Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c5.s2.t13: Embroidery
Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c5.s2.t13
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Embroidery
v1.c5.s2.t13.1
Embroidery in China is a form of textile art going back to ancient times. Embroidered Chinese textiles, especially silk, always constituted a valued item of export to other countries. However, it is only in the 19ᵗʰ century CE that Chinese embroidery found a ready market in India and came to influence Indian textile traditions. This was a result of the maritime trade between China and western India and especially Bombay (Mumbai) in that period. Indian merchants of the Parsi community were very active in this trade and travelled regularly to Canton, Macau and Hong Kong. In this period, a flourishing export art industry, including embroidery, had developed around Canton that catered to the tastes of European and other foreign merchants. Parsi merchants visiting Canton were struck by the beauty and fine workmanship of the Chinese embroiderers and they started to purchase embroidered silk pieces to take back home. As the demand for Chinese embroidered goods began to grow in India, visiting Parsi merchants began to commission Chinese embroiderers to produce goods according to the needs and tastes of their community.
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Chinese embroidery on a Parsi saree
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The embroidery of the Guangdong region was considered one of the four great styles of embroidery in China even though it is believed to have started fairly late, towards the end of the Ming Dynasty (late 16ᵗʰ and early 17ᵗʰ centuries CE). To suit the tastes of the Parsi women, who were their principal customers in India, the Chinese embroiderers adapted their craft. Their embroidery, in white or light coloured threads, was usually done on a dark background of red, purple or black silk, using a very fine satin stitch, or the tiny *kha-kha* stitch which gave the impression of the cloth being covered with seed pearls. The typical Chinese motifs that were used included flowers according to the seasons such as peonies, plum blossoms, chrysanthemums and lotuses. Bamboo, pomegranates, peaches and animals and birds of all descriptions, such as the pheasant, peacock wild geese and the crane which were also very common. One of the most vivid examples of the interpenetration of Chinese and Indian textile traditions was the heavily embroidered saris worn by Parsi women called the *gara*. The embroidery on these *gara* saris was either done by Chinese embroiderers or else was done in imitation of the work of Chinese embroiderers. The embroidery sometimes covered the whole sari while often the body of the sari was left plain and only the borders were embroidered. *Gara* saris that depicted typical scenes from Chinese life were called by the Parsis as "*cheena cheeni no garo*".
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The popularity of Chinese embroidery was such that Chinese peddlers used to regularly visit homes in the towns of western India, such as Bombay, Surat and Bharuch, bringing embroidered wares from China for sale. They could be seen in the streets of these towns as late as the 1960s. Chinese embroiderers themselves also sometimes came to India. Over the course of time, embroidery workshops were set up in some of these places in which Indian craftsmen were trained in Chinese style embroidery. Lately, there has been a revival of interest in this tradition, particularly among the Parsi community and efforts are being made to keep it alive.
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(*Madhavi Thampi*)