What is Kalamkari fabric? It is one of India's oldest textile traditions — a hand-drawn
or block-printed art form practiced for over 3,000 years in Andhra Pradesh. The word
itself tells you exactly what it is: kalam means pen, kari means craftsmanship.
Painting with a pen. Directly onto fabric.
At Rush Me Fashions, we work specifically with Pen Kalamkari — the rarest and most
labor-intensive of the two Kalamkari traditions. Here is everything you need to know
about it.
What are the two types of Kalamkari?
There are two distinct Kalamkari traditions in India, each from a different town in
Andhra Pradesh:
Srikalahasti Kalamkari (Pen Kalamkari) — entirely hand-drawn using a bamboo or
iron-tipped pen, with no block printing involved. Every line, every motif, every fill
of color is applied by hand. This is the rarest form.
Machilipatnam Kalamkari — uses carved wooden blocks to print the design onto fabric,
combined with hand-painting for details. More uniform in pattern; produced in larger
quantities.
We source exclusively from Srikalahasti — the Pen Kalamkari tradition.
How is Pen Kalamkari made?
The process involves 23 steps — not an exaggeration. The fabric (pure cotton) goes
through treatment with buffalo milk and myrobalan (a natural tannin) before a single
line is drawn. This treatment prepares the cloth to accept and hold natural dyes.
The artist then sketches the design freehand using a bamboo pen dipped in fermented
jaggery and iron solution — this creates the characteristic black outline. Once the
outline is complete, natural dyes are applied: indigo for blue, madder root for red,
pomegranate rind for yellow, iron-rich mud for deep black.
Between each color application, the fabric is washed — sometimes in running water over
sand, which must be present to prevent the colors from smudging. Some pieces go through
up to 23 separate wash-and-dye cycles before they are finished.
There is no margin for error. A single wrong line cannot be corrected. Which is why a
skilled Pen Kalamkari artist takes years to train, and why authentic pieces are so rare.
What do Kalamkari motifs look like?
Traditional Pen Kalamkari motifs draw from Hindu mythology — scenes from the Ramayana
and Mahabharata, lotus flowers, peacocks, divine figures, horses, elephants. The
compositions are intricate and dense, filling the entire fabric surface. The colour
palette is characteristically warm and earthy: deep reds, blacks, ochre yellows, indigo
blues — all from natural sources.
Modern Pen Kalamkari artists also work with contemporary geometric and nature-inspired
motifs, while maintaining the same hand-drawn technique and natural dye process.
How do you care for Pen Kalamkari fabric?
Hand wash separately in cold water. Do not soak. The slight smell you may notice when
first unpacking a Pen Kalamkari piece — particularly one with buffalo milk treatment —
is completely natural and disappears after the first wash.
Do not wring. Dry in shade. Iron on reverse with medium heat. The colours will soften
and deepen with washing — this is a sign of authentic natural dyes, not a defect.
Why is Pen Kalamkari so rare?
Pen Kalamkari is practised by only a small community of artists in Srikalahasti, Andhra
Pradesh. The 23-step process means a single piece of fabric can take days to weeks to
complete. There is no mechanized shortcut — every step requires human skill and
attention.
Mass production is impossible by the very nature of the process. Which means that every
authentic Pen Kalamkari piece you wear is genuinely one of a kind.
At Rush Me Fashions, we source Pen Kalamkari pieces very occasionally — typically one
or two kurtas every few months. When a piece arrives, it rarely stays available for long.
Shop our Pen Kalamkari collection → rushmefashions.com/collections/kalamkari
Follow us on Instagram @rushmefashionspune to be notified when new Kalamkari pieces arrive.
