leaving the craft in a very conďŹ ned zone of products to operate in. However, the demand for the various

silver momentos still hold onto their roots strong enough being almost irreplacable.

The momentos are relatively cheaper and exquisite at the same time making them a perfect majestic gift. Not only individual private parties, but the government buys them itself from the market.

However, the production has been seeing a masive decrease in recent years as the craftmen are no longer showing their interest to be a part of this what they prefer it calling, a dying culture.

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PROFILE

2

BABU PRUSTY OWNER, SHASHANK JEWELERS The gentleman had taken over the ancestral jewellery business after the death of his father.

His shop deals with all kinds of jewelleries including gold and stone works. However, the shop runs on multiple orders from older customers who have been relying upon him since a long time rather than having a range of products to choose from. After receiving the order from the customer, he gets the specifications to the concerened Kaarigar and sells it back to the customer with 5% profit margin.

“The demand for Taarakashi is decreasing day by day majorly due to the crowd shifting towards gold as a valuable material and the craftmen are getting tired of this much effort consuming but less fruitful craft.” says the young man. “Besides, no large scaled shops like Tanishq are taking an interest in this traditional craft because of the risks involded as the craft does not have a proper platform or system to be supported with.”

PROFILE

2

LALCHAND JEWELLERS JEWELLERY SHOP CHAIN Unlike numerous small scaled Jewellery Shops in the streets, the large scaled shop has it’s own multi storeyed building equipped with technolgies like an advanced metal melting lab, carat metre etc. The chain has it’s own jewellery production units having accessory designers and craftmen. However, the store encourages and depends heavily upon the local Kaarigars for the traditional jewellery. More customers are getting attracted towards the large scale shops because of magnetic offers as well as assurance over the material checked with carat metre.

“Taarakashi possesses untapped potential as an eccentric and exquisite craft. With proper management, encouragement, technological intervention and marketing, the craft can get a boost like never before.” goes the manager of the outlet, “The demand of the craft is getting revived because of the new players in the market with advanced strategies. It’s going to be like a re-incarnation but death”

M A RKE T I N G

Process For the shops working as a dedicated unit for only filigree products, the owners have their own workshop with some Kaarigars woking on a fixed work cycle. Such jewelers provide the customer with flexibitlity to choose the desired product out of a catalogue and sometimes let them come with their own personal design. But the shops serve this amenity with a higher price tag.

But most of the jewellers depend on independently working Kaarigars to fill up their showcase with numerous designs. They possess a limited range of traditional designs and products such as Konark Chakra, Krishna’s Chariot etc. Once the products are sold out, they order the Kaarigars for new replicas and provide them with the necessary details like dimentions and numbers of the products to be

manufactured. The kaarigar then gives an rough estimation of the silver that might the order take to get completed. The jeweller provides the kaarigar with the required amount of metal. The kaarigar then begins woking on the order and once the product is finished, it’s weighed and checked for karat value (to check if it’s same as the biscuit shared earlier). the remaining material is submitted by the craftsman and for the extra material used, the craft person covers it up at his own which is paid later. The deals involves a making charge of Rs. 4 per gram which is calculated according to the final weight of the product and paid to the kaarigar. The products then find their place on the shelves of the shop where they are sold to the customer with a profit margin of 5%

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P RODU CT S

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C HA LLENG ES

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Challenges As far the present scenario is concerned, hygiene issues stand as a leviathan affecting not only the sailors but for the entire ocean. The damaged drainage systems and piles of contaminated muck serve as a cloud cuckoo land for billions of bacterias to grow. It exerts a significantly bad influence upon the health of the kaarigars; thus affecting their productivity.

The competion with gold as a material stands as a major problem too; for more and more people are getting allured towards the investment in the yellowish metal leaving a distressed land for silver to dwell in.

The third and probably the most apparent problem is low wages as well as lack of incentive and encouragement to the craft. The craftmen are living in a constant strate of fear as what would happen to them when they would like to retire. The most certain reason for them not to pass on the craft to their heirs. It just brings the craft a step closer towards its oblivion.

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CON CLU S I ON

Conclusion Carrying the perfect representation of the millennium city, the years-old craft has gained it’s domicile not only in the heart of the million katikias, but everyone else’s who has discerned it’s serene beauty. And the whole craft just bestows a quintessential metaphor for the hyped up bunch of vigorous and empathetic folks who are just weaved taut and archetypal to form this magnificent and lustrous city of Cuttack.

They call it ‘The City of Brotherhood’ where there is no differences at no grounds of religions, caste etc. which is quite baffling for someone moving fresh into the city where he/she will find a crate of bhut-jolokias moving in the streets. The scene continues to seem hazy and perplexed till the moment you see this; a bevy of hindu youngs taking on the crowds for a small muslim funeral rally. The view is quite spectacular for a state whose hindus have sustained several attacks on their belif by the mughals. Not only that, people celebrate every festival together despite of all the differential boundaries. All those types of khanjaas constitute together to form the ornate marvelous dingle-dangle called ‘Cuttack’.

The craft of Taarakashi is both indigenous and genius for the people who don’t even know how to write, how

to think or how to draw. But, they alter the notion of thousands by taking the pride of getting acclaimed as ‘Artists’ through their exceptionally trained hands and decades-old experience. The techniques and the system of working are quite unique, furthermore extraordinary providing the maker with a pain free experience while on duty. The process is quite peculiar as compared to traditional jewelry making which involves affairs such as casting. Atop all the good qualities, remains the insurmountable patience of the craftmen who carefully follow each step of the production process towards bringing life to the city’s favorite nickname, ‘The Silver City’.

Well, its not a mystery to anyone that the crafts in India are on ventilators taking their final set of respirations.

Due to lack of support from the governement and opulent public interest, the illustrious craft of taarakashi is soon going to get sucked into the oblivion just like any other crafts. This is the perfect time to fathom the situation to it’s fullest and respect the thousands of craftmen by appreciating their bled-sweat; for it’s not like the craft ‘should’ live or the craft ‘must’ live; THE CRAFT OUGHT TO LIVE.

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PEOPLE Mr. Ashok Mondal,

‘ed PHOTOS Google Images

Co-ordinator, Industrial Design

Flickr

Mr. Amaltas Khan,

SHOT ON

Associate Faculty, Industrial Design

iphone 5s

Mr. Arnab Senapati,

Associate Faculty, Textile and Apparel Design

MAPS Google Maps

I N FO R M AT I O N wikipedia.com google.co.in odishatourism.gov.in Administration, Cuttack Municipalty Corporation

SOFTWARES

COURT OF iCloud

Adobe Illustrator

CREDITS NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF DESIGN VIJAYAWADA

Odisha High Court Compound

city of thousand years holds a very unique “ The and marvellous artistic wonder, named taarakashi. On the verge of it’s oblivion, this is a mere endeavour to keep it breathing for the upcoming generation.

“

by

S H O B H I T K AT I K I A 5th Semester, Industrial Design. a

2018

publication

/skatikia

@skatikia