THANJAVUR: The Tamil Nadu Handicrafts Development Corporation Limited (Poompuhar) along with the Thanjavur Handicrafts Workers Cottage Industrial Cooperative Society Limited recently filed applications for obtaining Geographical Indication (GI) tag for Thanjavur cut glass work (Thanjavur kannadi kalaiporul) and the Tiruvavaduthurai seevali used in nagaswaram.
Disclosing this, P Sanjai Gandhi, the intellectual property attorney who facilitated the process of filing the applications with the Geographical Indications Registry (GIR), explained that the Thanjavur kannadi kalaiporul is a special art form of Thanjavur taluk in Thanjavur district. It uses mainly glass mirrors, and golden and silver glitter paper to decorate various articles. The base for the articles may be wood or metal.
A coloured foil is made by mixing dye and other materials, and is put under the glass and heated. The colour sticks to the glass in the process. The coloured glass is then cut to the required measurements and shapes, Gandhi said.
Mentioning the Thanjavur kannadi kalaiporul as originally used in decoration of temples, ‘durbar’ and the ‘pooja mandapam’ of palaces, Gandhi added that the modern version came in use during the Maratha reign of King Serfoji II, who ruled Thanjavur from 1787 CE to 1832 CE.
On the Tiruvavaduthurai seevali, Gandhi pointed out that seevali is a type of double reed used to produce sound in wind instrument nagaswaram. Seevali is made of a reed found in Thanjavur district, he said.