Bamboo Tray - Agartala, Tripura
Making process starts by slitting lengthy bamboo into small thin pieces. In the case of weaving a bamboo tray, the Artisan cuts 32 splits from a single bamboo. The outer skin of the bamboo is peeled. Small splits of bamboo are used to weave the walls of the tray. Two layers will be designed to make it hold strong by arranging the bamboo strips in a crisscrossing manner. The weaving patterns are similar for all the trays. Almost after completing the half weaving of the sidewall of the bamboo tray, they keep a gap at the base. Initially, the base part is made with thicker bamboo strips than the sidewall. Once base weaving is completed, the sidewall of the tray will be woven. Then after completion, it is kept under the sun to dry for an hour. A raw bamboo stick as per the required size is chopped as a thick layer by using a knife. Selected bamboo pieces are used for a round-shaped bamboo ring. Sticking both ends of the bamboo with white adhesive will form the round shape. With the help of a knife, all the extra scraps are removed from the bamboo strip. After drying, the wall part of the tray, which looks similar to the shape of a wheel, is being kept for fixing a broad and thick strip of bamboo to form the bamboo tray that makes the rim for a bamboo tray. The rim helps for a better grip. The extra bamboo strips over the rim will be chopped off by using a knife, and the adhesive will be applied on the rims for a stronghold. A useful Bamboo tray is being completed.
