Mata ni Pachedi --- A Traditional Craft

Where

Gods come alive...

Presented by:

IIT KANPUR

ART701 Group Members

Mohit Kumar (11428)

Raghav Goyal (11555)

Saurav Narang (11664)

Harshal Uke (11773)

INTRODUCTION

• For the last 300 years, a wandering tribe, called Vaghris have been

keeping a tradition of this sacred painting alive.

• This tradition of painting narratives of the Goddess Durga, in her various

incarnations is called Mata Ni Pachedi, which in English translates as

“behind the idol of the Goddess”

Various Forms

A central panel with the Mata standing

on a crocodile

Accompanying imagery is taken from

narratives from religious epics such as

the Puranas.

SEMIOTIC ANALYSIS

The conventional matani pachedi uses only 3 hues;

• Maroon was associated with Mother Earth and believed to possess

healing powers.

• Black to ward off the evil eye and strengthen divine energy

• White which stood for purity

• Traditionally maroon and black were the colours used, with the surface of

the material as the third colour.

• Maroon and black colour are vegetable dyes while white was base fabric.

• Colours are applied with locally made paint brushes, bamboo stylus, and at

times, with a cotton wool wick.

• Community reverently draws on the fabric and fills in the images by hand

Colour Schemes

• Pachedi always framed with a bold border, termed as a lassa patti.

• After this, comes a band of decorative linear patterns.

• Black not only was used as a color but also as the outer linings of the icons

and the motifs.

• Filling in the motifs were sometimes replaced by linear work and pointillist

imagery.

• Contrasts between positive and negative spaces formed an important

balancer to the work.

Material Stuff

All the materials used in the creation of Mata ni Pachedi are organic

Pigment Dyes

Cotton Fabric

Silk Fabric

Pigment Dyes Khadi Fabric Bamboo Kalam

Various Blocks

• Paniharin,women carrying pots of water.

• Fulwani malan,a gardener holding flowers.

• Peacock.

• Rann ki devi, the goddess of the desert.

Warriors, musicians, women holding

flowers and animals surround the central

panel containing the Mata, and is bordered

with geometric and floral patterns

ICONIC ANALYSIS

• Pachedi is the craft which is meant only for the devotees of goddess

Durga.

• The boldness of the paintings is reinforced by the starkness of red and

black, the only colors used.

• Lady with a flower, trumpeters, angels, flowers, the tree of life and animals

are the most common motifs.

• Traditionally pachedi has an architectural rendering of temple at its center.

Within a bold border, usually 7,9 or 11 blocks are created,and at the center

mother goddess containing story of the deity.

• Pachedis are used in religious ceremonies and record the myths and

legends associated with the living traditions of the people.

• The patterned form in the pachedi is always the same ; the commanding

figure of the goddess is centred, austere, stern, powerful and many armed

brandishing a weapon to ward off the purveyors of evil.

• Under her is her mount or vehicle and around her in procession are

attendant gods and worshipers.

THEMATIC ANALYSIS

• The historical evidence of this craft goes back almost 300 years. The

narrative hangings of epics of Mata were executed and worshipped by the

nomadic community of Waghari, who dwelled in Gujarat.

• Traditionally, four or five pieces of Mata-ni-Pachedi are erected to form a

temporary shrine.

• While the chitaras were the artists, the bhuvo or bhuva used to be the

priest and jagorais were the singers.

Geographical Location

• Sarkhej- Ahmedabad district

• Rajula, Palitana- Bhavanagar District

• Girnar, Porbandar-Junagadh

• Dhrangadhra-Surendranagar District

• Ambaji, Koteshwar-Banaskantha District

• Patan-Patan District

• Ethnographic studies point to the fact that for a long time in history, the

Devipujak community was disallowed entry into temples.

• They painted an image of the Goddess on a piece of cloth, hung it up

behind the temple.

• This practice took root and the painted textile came to be known as “Mata

Ni Pachedi” literally meaning ‘Behind the Goddess (temple)’

•

• Goddess Durga is at the center, the focus of the painting with motifs of

deities, priests, devotees, angels and animals drawn around her. Often

they performed garba .

• Many legends are depicted in these Pachedis. They are usually derived

from Puranic myths.

• Goddess Durga finds an important place in the Gujarati society.Even

today, these narrative hangings are sought after by the villagers in Gujarat

especially during Navratri.

• Once intricately hand painted, the Mata-ni-Pachedis are now largely block

printed to cut cost.

• Once used for temporary shrines, these appear as stoles, scarves or saris

now.

• Paintings now infused with many new hues.

• These days,textiles are sold mainly as a works of art rather than as

worship cloths.

• This craft is practiced by Chitara community and men folk generally do the

outline of the painting where as the women contribute towards the

elaborate and intricate part of the painting.

Mata ni Pachedi (Cloth of Mother Goddess) – A rectangular piece of fabric offered to the goddess. The fabric

is offered in the temples when any wish is fulfilled by the blessing of the deity.