Speculated to be around 500 years old, Kantha embroidery’s origin can be traced back to the pre-Vedic age. A written record proving the same can be found in Krishnadas Kaviraj’s book, ‘Sri Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita’, where he wrote about how Chaitanya’s mother sent a homemade Kantha to her son residing in Puri. This Kantha is displayed in Gambhira, a temple in Puri.

The objective behind Kantha embroidery was to utilize old clothes, which the word ‘Kantha’ literally means. Kantha also means ‘throat’, which refers to Lord Shiva’s story of how his neck turned blue while saving humankind from the contaminated ocean. It earned him the name ‘Nila Kantha’, meaning blue throat. By virtue of this legend, ancient Kantha quilts had ritualistic symbols and animals stitched onto them and were often used during childbirth and marriages.

Kantha was mainly influenced by factors like the availability of material, daily essentials, climate, location, and economic status. Traditionally, old cotton sarees, kantha silk sarees, lungis, and dhotis were reclaimed as fabric for Kantha, and the thread for embroidery was also taken from the old clothes.

Earlier, Kantha embroidery was done using the infamous running stitch, one of the most common stitches. Over time, as Kantha began to gain popularity and more intricate patterns developed, the stitch became known as ‘nakshi Kantha. While there are no specific designs for this stitch, the lotus flower, birds, fish, plants, flowers, and other relevant designs are predominantly used in nakshi Kantha. 

Further, cross-stitch, darning stitch, satin and loop stitches are also used in Kantha embroidery.

There are various types of Kantha, easily differentiated with their utility.

Arshilata is a narrow rectangle-shaped cover used for mirrors, combs, or toilet accessories. Motifs include scenes from the raas of Krishna Leela or Radha-Krishna. Lotuses, zig-zags, and scrolls are other commonly used motifs. Bayton is a square-shaped cover for books and other similar items, made using colourful threads like yellow, blue, green, and red. The primary motif in this Kantha is the lotus flower with hundred petals, also called ‘Satadala Padma’. The oldest design used is a mandala, which symbolises the unity of all manifestations of life. Other motifs include trees, foliages, pots, shells, and kalkas. 

Durjani, also known as ‘thalia’, is a square-shaped Kantha made to cover a wallet. It has a detailed border with a lotus as the central motif. It is sewn together like an envelope with a tassel or string attached to it. Other motifs used in this Kantha include snakes, foliages, and inspirations from nature. Lep Kantha is a thick quilt used during the winter to provide warmth. Usually, geometrical designs are stitched onto it, giving the finished piece a wavy look. 

Oar is a rectangle-shaped Kantha quilt mainly used as a pillow cover. It usually has simple motifs like birds, creepers, trees, and foliages.

Lastly, the most popular type of Kantha called sujani is a large piece of embroidered cloth used during ceremonies. Due to its size, the expanse of imagination and creativity involved is also greater than typical in other types of Kantha. However, the one similarity that prevails is the central motif, which is a lotus. The other designs seen in this Kantha are scenes from the Ramayana and Mahabharata, along with folk tales, birds, flowers, bees, etc.

Kantha embroidery continues to attain traction as the word is spread about it. People residing in cosmopolitan areas have started to prefer it over other designs as it involves using vintage clothes and repurposing them into new garments. Clothing with this embroidery can be purchased from designers like Divyam Mehta, Abhishek Gupta, Poonam Kasera, Aseem Kapoor, Gaurav Katta, Urvashi Kaur, Pranav Baidya, and many more at Pernia’s Pop-Up Shop.