Women Masland Weavers of West Bengal

These traditional mat making families retain the knowledge of weaving this fine variety of Masland, which is a highly sought after handicraft today. 

This is the finest quality of traditional Masland. The origin of the craft in West Bengal dates back to the Muslim period, when Masland  mats of superfine variety with fine cotton as weft were produced under royal patronage. 

These women, for whom weaving Masland had been just a leisure activity after completing household chores, are becoming great achievers as Masland weavers and travelling the world to showcase their craft. 

These mats customarily used to be simpler with designed borders and a plain body. In 1744, Nawab Alibardi Khan issued a charter to the Jaigirdars in this regard and as a result, it was obligatory to supply Masland mats for use in the Collectorate.  

These mats are also an integral part of ordinary Bengali household, ideal for daily use, especially during the sweltering heat of summers. However, today, these have turned into premium lifestyle handicrafts providing sustainable livelihood to hundreds of rural craftspersons.

Masland is made from a local grass that is cultivated in the districts of Purba and Paschim Medinipur, West Bengal. This is a frame of the green fields before harvest. 

The fineness of the mat depends on how thinly the reeds are stripped. 

After the harvest of the Madurkathi or reeds they are stripped by a sickle. Making Masland mats is a time consuming, intensive and a completely natural process. 

The reeds are then processed by soaking in water.  

After the primary processing of the reeds, those are dyed using natural dyes extracted from fruits and bark of trees by the artisans themselves.

Finally the dyed reeds are laid out in the sun for drying.

These are the colourfully dyed reed bunches.

Over time, the weavers have diversified designs as well as products producing more complicated designs and woven images as a testimony of their skills.

This frame shows the process of weaving a design on loom, from a graph.

Progression of a design on Madur.

The designs of traditional Masland floor mats have also evolved to suit modern tastes.

The entire body of this Madur is handwoven with a traditional motif, yet having a very contemporary look.

This frame shows image of Corona Virus handwoven on Madur.

The Masland weavers are making diversified products to meet the demands of the clientele. 

Handwoven runner and table mat set

The weavers use a wide variety of colours and designs to make these mats extremely attractive and tasteful.

Development of the Madur Hub of Medinipur is a story of women empowerment. The women have emerged as artists and entrepreneurs inspiring many other women within the community. 

Gouri Bala Das is a National Merit Certificate recipient (1992) renowned for her artistic skill in weaving the finest of Masland. 

She runs her own enterprise called Das Mat Weaving, a Madur unit of 45 artisans. She is also an important member of Paschim Medinipur Sarta Madur Bayan Shilpi Kalyan Samiti, a society of Madur weavers. 

Gouri Bala Das has received Kalamani Award, District Award and State Award for her weaving skill. She has showcased her work in different fairs and festival in India as well as at the URKULT Festival in Sweden in 2018.    

Gouri Rani Jana is a National Award winner. She heads Ma Kali Mat Industry, a mat weaving unit of 40 women. Gouri Rani Jana's unit introduced Masland mats made of natural colour dyed sticks.  She is a member of the Paschim Medinipur Sarta Madur Bayan Shilpi Kalyan Samiti, a society of Madur weavers. 

Gouri is known for weaving portraits and landscapes in mats, creating a style of her own. She has showcased her work in various fairs and exhibitions in India and abroad like OIMO Festival in Kyrgyzstan (2016) and URKULT Festival in Sweden (2018)