Lambadi embroidery

Why is in news? Keeping the Lambadi art of embroidery alive

Lambani embroideryis a vibrant and intricate form oftextile embellishmentcharacterized bycolourful threads, mirror work, and a rich array of stitch patterns

It is practised inseveral villages of Karnatakasuch as Sandur, Keri Tanda, Mariyammanahalli, Kadirampur, Sitaram Tanda, Bijapur, and Kamalapur.

This rich embroidery tradition, predominantlyupheld by the skilled women of the Lambani community, serves as a vital source of livelihood and sustenance, intertwining living practices with economic empowerment.

The promotion of this craft willnot only preserve a living heritage practiceof India but willalso support the economic independence of women.

This initiative is congruent with the third priority of the CWG, ‘Promotion of Cultural and Creative Industries and Creative Economy’, as it spotlights the rich artistic tradition of Lambani embroidery, thereby promoting the creative economy of Karnataka and India.

The sustainable practice of patchworking is found in many textile traditions of India and around the world.

The embroidery traditions of the Lambanis areshared in terms of technique and aestheticswith textile traditions acrossEastern Europe, West, and Central Asia.

This alludes to the movement of the nomadic communities across such regions historically, forming a shared artistic culture.

This interconnectedness of cultures through the craft makes it an ideal symbol for the campaign 'Culture Unites All'. Through this art form, we celebrate our shared heritage and promote dialogue and understanding among diverse communities.

Lambani Community:

They are also calledLambadis or Banjaras.

They were once nomadic tribes who arrived from Afghanistan to India, mainly Rajasthan (in the Mewar region) and then spread themselves across the states ofKarnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra.

They are believed to have assisted the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb to carry goods to the southern part of the country in the 17th century, and that is when some of them settled there.

They speak ‘Gor Boli’— also called ‘Lambadi’.

Since it hasno script, it is written either in Devanagari or in the local languages, like Telugu or Kannada.

Many people belonging to this tribal group arebilingual or multilingual, meaning they have learnt to communicate in the predominant language of the region — whichever part of India they are in.