Chamba Rumal
The Chamba Rumal or Chamba handkerchief is an
Chamba Rumal
embroidered handicraft that was once promoted under the
patronage of the former rulers of Chamba kingdom. It is a Geographical indication
common item of gift during marriages with detailed patterns in
bright and pleasing colour schemes.[1][2][3]
This product has been registered for protection under the
Geographical indication of the Trade Related Intellectual
Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement. On 22 January 2007, it
was listed as "Chamba Rumal" under the GI Act 1999 of the
Government of India with registration confirmed by the
Controller General of Patents Designs and Trademarks under
Classes 24 as Textile and Textile Goods, vide application
number 79.[4]
Contents Chamba Rumal (handkerchief)
History Alternative names Chamba
handkerchief
Process
Description Handicraft
See also
Type Embroidery
References
Area Himachal Pradesh
Country India
History Registered March 2010
Earliest reported form of this rumal is the one made by Bebe Material Silk and cotton
Nanaki, sister of Guru Nanak in the 16th century, which is now (muslin or
preserved in the Gurudwara at Hoshiarpur. The Victoria Albert mulmul)
Museum, London has a rumal which was gifted to the British
in 1883 by Raja Gopal Singh and it has an embroidered scene of
the Kurukshetra War of the epic Mahabharta.[1] However, from the
17th century the women of the erstwhile princely state of Chamba
(now part of Himachal Pradesh), including members of the royal
family, indulged in embroidery of the rumals or handkerchiefs as a
part of a marriage gifts or dowry to their daughters.[5][2]
The handkerchiefs were made in geometrical shapes of square and
rectangle using very fine hand made silk which was obtained from Chamba Rumal, a ceremonial cover
the Punjab or muslin cloth, a product of Bengal. Women created
highly ornamental patterns using untwined thread made of silk
produced in Sialkot (in Pakistan), Amritsar and Ludhiana. The embroidery technique adopted, called the
dohara tanka or double satin stitch, created distinct identical patterns on both faces of the fabric, which
were attractive when viewed even from distance of 10 ft and more. The dohara tanka method is a heritage
of Kashmir, which was adopted in Basohli and Chamba, but was
improved upon by adopting themes from the special Mughal art of
Chamba miniature paintings; this art form flourished during the
18th and 19th centuries. Following the downfall of the Mughal
empire many expert artists of this craft migrated to the hill region of
Himachal Pradesh. Raja Umed Singh of Chamba (1748–68)
patronized the artists. These artists drew the outlines of the design
on the fabric to be embroidered using fine charcoal and also Chamba Rumal
suggested suitable colours to be adopted on the theological themes
of Krishna's raas-leela of the epic Mahabharata, and themes from
Ramayana or scenes of marriage and game hunting to be
embroidered; themes also included events from Gita Govinda,
Bhagvat purana or only Radha-Krishna and Shiva-Parvati.
Inspiration was also provided from the frescoes done in the Rang
Mahal of Chamba.[2] The women then executed the embroidery. In
early 19th century, when Maharaja Ranjit Singh ruled over the
Punjab Hill States, Sikh style of painting also influenced the
Chamba Rumal.[5]
Following Indian Independence, this art work lost its royal
Ram Nath Kovind presenting the Nari
patronage, and quality deteriorated due to commercialization by
Shakti Puruskar to Chama Rumal
making many cheaper varieties such as table cloths, cushion covers,
embroiderer Lalita Vakil
clothing, and even various machine made items to compete in the
market with cheaper similar work from other regions.[2]
To revive this art work, in the later part of 1970s, at the initiative of Usha Bhagat (a friend of Indira
Gandhi), the DCC located the original designs of this art work from museums and collections, and women
artists were then trained in this art work. As a result 16 designs have been recreated and quality restored.[2]
Lalita Vakil was awarded the Nari Shakti Puraskar award for her work in helping to revive the art by
organising courses.[6] The "2018" award was made in the Presidential Palace by the President of India.[7]
Process
Known as a "needle wonder" Chamba Rumal is now made in square and rectangular shapes. The materials
used still consist of muslin, malmal, khaddar (a coarse fabric), fine charcoal or brush, and silk threads
without knots. Using a double satin stitch for the embroidery, both faces of the cloth are concurrently
stitched by a forward and backward technique to maintain uniformity of design on both faces of the rumal.
After completing the embroidery, the fabric is stitched with a border of about 2 to 4 inches on all sides.[3]
See also
Khadi
Khādī Development and Village Industries Commission (Khadi Gramodyog)
References
1. Chauhan, Pratibha (10 January 2007). "Good tidings for Larji Lake:Pride of Chamba" (http://
www.tribuneindia.com/2007/20070110/himplus1.htm#2). Tribune India. Retrieved
8 February 2016.
2. Dasgupta, Reshmi R (5 April 2010). "Unfurling a new life for Chamba rumals" (http://economi
ctimes.indiatimes.com/industry/unfurling-a-new-life-for-chamba-rumals/articleshow/576106
2.cms). Economic Times. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
3. Bhāratī 2001, p. 175.
4. "Geographical Indications Journal No.29" (https://web.archive.org/web/20160304003703/htt
p://ipindia.nic.in/girindia/journal/29.pdf) (PDF). Ministry of Commerce and Industry,
Government of India. 19 March 2009. Archived from the original (http://ipindia.nic.in/girindia/j
ournal/29.pdf) (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
5. Ahluwalia 1998, p. 166.
6. "Nari Shakti Puraskar citations" (https://wcd.nic.in/sites/default/files/Nari%20Shakti%20Pura
skar%20-%20Citation%20%28Final%20-%2009.03.2019%29-Part%202.pdf) (PDF). March
2019. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
7. "Nari Shakti Puraskar - Gallery" (http://narishaktipuraskar.wcd.gov.in/gallery).
narishaktipuraskar.wcd.gov.in. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
Bibliography
Ahluwalia, Manjit Singh (1998). Social, Cultural, and Economic History of Himachal
Pradesh (https://books.google.com/books?id=tG0fnF0VRk0C&pg=PA166). Indus
Publishing. ISBN 978-81-7387-089-7.
Bhāratī, Ke. Āra (2001). Chamba Himalaya: Amazing Land, Unique Culture (https://books.go
ogle.com/books?id=VO9cP6LYR8wC&pg=PA175). Indus Publishing. ISBN 978-81-7387-
125-2.
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