Ajrakh print (Image: Gujarat Tourism)

Ajrakh, a handicraft legacy of an age-old tradition that artisans hold in the remote village of Ajrakhpur in Kutch has officially been conferred with geographical indication tag (GI).

GI tags identify products with a specific origin, linking them to a country or region, protecting their unique qualities and traditional methods.

The controller general of patents, designs and trademarks (CGPDTM), Unnat Pandit handed over the GI certificate to the traditional artisans of ‘Kutch Ajrakh’ at first edition of the IPR Conclave 2024 organised by ASSOCHAM (The Associated Chambers of Commerce) Gujarat Council on Apr 26.

What is ‘Ajrakh’?

Ajrakh is a 5000-year-old textile art form practised in Sindh and Kutch regions which is treated with vegetable and mineral colours usually red, yellow, blue, and black. 

It is mostly crafted from cotton, wool, and silk textiles, traditionally tailored for the Maldhari community, who don them as their customary attire for daily wear.

Ajrakh shawls, chaniya-choli, turbans, fashion pieces and even bedsheets.

Celebrities are also being spotted in Ajrakh attires upping their fashion game like Alia Bhatt who in January this year, wore an Ajrakh saree for  an award function in Riyadh.

Kutch shawls, Kutch embroidery, and Kutch embroidery (Logo) are already given GI tags in Gujarat. 

Gujarat now has 18 GI tags.

Also read:

Patan’s perishing art, patola sarees to lose existence despite GI tag?