The Story Behind Mata Ni Pachedi: Gujarat's Sacred Textile Art

Our Bandarwal Mata Ni Pachedi isn't just a decorative door hanging — it carries a textile tradition that goes back centuries, born out of exclusion and turned into one of Gujarat's most striking folk art forms.

Born Outside the Temple Walls

Mata Ni Pachedi translates to "behind the Mother Goddess," and its origin story explains why. The craft began with the Devipujak community, a nomadic group historically denied entry into mainstream Hindu temples. Rather than go without a place of worship, they created their own: hand-painted cloths depicting the Mother Goddess, used as portable shrines that could be hung and worshipped anywhere. Some oral histories trace the tradition back as much as a thousand years, though most documented estimates place its established form at 300–400 years old. In 2023, the craft received a Geographical Indication (GI) tag, formally recognizing it as a distinct art form tied to its region of origin.

Entirely Natural, Entirely by Hand

What makes Mata Ni Pachedi especially remarkable is that every color comes from nature. Black is drawn from fermented iron rust, red from alizarin, set against the natural white of untreated cotton. The cloth is first treated with myrobalan to help it hold dye, then outlined by hand using a bamboo pen (kalam) dipped in the iron-black mixture, with block printing used for repeating elements. Red sections are added with alum as a mordant, and the finished cloth is washed repeatedly in flowing river water to fix the colors permanently. It's a slow, physically demanding process — and one now kept alive primarily by a small number of families from the Chitara lineage who've inherited the technique directly.

More Than Decoration

Traditionally, these cloths function as temple-like backdrops for worship, most visibly during Navaratri, when depictions of the Goddess in her many forms are displayed and venerated at home. Hanging a Mata Ni Pachedi piece at your entrance carries that same intention forward — inviting protection and auspiciousness into the home, much like the broader Indian tradition of door hangings (Bandarwal, Toran) more generally.

Bringing It Into Your Home

Our Bandarwal Mata Ni Pachedi Handmade is hand-printed using techniques rooted in this tradition, sized for a doorway or entrance display. It pairs naturally with our other hand-printed and palm-leaf-etched Bandarwal pieces if you're building out a full festive entrance display for Navaratri, Diwali, or another auspicious occasion.

A note on care: because the dyes are natural and the cloth is untreated cotton, keep it away from direct water exposure and prolonged harsh sunlight to preserve the colors — a soft, dry dusting is the safest way to keep it clean.

Every SanskaraPY piece is handcrafted by artisans across India under fair-trade conditions, with proceeds supporting free education for children in Ludhiana and Cuttack. Browse our Bandarwal collection →

Sources:
Mata Ni Pachedi — Wikipedia
Mata ni Pachedi: Gujarat's Sacred Textile Tradition — Memeraki