NANDANA HAND BLOCK PRINTING: A STUDY OF TARAPUR'S TEXTILE CRAFT THROUGH THE LENS OF INDIAN KNOWLEDGE SYSTEMS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29121/shodhshreejan.v3.i2.2026.89Keywords:
Indian Knowledge Systems, Nandana Print, Tarapur, Chippa Community, Resist Printing, Natural Dyeing, Sustainable TextilesAbstract [English]
India's textile crafts are living repositories of indigenous knowledge, combining technical skill, ecological wisdom, and cultural meaning built up over centuries. Nandana hand block printing, practiced by the Chippa community in the Tarapur and Ummedpura villages of Neemuch district, Madhya Pradesh, is among the least documented of India's resist-printing traditions, overshadowed by better-known crafts such as Ajrakh, Bagh, and Dabu. This paper examines Nandana through the framework of Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS), showing how the craft integrates material science, hereditary pedagogy, symbolic design, and environmental care into a single, coherent tradition. Drawing on a systematic review of published literature, reports, and documented artisan practice, this study traces Nandana's historical evolution, the Chippa community's knowledge transmission, the indigenous chemistry of dyes and mordants, the symbolism of block-carved motifs, and the ecological logic of the production process. It also highlights the threats facing the craft, that is, declining artisan numbers, industrial competition, and few documentations, alongside emerging revival efforts. The paper argues that Nandana should be understood not as a decorative technique but as a dynamic, community-owned knowledge system with its relevance in sustainable design and heritage conservation.
References
Balfour‑Paul, J. (1998). Indigo. British Museum Press.
Barnes, R. (1997). Indian Block‑Printed Textiles in Egypt: The Newberry Collection in the Ashmolean Museum. Ashmolean Museum.
Bhatia, D. (2017). Traditional Indian textiles. Woodhead Publishing.
Chattopadhyay, K. (2005). Handicrafts of India. Indian Council for Cultural Relations.
Chishti, R. (2010). The Book of Indian Crafts and Indian Artisans. Mapin Publishing.
Chunari Geneva. (2020). Nandana, Madhya Pradesh.
Development Commissioner (Handlooms). (2023). Annual Report 2022–23. Ministry of Textiles, Government of India.
Dhamija, J. (2004). Asian Embroidery. Abhinav Publications.
Edrisi, Z., Nigam, M., and Pawar, P. (2021). Upgrading the Dyeing and Printing Techniques of Nandana Prints of Jawad in Madhya Pradesh. Econspeak: A Journal of Advances in Management, IT & Social Sciences, 11(4), 73–85.
Edwards, E. (2011). Textiles and Dress of Gujarat. V&A Publishing.
Gillow, J., and Barnard, N. (2008). Indian textiles (2nd ed.). Thames & Hudson.
Government of India. (2020). National Handloom Development Programme (NHDP): Operational guidelines. Ministry of Textiles.
Government of India. (2021). Samarth Scheme: Scheme Guidelines for Capacity Building in Textiles. Ministry of Textiles.
Gulrajani, M. L. (2001). Present Status of Natural dyes. Indian Journal of Fibre & Textile Research, 26(2), 191–201.
Jain, J., and Aggarwala, A. (2018). Handcrafted Indian Textiles: Tradition and Beyond. Niyogi Books.
Karolia, A. (2019). Traditional Indian Handcrafted Textiles: History, Techniques and Processes (Vols. I & II). Niyogi Books.
Karolia, A., and Buch, H. (2008). Ajrakh: The Resist Printed Fabric of Gujarat. Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge, 7(1), 93–97.
Karolia, A., and Mogha, A. (2025). Fading Impressions: Documentation of Tribal Printed Textiles of Tarapur and Umdephur, West Madhya Pradesh, India. International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation, 12(11), 501–512.
Kumar, R., and Singh, V. (2023). Indigenous Textile Knowledge and Sustainability in India: A Systematic Review. Sustainability, 15(8), 6842.
Mahadevan, B., Bhat, V. R., and Pavana, N. R. (2022). Introduction to Indian Knowledge System: Concepts and Applications. PHI Learning.
Mishra, S., and Jain, R. (2024). Traditional Textile Crafts and Circular Economy: Lessons from Indian Artisan Communities. Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development, 14(2), 220–238.
Page, M. J., McKenzie, J. E., Bossuyt, P. M., Boutron, I., Hoffmann, T. C., Mulrow, C. D., et al. (2021). The PRISMA 2020 statement: An Updated Guideline for Reporting Systematic Reviews. BMJ, 372, n71. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n71
Samanta, A. K., and Agarwal, P. (2009). Application of Natural Dyes on Textiles. Indian Journal of Fibre & Textile Research, 34(4), 384–399.
Singh, M. (2018). Textiles of India: Tradition, Identity and Innovation. Niyogi Books.
Textiles Committee. (2016). Hand‑Block Printed Textiles of India. Ministry of Textiles, Government of India.
UNESCO. (2003). Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage. UNESCO.
Verma, N., and Joshi, P. (2024). Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Sustainable Textile Practices in India. Textile Progress, 56(1), 1–34.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Sulekha Ojha
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
With the licence CC-BY, authors retain the copyright, allowing anyone to download, reuse, re-print, modify, distribute, and/or copy their contribution. The work must be properly attributed to its author.
It is not necessary to ask for further permission from the author or journal board.
This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.
