Dabu

printing
Presented by : Aditya Pratap
Eshana
Nambiar
 INTRODUCTION
• Dabu or daboo is an ancient mud resist hand
block printing technique from Rajasthan. The
practice almost died out in the last century but
was revived and is today a flourishing business in
many villages of Rajasthan. The method of Dabu
printing gets it’s name from the word ‘dabaana’ ,
meaning ‘to press’. craftsmen known as Chippas.

• The prints have a sublime quality and

appearance. In making of the printed fabrics, a
lot of manual process and hard work is involved
and the process of uses lots of natural dyes and
vegetable pastes.
 HISTORY & ORIGIN
Mud resist printing is a special variation, the
origins of which can be traced to about 675 A.D.
believed to have been employed in India, during
8th century AD. Today it is commonly
acknowledged that the village of Akola, in the
Chittorgarh district of Rajasthan, is the originator
of the unique Dabu printing style which uses mud
resists.

Dabu printing is often grouped together with other

Rajasthan hand block prints like Sanganeri and
Bagru, but is in fact quite distinct in terms of its
look and method. The designs are said to be very
similar to ‘Batik’ though the techniques used to
produce the two are quite different.

The prints popularly adorned the flowing Ghagras.

These were the favored clothing of the women,
locally called ‘Fetiya’ in Rajasthan. The garment
 blocks
Traditional Dabu designs and motifs are very
similar to the motifs used in all traditional
Rajasthani textiles, since the ‘blocks’ used for
printing are common to most of these
techniques. They tend to be nature inspired
designs of plants, birds, flowers, fruits as well as
artistic ethnic motifs. Popular ones are Kahma,
Lal titri, Dholika, Kantedar.

Mainly three types of blocks are used for printing

•Rekh
• Gad
•Datta
Rekh block is for outline, Gad is for large
background motifs and Datta is used for aplying
mud.
blue, indigo, red, green are mostly seen in the
• Kalidar dabu- TYPES OF DABU
It is most commonly used and is made with kali mitti
(clay)+ chuna (lime)+bidhan(wheat flour) + gaund (gum). It
is least adhesive.

• Dolidar dabu-
 The soliution of Dolidar dabu is made with Wheat Flour +
Lime + Gum.
• Gawarbali dabu-
It is produced with roasted seedof Gwarn buti (a cacti plant
which exudes outsticky juice) + Lime + Kali Mitti. It has
maximum adhesive quality.
 THE MAKING
• Preparation of mud resist: The Process of Dabu Printing starts with
the preparation of mud resist the clay is prepared by finely mixing
it. ‘Chuna’, Calcium hydroxide, Beedan, and gum are the main
ingredients to make the mud resist. The dug out mud from the dry
pond is soaked in water in a separate tank overnight. The mud
resist is freshly prepared before every printing.
• The mixture of beedan and gound along with mud are doughed to
make a sticky paste. The special resist paste technique is
commonly known as ‘dhabu’. It is applied with wooden block on
the fabric and saw dust is sprinkled over it. Saw dust has two
major functions, to absorb water from the Dhabu paste and give
additional layers of resist and also acts as a binder which prevents
color penetration while dyeing.
• After printing, the fabric is left outside in the sun for drying before
dipping in indigo tanks.
• Post mordanting with alum- locally known as ‘Fitkari
Rangai’. The dye extracted from turmeric and pomegranate
peals is very fugitive and in order to make is fast, post
mordanting is done with alum (fitkari). In this process the
fabric is dipped in a big copper vessel filled with water and
diluted alum. After leaving it of a few minutes it is taken out,
gently squeezed and dried flat on the ground. When it is
completely dry it is folded and stored in dark places of at
least 3 to 4 days so that the yellow dye sets in. Finally it is
taken out for washing.
• Washing
Washing of the fabric is done in order to take out resist paste
and excess or unattached dye from the surface. In this process
the fabric is left in big tanks for at least 3 to 4 hours till the
resist paste becomes smooth. The fabric is then beaten over a
flat stone slab to remove the resist paste and excess dye. The
beating of the cloth is generally done where there is a flow of
water.
 COLORS
• Traditional daboo prints are made with natural
dyes like kashish (grey-brown) and indigo Plants Color produced
(blue), as well as yellows and reds derived Palash Bright yellow
from fruits like pomegranate. Today a lot more Haldi Yellow
color options are available to artisans since Neel Blue
they are no longer restricted to vegetable Madder Red
dyes and can use synthetic dyes as well.
Alizarin Red
 Fabrics can also be dyed more than once,
Nasphal Greenish yellow
creating the double dabu and triple dabu
Harda Greenish yellow
effect with a richer, more colorful look.
 MOTIFS & DESIGN
• The typical motifs used are nature-inspired ones of peacocks,
mangoes, leaves, cornstalks (called boota), sunflower (surajmukhi)
and animal figures. Geometric shapes, dots and wavy lines may
also be used. The designs thus created are repeated over and over
again all over the fabric. Sometimes, the mud paste cracks and
leaks, creating a distinctive vein like effect similar to Batik.
• Daboo printing is used to create all types of Indian garments, from 
sarees and salwar kameez to shirts, tunics and kurtas. Scarves,
stoles and shawls printed with daboo designs are also very
common, as well as accessories like totes and jhola bags.  Daboo
printing is also used to decorate linens, bedsheets, bed covers,
cushions and curtains.
 PRESENT SCENARIO
• Today Daboo prints have become famous all over the
world, much loved for their vibrant and unique designs
and colors. While earlier, they were almost exclusively
used to decorate high-end sarees made of fine cotton
fabrics like Maheshwari cotton, nowadays they are
used for all types of garments and in all kinds of
fabrics. In particular, silk, crepe and georgette have
become very popular amongst Daboo artisans, mainly
because they hold the designs and colors very well.
However, absorbent and resilient cotton fabrics remain
the most commonly used for Daboo printing.
 INNOVATION
• This technique has slowly and steadily gained a
loyal and admiring customer base across the
world, and this has encouraged the craftsmen to
produce new types of designs and patterns to
appeal to their more modern, westernized
consumers. Thus, in addition to the ethnic motifs,
modern designs of geometric waves, pop culture
graphics and artistic shapes are often used. The
color base has also expanded to unconventional
combinations of red, black and green.

Dabu Printed Cotton Dress in Off White and

 MAINTENANCE
• Fabrics with daboo prints should be first
washed by hand to check the fastness of
the colors, after which they can be machine
washed in cool water. It is best to air dry
these fabrics to avoid ruining the
brightness of the color. Natural and
vegetable dyes tend to be very fast and
take a long time to fade, though repeated
machine washes may speed up the
process.
 REFRENCES
• www.utsavpedia.com/motifs-embroideries/daboo-print/
• www.scribd.com/doc/84814729/Dabu-Printing
• http://www.thehindu.com/2001/10/29/stories/13290076.
htm
THANK YOU !