Poetry in Jamdani: The Sahaj Path

Sahaj Path is a unique limited edition six-part series of handwoven textile art, in jamdani weave, by Karomi studio, Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), West Bengal, India. It invites viewers to rediscover the magic of the first six lines of a rhyming verse from the fourth edition of Sahaj Path, a deeply cherished Bengali language learning book, written by the legendary poet Rabindranath Tagore.

“Jamdani weavers are like artists at the loom. They create beautiful canvases with warp and weft yarns, and patterns with supplementary weft yarns. Yarns of a variety of colours, each wrapped around a small bobbin, are like paint. Designs come to life as the weavers throw the shuttle that acts like a paint brush”, says textile designer Sarita Ganeriwala, as she muses on the lyrical beauty and poetic cadence of jamdani weaving. 

Jamdani weaver. Photograph by Himanshu Patra.

Jamdani is a traditional hand-weaving technique of Sarita’s home state of West Bengal in India. In this technique, the weaver creates motifs with discontinuous supplementary weft yarns that are manually interlaced into the warp.

Karomi, Jashn Collection. Image courtesy of Karomi

Sarita founded Karomi, a studio specialising in revival and contemporary jamdani weaves, in Kolkata. The studio is jointly managed by Sarita and her sister Sarika Ginodia, a chartered accountant and research analyst, who serves as the studio’s business head. Since its inception, Karomi has been reinventing traditional jamdani with its uniquely contemporary approach to designing jamdani garments, stoles, saris, home accessories and textile art. This reinvention introduces heritage crafts to the modern consumer as well as training weavers to adapt to new designs, thereby maintaining their relevance in a society with increasingly contemporary taste. 

Pakha Mele Ude - (Birds) Spread their wings and fly away. Photograph by Niza Dafney.

The studio’s latest woven jamdani art series is Sahaj Path, a six-part series of textile art. Each piece of the series, represents a single line from the first six lines of a rhyming verse from the fourth edition of Sahaj Path, written by legendary Bengali poet, writer and artist Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) who received the Nobel Prize in Literature 1913.  

“Tagore was a pivotal contributor to the Bengali cultural renaissance, with his influence extending beyond literature into art, philosophy, and culture. He played a crucial role in shaping the modern Bengali identity by being a stalwart for social reform, education, and the arts. Tagore is one of the most highly revered cultural figures in Bengal, with his legacy continuing to influence the state’s collective ethos, both artistically and philosophically”, says Sarita.

Sahaj Path - Sahaj meaning easy, and Path meaning lesson, is one of Tagore’s Bengali children's books. It describes the basics of Bengali language and literature. The book has artistic illustrations by the renowned Bengali artist Nandalal Bose (1882-1966). With its roots in Bengali language, art and culture, it is a treasured primer for learning the Bengali language.  

Inspired by a beloved verse in the book, Karomi designed a unique limited edition collection bringing the first six lines of the text – which are the most popular – alive through expertly crafted jamdani.

The lines are:

Bone Thake Baagh - Tigers live in forests

Gaache Thake Pakhi - Birds live on trees

Jole Thake Maach - Fish live in water

Dale Aache Phol - Branches have fruits

Pakhi Phol Khaye - Birds eat fruits 

Pakha Mele Ude - (Birds) Spread their wings and fly away

It took eight months of meticulous designing to create and finalise the six designs and reproduce them on graph paper. In keeping with the close association with Bengal, the designs exclusively feature flora and fauna characteristic of the state. Birds –sparrows, and crows, animals-tigers, aquatic creatures-fish, crabs, shrimps, the river snake, and trees –mango trees, coconut trees, palm trees and banana trees, all native to West Bengal, appear in the endearing and, joyful compositions. The designs are drawn in clean lines and are minimalist (without compromising on details), giving them a contemporary (rather than a folkish) expression.

To produce the art pieces, the weavers first drew the designs on the warp yarns and then carefully wove the motifs while referring to the graph paper designs. The ground weave was woven with white yarns, and the designs with shades of indigo and metal yarns, with iterations of colours in each series. Slowly and meditatively, the artistic motifs - seeped with delicacy in their curvilinear forms - appeared on the woven textiles, connecting the arts of weaving, illustration and poetry with the common thread of Bengali culture and identity.  

As the collection was completed, it struck a chord with the weavers, Sarita, and textile lovers. It shone as a heartfelt ode to West Bengal - her luminaries, textile heritage and natural life. For Sarita, the work is a testimony to the precious skills of weavers who are open to collaborating with designers, to embracing new ideas and evolving their traditional craft to create works that nourish the soul.

Text: Brinda Gill

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Further Information:

Website: Karomi

Instagram: @karomicrafts

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Image Credits:

Lead Image: Jhole Thake Maach, which means Fish Live in Water. Photograph by  Niza Dafney.

Photograph of Jamdani weaver by Himanshu Patra. 

Photographs of Sahaj Path by Niza Dafney.

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