Some art forms live on to tell its story, warli art is one such art form.
In olden days when Warli community was flourishing and their presence was formerly observed in the Maharashtra-Gujarat belt, Warliart was done on walls on special occasions. Did you know that the paintings were authentically done over a brown background which would be a mixture of mud and cow dung cakes. The white pigment used to draw shapes and figures would be a mixture of rice mixed with water and gum.
It not revelatory how much art unveils about the community and its people, almost like a mirror to the history. Apart from nature Warli painting covers day to day activities of Warlicommunity. They paint various activities like dancing, playing and performing puja. In fact, Tarpa dance is one of the primal aspect of every Warli paintings. In this both man and women interwire their hands and move in circle around the Tarpa players in celebratory enthusiasm. They represent togetherness and their ancient culture in their painting.
There is a shade of rebellion in the tribal community of Warli which they still foster, they do not accept much of contemporary culture, they have their own culture belief, value and norms for life. These paintings are mainly done to represent a sense of togetherness.If there is one thing which they teach us is the balance of universe and the co-existence with the nature and wildlife. Warli Art revolves around mother nature.
In the wake of times that are always changing, the Warli community is a reminder of something integral to the lives of humans.
Tisser India had the wonderful opportunity to bring an abundance of Warli art to more and more in its unique collaboration with UNDP and LTI by the project called Women ArtisanSkill Enhancement Project (WASEP). This encompassed training women in Warli art, skilling them and award their effort with a stipend. This project help us in mobilizing and reaching to women from remote areas via cluster development.
This project really helped Tisser India scale the potential of Warli art with the help of strong community of women in rural community. The result has been a wide variety of wall products including clothing, home décor, fridge magnets, stationary etc and a wave of upliftment in the rural pockets of Maharashtra like Bhiwandi, Angaon, Aarey, Thane etc. Bringing together the spirit of social celebration in its earnest form
