Kasuti embroidery, from northern Karnataka, is one of the region’s most popular artforms and is linked entirely to the villages in the area. A geographical indicator from the government of India is used to safeguard the craftsmen here, ensuring any profit from the sale of this sticker returns to them. Kasuti embroidery is one of the oldest Indian practices. It has its roots since the 7th century A.D. Although it was first only done in the Dharwad region, over time, it has expanded into other parts of Karnataka and is now used throughout South India. Initially, this job was done only by women, and to date, women form a vital element of the cottage industry of Kasuti.
The term Kasuti is composed of ‘Kai’ which implies hand and ‘Suti’ that is a cotton thread. In the districts of Bijapur, Dharwar, Belgaum, Miraj, Sangli and Jamkhandi, Kasuti embroidery is extremely famous. Kasuti has not become a cottage industry but it is just handiwork and recreation for women. This form traditionally has been made with lightly coloured cotton threads solely in handwoven textiles with deeper colours. The Ilkal sarees are the classic Kasuti embroidery sarees. It was a custom in the past that the bride must have a black silk sari, known as Chandrakali sari with Kasuti’s work on it. Kunchi (bonnet and cape), lenga (skirt), seragu (Pallav of a sari), kusuba (bodice) and kulai are the five types of clothing items on which kasuti embroidery is used.
Kasuti embroidery patterns demand a long time, and typically require more than one artist to manoeuvre properly. The only thing about this type of artform is that each thread is to be counted on the cloth. This approach ensures a very complex and gorgeous look of the finished artwork. Kasuti has four types of stitches: the gavanti stitch or double stitch, the muragi- or zig-zag stitch, the neygi or darning stitch and the stitch hent or cross-stitch.
Kasuti Embroidery Stitch Styles:
Gavanti: This is a double running line and back stitch. The name comes from Gaonti, which in the Kannada language means a knot. Most of the designs are geometrical since they are produced vertically, horizontally and diagonally. It is the most prevalent stitch and on both sides of the fabric the designs seem the same. On the way back while stitching, the lines or motifs should be finished by filling out the white areas in the loop.
Neygi: The Negi stitch is a common running or darning stitch. It has the impact of a woven design in general. Negi is in fact an offshoot of the word Ney, which means to weave in the language of Kannada. For larger designs, this stitch is employed by altering the stitch depending on the surface to be covered. The finished design looks like woven patterns and so the right and incorrect sides are not the same.
Muragi: Murgi resembles a ladder step, as the stitches are zigzag running stitches. It is alike Gavanti since they’re both neat with the design on both sides of the garment looking similar. The length of the stitches is consistent and the space between the stitches is identical.
Menthe: It is the standard cross stitch. The name seems to have come from the same word in the Kannada language meaning fenugreek seed. Menthi usually looks heavy and needs a great deal of thread. This stitch was therefore not used extensively. Many of the Kasuti labourers employ cross-stitch nowadays, which is not worked closely as was done formerly. The background sections of the designs are often covered using this menthi stich.
Kasuti Embroidery Motifs & Patterns :
The several sorts of patterns employed are another significant distinctive feature of this embroidery style. The themes in Kasuti that are commonly utilised are temple architecture, south India’s gopurams, lotus flowers, rath and palanquins, bird patterns like parrots, peacocks, swan and squirrels. The sacred bull, the elephant and the deer are the animal motifs used. Kasuti’s other designs include cow, cradle, flower pots and tulsi katte (katte means the space for the holy Tulsi plant). Horses, lions or tigers are rarely observed, but cats and dogs are never seen. Lotus is mainly used among the flower motifs. The motives may be light and scattered but that is highly unusual. Often, they are interconnected in incredibly gorgeous, three-dimensional designs with exquisite and creative appearances. Inspired rural styles are also very popular among various female embroiderers who like to create household sceneries.
