Phulkari
Phulkari, a traditional embroidery art is well known for its colorful designs and colors. The dresses made by phulkari are called ‘Phulkaris’ and are worn by punjabi women on special occasions and ceremonies. The word ‘Phulkari’ is made of two words “Phul” and “kari”, where “Phul” means flower and “kari” means technique, thus forming technique of making flowers.
The art is quite old and in olden days majority of women were expert in this art in villages and was purely a domestic art. Punjabi women were very creative in designs with adding various colors. Although in morden days now not many women or girls take interest in learning this art, but still admire to have ‘Phulkaris’ for special events.
The areas like Hazara and Chakwal were known to be famous of Phulkaris’. The main characteristics of Phulkari embroidery are use of darn stitch on the wrong side of coarse cotton cloth with coloured silken thread. Punjabi women created innumerable alluring and interesting designs and patterns by their skilful manipulation of the darn stitch. The base khaddar cloth used in Western Punjab is finer from those of Central Punjab. Black/blue are not preferred in Western Punjab, whereas white is not used in East Punjab. In West Punjab, 2 or 3 pieces of cloth are first folded and joined together. In East Punjab, they are joined together first and then embroidered.
Many women also stiched ornamnets as part of the design and even a special thread made of gold was used along side silk threads.The creative ability of women scaped wonderful and sometimes complex patterns along side the colorful flowers.
Sohni Mahival
Sohni was the daughter of a potter named Tula, who lived in Punjab near the banks of the Chenab River. As soon as the Surahis (water pitchers) and mugs came off the wheels, she would draw floral designs on them and transform them into masterpieces of art.
Izzat Biag, the rich trader form Balakh Bukhara, came to Hindustan on business but when he saw the beautiful Sohni he was completely enchanted. Instead of keeping mohars (gold coins) in his pockets, he roamed around with his pockets full of love. Just to get a glimpse of Sohni he would end up buying the water pitchers and mugs everyday.
Sohni lost her heart to Izzat Baig. Instead of making floral designs on earthenware she started building castles of love in her dreams. Izzat Baig sent off his companions to Balakh Bukhara. He took the job of a servant in the house of Tula, the potter. He would even take their buffaloes for grazing. Soon he was known as Mahiwal (potter).
When the people started spreading rumors about the love of Sohni and Mahiwal, without her consent her parents arranged her marriage with another potter.
Suddenly, one day his barat (marriage party) arrived at the threshold of her house. Sohni was helpless and in a poignant state. Her parents bundled her off in the doli (palanquin), but they could not pack off her love in any doli (box).
Izzat Baig renounced the world and started living like a fakir (hermit) in a small hut across the river. The earth of Sohni’s land was like a dargah (shrine) for him. He had forgotten his own land, his own people and his world. Taking refuge in the darkness of the night when the world was fast asleep Sohni would come by the riverside and Izzat Baig would swim across the river to meet her. He would regularly roast a fish and bring it for her. It is said that once due to high tide he could not catch a fish, so he cut a piece of his thigh and roasted it. Seeing the bandage on his thigh, Sohni opened it, saw the wound and cried.
From the next day Sohni started swimming across the river with the help of an earthen pitcher as Izzat Baig was so badly wounded, he could not swim across the river. Soon spread the rumors of their romantic rendezvous. One-day Sohni’s sister-in-law followed her and saw the hiding place where Sohni used to keep her earthen pitcher among the bushes. The next day her sister-in-law removed the hard baked pitcher and replaced it with an unbaked one. At night when Sohni tried to cross the river with the help of the pitcher, it dissolved in the water and Sohni was drowned. From the other side of the river Mahiwal saw Sohni drowning and jumped into the river.
This was Sohni’s courage, which every woman of Punjab has recognized, applauded in songs: “Sohni was drowned, but her soul still swims in water…”
A glimpse into the lives and culture of the people of Punjab can be got through the folk idiom of Punjab. There is a great repertoire of music, right from the time of birth to death, of love and separation of dance and rejoicement, of marriage and fulfilment. Culturally Punjab can be divided into three riegions, Malwa, Majha and Doaba.Today Malwa represents the true spirit of Punjabi folk traditions. The Punjabi fold idiom is so rich, so varied and so very versatile. It is a culture of generous, vast, large hearted people which is devoid of any fanaticism and religious narrow mindedness of ideology.
If we go deep into the folk music of the land, it is difficult to classify it. But perhaps we can draw board divisions for every season, every festive occasion has music associated with it. Even food is associated with a change in season. The festivals of Punjab are numerous. Lohri is the time after which the biting cold of winter begins to taper off. In the olden days, it was more of a community festival, where the birth of a son, the first year of marriage was celebrated all through the village in front of the sacred fire.
In addition to the Hindus , Muslims and Sikhs, the numerous ethnic groups that came to Punjab have contributed to the growth of its composite culture . The rich cultural heritage of Punjab gives a clarion call to peace and prosperity .
The Punjabis are known the world over for their dash , daring and dynamism . Their innate resilience has helped them overcome one crisis after another . An openness and a readiness for restructuring an individual and collective levels have been the essence of Punjabi life- style , the core of Punjabiat .
Gandhiji considered Punjab the most important province of India . It is the land where the first civilized man trod on earth . It is richly endowed with the bounties of nature . It is intersected by seven perennial rivers joined by innumerable tributaries . These rivers and their tributaries spread juicy carpets of alluvial soil on its vast plains .
The fairy dancers of the court of lord Indira are reputed to have taught the technique of Giddha and Sammi to the girls of this earth. The fairy which taught Giddha was known as Giddho while the one who taught Sammi was named as such. This kind of dance form is popular in Sandal Bar which now is in Pakistan. Sammi has not been able to gain popular acceptanceand is breathing its last in the huts of the tribals. Women of Baazigars, Rai Sikhs, Lobanas and Sansi lot tribes dance in this medium. This is also danced in the privacy of women.
This women’s dance is also performed like ‘Giddha’. The dancers stand in a circle and swing their hands, bringing them up from the sides, right in front up to the chest level and clap: they take their hands down in accordance with a rythem and clap again. Repeating this gesture, they bend forward and clap again, and go round and round in a circle. As the rythem is maintained with the beat of the feet, various kinds of swinging movements are performed with the arms. Most of the gestures are confined to the movement of the arms, clicking and clapping. No instrument is required as an accompaniment to this dance. Rythem is kept up with the beating of the feet and clapping.
Special make-up is done by its performers. They knit their hair into thin plaits all over their head into intricate patterns and tie the remaining length of the hair in one full plait. In the middle of their head they fix a domed ornament shaped like an inverted lotus called phul-chowk or Suggiphul (flower of the crossings of the plaits). The performers wear a unisex kurta (male shirt) and the tehmet (lower cloth) and cover their head with a thick cloth of loose rectangular dimension, called -Bhochhan-. Chutki is a frictional sound of single note created by pressing and then sIiding the thumb and the index or the middle finger and is used to keep the beat in this lance. The background song of this dance is also called sammi. This is also a dance of controlled movements. It is said that even the Devtas (angels) get inebriated while seeing this dance
Sohni was the daughter of a potter named Tula, who lived in Punjab near the banks of the Chenab River. As soon as the Surahis (water pitchers) and mugs came off the wheels, she would draw floral designs on them and transform them into masterpieces of art.
Izzat Biag, the rich trader form Balakh Bukhara, came to Hindustan on business but when he saw the beautiful Sohni he was completely enchanted. Instead of keeping mohars (gold coins) in his pockets, he roamed around with his pockets full of love. Just to get a glimpse of Sohni he would end up buying the water pitchers and mugs everyday.
Sohni lost her heart to Izzat Baig. Instead of making floral designs on earthenware she started building castles of love in her dreams. Izzat Baig sent off his companions to Balakh Bukhara. He took the job of a servant in the house of Tula, the potter. He would even take their buffaloes for grazing. Soon he was known as Mahiwal (potter).
When the people started spreading rumors about the love of Sohni and Mahiwal, without her consent her parents arranged her marriage with another potter.
Suddenly, one day his barat (marriage party) arrived at the threshold of her house. Sohni was helpless and in a poignant state. Her parents bundled her off in the doli (palanquin), but they could not pack off her love in any doli (box).
Izzat Baig renounced the world and started living like a fakir (hermit) in a small hut across the river. The earth of Sohni’s land was like a dargah (shrine) for him. He had forgotten his own land, his own people and his world. Taking refuge in the darkness of the night when the world was fast asleep Sohni would come by the riverside and Izzat Baig would swim across the river to meet her. He would regularly roast a fish and bring it for her. It is said that once due to high tide he could not catch a fish, so he cut a piece of his thigh and roasted it. Seeing the bandage on his thigh, Sohni opened it, saw the wound and cried.
From the next day Sohni started swimming across the river with the help of an earthen pitcher as Izzat Baig was so badly wounded, he could not swim across the river. Soon spread the rumors of their romantic rendezvous. One-day Sohni’s sister-in-law followed her and saw the hiding place where Sohni used to keep her earthen pitcher among the bushes. The next day her sister-in-law removed the hard baked pitcher and replaced it with an unbaked one. At night when Sohni tried to cross the river with the help of the pitcher, it dissolved in the water and Sohni was drowned. From the other side of the river Mahiwal saw Sohni drowning and jumped into the river.
This was Sohni’s courage, which every woman of Punjab has recognized, applauded in songs: “Sohni was drowned, but her soul still swims in water…”
The Music Of Punjab
If we go deep into the folk music of the land, it is difficult to classify it. But perhaps we can draw board divisions for every season, every festive occasion has music associated with it. Even food is associated with a change in season. The festivals of Punjab are numerous. Lohri is the time after which the biting cold of winter begins to taper off. In the olden days, it was more of a community festival, where the birth of a son, the first year of marriage was celebrated all through the village in front of the sacred fire.
Punjabi Culture
The Punjabi Culture is reflected in its folk dances , folk songs , arts and crafts . Punjab deserves praise for its hospitality and assimilative power .In addition to the Hindus , Muslims and Sikhs, the numerous ethnic groups that came to Punjab have contributed to the growth of its composite culture . The rich cultural heritage of Punjab gives a clarion call to peace and prosperity .
The Punjabis are known the world over for their dash , daring and dynamism . Their innate resilience has helped them overcome one crisis after another . An openness and a readiness for restructuring an individual and collective levels have been the essence of Punjabi life- style , the core of Punjabiat .
Gandhiji considered Punjab the most important province of India . It is the land where the first civilized man trod on earth . It is richly endowed with the bounties of nature . It is intersected by seven perennial rivers joined by innumerable tributaries . These rivers and their tributaries spread juicy carpets of alluvial soil on its vast plains .
Luddi Sammi , A Punjabi Folk entertainment
Luddi is a victory-dance recognisable by the swaying movements of the head. Its costume is a simple loose shirt. The performers place one hand at the back and the other before the face; the body movement is sinuous, snake-like. This is also danced with the drummer in the centre.The fairy dancers of the court of lord Indira are reputed to have taught the technique of Giddha and Sammi to the girls of this earth. The fairy which taught Giddha was known as Giddho while the one who taught Sammi was named as such. This kind of dance form is popular in Sandal Bar which now is in Pakistan. Sammi has not been able to gain popular acceptanceand is breathing its last in the huts of the tribals. Women of Baazigars, Rai Sikhs, Lobanas and Sansi lot tribes dance in this medium. This is also danced in the privacy of women.
This women’s dance is also performed like ‘Giddha’. The dancers stand in a circle and swing their hands, bringing them up from the sides, right in front up to the chest level and clap: they take their hands down in accordance with a rythem and clap again. Repeating this gesture, they bend forward and clap again, and go round and round in a circle. As the rythem is maintained with the beat of the feet, various kinds of swinging movements are performed with the arms. Most of the gestures are confined to the movement of the arms, clicking and clapping. No instrument is required as an accompaniment to this dance. Rythem is kept up with the beating of the feet and clapping.
Special make-up is done by its performers. They knit their hair into thin plaits all over their head into intricate patterns and tie the remaining length of the hair in one full plait. In the middle of their head they fix a domed ornament shaped like an inverted lotus called phul-chowk or Suggiphul (flower of the crossings of the plaits). The performers wear a unisex kurta (male shirt) and the tehmet (lower cloth) and cover their head with a thick cloth of loose rectangular dimension, called -Bhochhan-. Chutki is a frictional sound of single note created by pressing and then sIiding the thumb and the index or the middle finger and is used to keep the beat in this lance. The background song of this dance is also called sammi. This is also a dance of controlled movements. It is said that even the Devtas (angels) get inebriated while seeing this dance
Duppataa Part Of Punjabi Dress
Duppatta is very important part of Punjabi girls. It increases the smartness and proud of the women, but the traditional fashion of Punjabi girl is decreasing in Punjab due to the western culture. Insteadof taking the duppatta on the head, girls/women wear it only around the neck. Duppatta that prove length from two to two and half meter increase the beauty of the girls. Salwaar kameez is incomplete without duppatta. Duppatta not only look nice but I guess it makes the girl look more trendy, if worn correctly and reflects the inner beauty also of the women.
The present Punjabi girls became is now driven due to the glitz of western fashion in Punjab. They are much more confused by different combinations of dresses available in the market. Fasion designers have also show the importance of Duppatta and you might have seen dupatta also being emphasized in some fashion shows. First duppatta was taken on the both shoulders but now it’s mere a piece of cloth hanging on one of the shoulder or sometimes around the neck.
Even when many companies are started to focus on the Punjabi culture with Punjabi competition where not only the brain and beauty is put on test but also the way the women dresses is also of much importance.
The song in the movie of late mr raj kapoor. (barsat), “ hawain mein urtha jai��? mera lal duppatta mammal ka��?and duppatta is also mentioned in same other movie. When the bridies wear the duppatta on marriage time. It give more improvement to her beauty.
The song in the movie of late mr raj kapoor. (barsat), “ hawain mein urtha jai��? mera lal duppatta mammal ka��?and duppatta is also mentioned in same other movie. When the bridies wear the duppatta on marriage time. It give more improvement to her beauty.
I won’t say that only Punjabi girls are mad behind the western culture, its vice-versa too and I have seen women in western countries have also started appreciating the punjabi dress. An example of this can be seen in NewYork and California where you can see American girls wearing Punjabi suits and Punjabi dresses. I am not saying that the Punjabi girl should not wear western dresses, the point here is that if at all we are wearing a punjabi dress such as Salwaar Kameez, one should also wear Duppata the way it should be worn with it and should not wear it as an extra accessory, else its better just not to wear it at all. If one does not gives importance to duppatta along with punjabi dress then it becomes only a beautiful part of exhibition.
SINDH
Sindhi Ajrak
Sindh is famous province of Pakistan.Sindh is famous for its mystical personalities and their Mizaras.Sindhi peoples are very loving and rich in culture.Sindh was the first province in subcontinent which fell in hands of Muslims in eighth century.Sindh was called Bab-ul-Islam.In 1947 at the time of partition Sindh provincial assembly decide the future of province with paksitan.Karachi a city of Sindh is also biggest city of Pakistan.Karachi is coastal city.There are many historical places in far and wide of Sindh.There are many Historical Places which The UNESCO declared the cultural heritage . Makli Grave yard in Thatta a district of Sindh is world largest graveyard.Sufism have deep affects on the culture of sindh.Sufis of Sindh influenced every aspect of life of sindh.sufis have great contribution in Sindhi poetry.Ajrak of sindh is very famous for its colors.These are few famous districts of Sind,Nawab Shah,Thatta,Badin,Hyderabad,Larkana.Sakh
Lal Shehbaz Qalandar
Sindh is famous province of Pakistan.Sindh is famous for its mystical personalities and their Mizaras.Sindhi peoples are very loving and rich in culture.Sindh was the first province in subcontinent which fell in hands of Muslims in eighth century.Sindh was called Bab-ul-Islam.In 1947 at the time of partition Sindh provincial assembly decide the future of province with paksitan.Karachi a city of Sindh is also biggest city of Pakistan.Karachi is coastal city.There are many historical places in far and wide of Sindh.There are many Historical Places which The UNESCO declared the cultural heritage . Makli Grave yard in Thatta a district of Sindh is world largest graveyard.Sufism have deep affects on the culture of sindh.Sufis of Sindh influenced every aspect of life of sindh.sufis have great contribution in Sindhi poetry.Ajrak of sindh is very famous for its colors.These are few famous districts of Sind,Nawab Shah,Thatta,Badin,Hyderabad,Larkana.Sakh
