STUDIO BAGRU

Studio Bagru is a young textile printing company that perpetuates the art of bagru and dabu designs. In addition to having its own design studio, the small company also offers tours of Bagru and textile printing workshops, over a day or two. The tour is really exciting and is done with an English-speaking guide, so you can interact with the locals. You'll visit workshops where artisans work in their homes, wood block carving workshops, the yard where yards and yards of fabric are put out to dry in the sun, and you'll be able to print yourself a scarf to take home. Sessions start at 9am and end at 2pm. A lunch cooked by the women of the house will be served. This is also an opportunity to taste traditional family cuisine that is very different from what is served in restaurants.

Bagru is famous for two types of printing: bagru and dabu. Dabu is a woodblock printing technique. The fresh dye is immediately sprinkled with sawdust to protect it. The cloth is then dyed with indigo in large basins and then put to dry in the sun. Bagru is a slightly different technique, which combines only two natural colors: red (based on cochineal) and black. These patterns and printing techniques are popular with trendy clothing brands such as Anokhi or FabIndia, and are also used for household linen.