Kasuti

What is Kasuti?

Kasuti is a folk embroidery from Karnataka, worked entirely by hand. The stitcher counts each thread of the cloth as she works, and a single piece can take up to 5,000 stitches. No knots are tied, so the front and back of the cloth look alike. The patterns are folk designs drawn from rangoli, the floor drawings of Karnataka: temple towers, chariots, palanquins, lamps and conch shells. Kasuti decorates dresswear such as Ilkal sarees, the ravike and kuppasa (khana), and the angi. It is also worked on Mysore silk sarees today. Rural women practice the craft, and a government centre in Hubli gathers them to show their work under one roof.

Where does Kasuti come from?

Kasuti's story reaches back to the Chalukya period. The name itself is a clue to its making: kai means hand, and suti or suttu means wrap or weave, so the word points to work done with cotton and hands. In the 17th century, women courtiers of the Mysore Kingdom were expected to master 64 arts, and Kasuti was counted among them. Embroidered sarees belonged in every bride's trousseau, and one saree stood above the rest: the Chandrakali, black silk covered in Kasuti. In modern times the needlework has travelled onto new fabrics such as the Mysore silk saree. The craft now struggles, though. Patronage is thin, and the Kasuti classes run by JSS college in Dharwad have closed.

How is Kasuti made?

Kasuti is stitched with locally available materials, and the labour is heavy. The embroiderer counts each thread of the cloth before placing a stitch, and one intricate piece can carry up to 5,000 hand stitches. No knots are tied anywhere; the rule is that both faces of the cloth must look alike when the work is done. Four stitches build the patterns. Gavanthi, a double running stitch, marks out lines that run horizontally, vertically or diagonally. Murgi moves in a zig-zag. Negi is a plain running stitch. Menthi is a cross stitch shaped like fenugreek seeds. Combinations of these four give the craft its range.

Colours, motifs and borders

The designs are folk patterns that echo rangoli, the floor drawings of Karnataka. Favourite motifs include the gopura, the tower of a temple, along with chariots, palanquins, lamps and conch shells. Because each pattern is counted out thread by thread and stitched without knots, the finished cloth looks the same on both faces. The best-known Kasuti saree is the Chandrakali, black silk set with this needlework, once the premier saree in a bridal trousseau. The same embroidery is now worked on Mysore silk sarees as well.

How Kasuti is worn

Kasuti is decoration rather than a drape: the embroidery is worked onto finished garments. Its traditional home is the dresswear of Karnataka, above all Ilkal sarees, together with the ravike and kuppasa, also called khana, blouse garments, and the angi, an upper garment. A bride's trousseau was expected to hold sarees embroidered with Kasuti, and among them the Chandrakali, black silk with Kasuti work, took first place. In modern times the stitching has travelled further, onto Mysore silk sarees and other dress materials.

When Kasuti is worn

Kasuti's great occasion is the wedding. In Karnataka, sarees worked with Kasuti were meant to be part of a bride's trousseau, and the Chandrakali saree, black silk worked with Kasuti, was the most important of them. The craft also carried social polish: in the 17th century, women courtiers of the Mysore Kingdom were expected to be skilled in 64 arts, and Kasuti was one of them. Today a government centre in Hubli lets rural women show their craft together, but the following is thin. Few people take the work seriously now, and the Kasuti classes at JSS college in Dharwad have closed.

Styles of Kasuti

The craft began on a fixed set of garments: Ilkal sarees, the ravike and kuppasa (khana), and the angi. Modern Kasuti has grown past these boundaries and now turns up on other dress materials, notably the Mysore silk saree. Institutions have shaped its recent story. The Department of Social Welfare, Government of Karnataka, set up a Kasuti centre in Hubli to encourage the craft and gather rural women's work in one place. But support is uneven: Kasuti classes run by JSS college in Dharwad have closed, a sign of how thin patronage has become.

What Kasuti means

Kasuti holds Geographical Indication protection in India. The registration is held by the Karnataka Handicrafts Development Corporation, which gives it intellectual property rights over the craft. Its fortunes rest largely on women: rural women practice it, a government centre in Hubli gathers them under one roof to show their work, and centuries ago court women in Mysore were judged partly on their skill at it. Today that base is shaky. Patronage is poor, few people take the craft seriously, and the Kasuti classes at JSS college in Dharwad have closed. The GI status and the Hubli centre are among the supports keeping the needlework alive.

Questions people ask about Kasuti

Good reading and sources

• Kasuti on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• Wikidata recordOpen data