Banjara Jewellery Making
Jewellery making and wearing are part of all traditions in their unique way to enhance the appearance of the each individual with their differences. Tradition and custom brings in their typical style of adorning the ornaments to one self generally made with the available resources surrounding them. One such typical type of dressing is the Banjara/Lambani who are also known as the wanderers that travelled around different parts of India from Rajasthan, of whom some of them have settled in Bijapur region of Karnataka.
Banjara’s/ Lambani’s are generally comprised of several small groups who lived in the group of huts called Tanda (in Kannada language). They are generally traced as nomads (wanderers) who migrated usually from the central part of Asia. Though they were wanderer’s huge number of their tribe had a fixed habitat in their nomadic life style where they would generally return for their ceremonies. They had become transporters of traders and armies who travelled and settled all over India. Primarily it was difficult to locate the skilled needle women as most of them had settled into the urban life working as casual labour, as the life and clothing drastically changed to suit their new environment.
Community had retained their colourful, carefree typical traditions that refrained from mingling with the other communities as their main occupation once upon a time was cattle trading and transportation of agricultural goods. The traditionally attire of the Lambani/ Banjara reveals that they use more number of silver and locally available articles to generally portray their culture and style. The workers at (Sabala -NGO) Bijapur together singing a folk at the background in the local language that conveys the message how an individual can become a good person. Working together in making the handmade pattern of design with the coloured threads/ silver/ metals like copper & white metal.
Lambani’s generally have colourful embroideries with shimmering mirrors inset in their pattern. It is one of the folk crafts which have been familiar to the people in all the walks of life in India. Regional affinities and differences have only added their charm and popularity. Tribal crafts basically cater to the specialized tribal needs, sociological and personal use. They wear very colourful red style dresses with decorated pieces of mirror, cowl with lots of jewellery. They wear ivory bangles with ornaments in numerable with rhythm based on when performed to the beats of the drum. Each folk area in India has its own regional costumes, dances, songs with fundamental links of common culture running between village, town or city with harmonious unity.
The wonderful shapes and forms have been created from simple lines and circles to varying patterns. Women generally possess striking jewellery that usually has stylized, abstract and realistic designs that continues to impress the present day fashions. Women dresses with jewels shows her love for originality with her particular needs with glass, wood, bone, reeds, grass, cowrie shells etc. Lambani’s / Banjara women find place for cowrie shells attached to their veils, on their waist belts for decorating the light brightly coloured cloth hand bags they use.
