Several visual narratives are being employed to reconstruct different layers of phulkari patterns as part of the Reinterpretation of Phulkari Patterns work. I illustrate Phulkari-related cultural narratives in my work using digital illustrations. The reimagining of phulkari patterns contrasts cultural elements by incorporating the many female-centric situations. In this piece, Phulkari embroidery designs are taken from the website of the Philadelphia Museum and used in a digital collage to contrast them with cultural artefacts. I used actual artefacts to make digital collages of Phulkari Gardens.

Vari da Bagh
When the bride arrived at her mother-in-law’s house, which became her postnuptial dwelling, she was given a gift of this kind. Khaddar was always adorned with a single, pink and golden pat. The jewellery and clothing that the bridegroom’s family presents to her are called “vari.” The girl received this kind of bagh from her mother-in-law before they were married, signifying the love she received from her fiancé’s family. In order to depict the veil in ghugat bagh, I used traditional sehra in this body of work. The groom’s face is concealed by the Sehra. On the groom’s hat is a vibrant veil made of flowers or beads.

Charkha da bagh
Even though it is a hand-cranked wheel, it can spin fibres. After their home responsibilities were completed, Punjabi women would manufacture the traditional Phulkari of Punjab. Not only were all the women seated together, but they were also weaving, chatting, conversing, dancing, and embroidering. The process of creating yarn involves extracting a small section of a fibre cluster and then twisting the fibres into a string-like shape. By repeatedly pulling and twisting the material, the spinner keeps its thickness and length. Originally done thousands of years ago with a stick called a spindle, this was a very time-consuming process. If it refers to the functioning of a tool or piece of machinery used in the creation of handcrafted goods, the hand-cranked wheel may also be connected to creativity and craftsmanship. This could represent the creative and technical contributions made by women to many trades and enterprises. I demonstrated their artistic interpretations by placing original things in contrast to phulkari designs.

Mirchi bagh (chili pattern in phulkari) Vegetables, fruits and floral motifs used in Phulkari
Kitchenware was also employed as a motif. The ghara (pitcher), the gadava (half-filled bronze urn), and the velana (rolling pin) were among them. There are many inspirations for artistic expression in nature. As the term Phulkari suggests, “growing flower,” women’s imaginations produced a variety of floral designs. Genda (marigold), Surajmukhi (sun flower), Motia (jasmine), and Kol (lotus flower) were commonly used for Phulkari and Bagh. In the phulkari field, faint patterns called “Butian” were occasionally stitched. The fruits santaran (orange), anar (pomegranate), nakh (pear), bhut (muskmelon), mango segment, and chuare (dried dates) were all used as motifs by a Phulkari. The veggies that women used were dhaniya (coriander), gobhi (cauliflower), mirchi (chilli), and karela (bitter guard). Flowers symbolize the essence of life and the beauty of the natural world. Brightly coloured flowers are a prime example of Punjabi women’s inventiveness. These themes had deep significance. Fertility, prosperity, and good fortune are all represented by pomegranates. Orange and mango represent energy and plenty. 

Chand bagh
To represent the bride’s beauty, the moon was specially created for her. Another ceremonial bagh, often compared to a Moon bagh, is decorated with white barley grains grouped in round clusters on a maroon khaddar base. This creates the illusion of moonlit barley fields by expertly using embroidery in both the horizontal and vertical sections of the grid. Northern India is where Karva Chauth is most commonly observed. Married women fasted from sunrise to moonrise on Karva Chauth in order to protect and prolong their husbands. The majority of Karva Chauth’s participants are women (men are not allowed to take part in the festival’s celebrations until moonrise, but they are expected to show their fasting spouses that they care), and the day’s beauty routines and dressing-up are significant aspects. This is particularly true in North and Northwestern Indian cities, where people consider fasting to be a prayer for a future husband who will love them. The chand-bagh phulkari is thought to be a celebration of the Karva Chauth festival, according a particular theory.

Nazar Buti
The shawl’s unembroidered corner is revealed, and the sacred shoe emblem is used to ward off evil eyes and win the Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) blessings. The name “nazar buti” indicates that this phulkari shawl is used to protect the wearer from evil eyes. According to personal belief, one side of the shawl is purposefully left with an unembroidered corner to give the impression that it is continuously being made. The drawing includes blue, purple, and black blossoms in the corner. In actuality, the shawl’s design features are nazar buti’s. The nazar buti’s are sometimes left incomplete as well; instead of having full blossoms, they are only outlined. Both orthodox and superstitious women often include little religious symbols before starting the stitching as a preventative step to ensure that it is completed on time. Phulkari, which comes in a vast variety of  thread and background colours, fabric types, thread compositions, motifs, and designs, is primarily produced in Punjab. Stars and mirrors are also sometimes used to make the embroidery look better.

Kaudi Bagh
These baghs’ themes are stylised cowries, which are symbolised by chains of tiny white squares. From an alternative perspective, these shells might be seen as fertility symbols due to their resemblance to female genitalia. Kaudi phulkari was frequently worn by women who wished to become pregnant. It is composed of white rectangles that have been embroidered in the shape of a shell. Pomegranates are a symbol of life and fertility and have numerous cultural and religious meanings due to their numerous seeds. In Greek and Persian mythology, pomegranates have long been linked to fertility, beauty, and perpetual life. In my artwork, pomegranates and Kaudi Phulkari serve as representations of reproduction.

Ghunghat bagh (Veil to Cover the Face)
The veil’s embroidered centre is then pulled over the face. Women use ghnghat, a kind of veil, to hide their faces. The bride covers her face with a three-cornered shawl. As a sign of respect, this shawl is also used to cover one’s face when addressing elderly people. The side that hides the face is used for the abdominal exercise. Sarpallu, an alternative to ghunghat bagh, is used in East Punjab. The crimson background of both sarpalu and bagh is adorned with golden yellow or other coloured threads. In the subcontinent, tikkas are traditional jewellery worn on the forehead. It is composed of a pendant attached to a chain. Phulkari’s ghunghat bagh is embroidered in the shape of tikka. The triangle-shaped motifs will be put to the face in a manner similar of tikkas.

Bellan bagh
A bellan, the local word for a rolling tool, is an essential part of a traditional kitchen. The bagh embroidery frequently uses this design. All four sides of the shawl are embroidered with rows of rolling pins. A variety of colours are packed into these rolling pins to provide a pop of colour. It is possible to see kitchen rolling pins as representations of traditional gender roles, domesticity, and nurturing. It might represent a connection to family, home, and being able to provide through cooking. In this work I put original bellan on abstract embroidered pattern of phulkari shawl. A traditional bellan is embroidered on an abstract rolling pin phulkari shawl design in this artwork.

Lost in the Maze- A Bhool Bhullaiyya Maze Phulkari Bagh
In the past, premarital familiarity was not possible in arranged marriages, so these kinds of activities were necessary to start the conversation. Perhaps this labyrinth was one of those games. A game played by the bride and husband in arranged marriages is thought to be one of the post-wedding ceremony customs. Once the couple has come home following the ceremonies and festivities, the groom’s family offers these icebreakers. The digital collage I made for this body of work features a ring in the Lost in the Maze game, which serves as a modern emblem for cultural narratives.