Monday, March 6, 2017

Chola Pith Craft

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Chola Pith is a kind of plant that grows in water. It is generally found in abundance in tanks, lakes and swamps in South India. After removing the impurities by washing it in water, clean pith is obtained through which several artists find it very fascinating and pleasing to the eye which are manufactured as images, structures, temple gopurams and mandapams. The patronage of the public is requested to make it a flourishing Cottage Industry.


Post the naxal period in Bengal, once after the social scenario was stabilized, people slowly started celebrating Durga Pooja at an extremely normal scale and did not have the affordability to invest in it. During this time, the idols became the reflection of their own state of mind and hence they kept their ornamentation minimalistic and pure white in Chola or Shola Pith ( as referred to in Bengal) reflecting the image if single Bengali women in a cotton ‘tant’ saree. The ornamentation done to the Durga idol done in shola pith, is knows as ‘Daak er saaj’ and considered to be the purest and indegenious forms of ornamentation. It exceeds a simplicity and ornamentation that of a woman rightly respected who everyone can connect with , such is the respect and admiration that people of Bengal havefor Goddess Durga. This is the period when Shola Pith ‘Daak er Saaj’ became known and is still practiced in many parts of Bengal, it being the traditional craft ornamentation for religious purpose.

In the present time, we still find normal clusters not only in Bengal but also in the southern part of the country who still practice this craft and make it very famous among the young generations. Coming down to Tamil Nadu in the south from West Bengal, this beautiful while milky craft is still practiced in a normal town of Kumbakonam. This town is 265 kms away down south from Chennai and is reached by travelling via Trichy and Tanjavur by train or bus.


Mr.Chokkalingam, who plays a major role in keeping the craft alive among the younger generations and making this place known for the making and the manufacturing of this craft. His workshop“Prakasam Pith works” is located at a walking distance on the 16/25 Head Post Office Road nearby to the Kumbakonam Railway Junction. A National Award winner in 1985, titled as THE MASTER CRAFTSMAN IN PITH by the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India in Madras, he has elevated this craft to a next level and today, he is known as the only person who practiced this craft in the state only as he started his practice at the age of 10. He talks about the craft, he tells us how much of skill it needs to attain perfection.


 The raw materials that are used to make the end product are long branches of the Chola Pith, along with different knives and fevicol as an adhesive. The main raw material is the Chola Pith and the only process to carve out the pith is by knife. There are different names given to the Pith based on the geographical location. It is called as “netti” in Tamil, ‘bendu’ in Telugu and ‘Kadachi’ in Malayalam. The pith is green in the beginning which is easily available in water and is cleaned properly. It is first dried in the sun for a week after removing it from the water and then it is removed and cleaned well with a cloth. The pith has a tiny hole in the between for the water to pass through it and so it has a natural shine when the pith is cut through the central hole. The monuments or the buildings are made by cutting the pith in rectangular pieces and joining them together by fevicol and carving out the desired design. Previously, the mixture of flour, but presently only fevicol is used. The pith is originally off white but it can be coloured based on the customer’s demand.

The time duration of the carving process depends upon the size ,shape and the number of days depending upon the desired design. The time taken for the normal designs to be made are two to four days whereas for bigger monuments, the carving process takes place for fifteen days. The sizes vary from four inches to two feet in height and the price is based on the size.
This was an entirely beautiful experience altogether from travelling to meeting new people, experiencing the food in Kumbakonam, but this industry sometimes also has faced a lot of drawback in the sales due to the decrease in obtaining the raw materials. As the main raw material comes from the very natural element water, and as it was available in abundance 20 years ago , there was no such problem faced by the industry. But now due to the scarcity of water in the river Kaveri, in Tamil Nadu, the raw materials are now found in Rajahmundry, Andhra Pradesh and face a major problem in the delivery of the product and the sales market. But now that it has a strong base, it promises to get better each time in the matter of sales and delivery and make this industry grow bigger.

Contact:
Mr.Chokkalingam 
Prakasam Pith works
 16/25 Head Post Office Road, Kumbakonam

Documented by Tanvi Desai 

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