Keeping alive a tradition dating back to the reign of the Kachhwaha rulers, a family in the Walled City of Jaipur makes an indelible black ink, or kali syahi, used 250 years ago for writing royal firmans (decrees) and ledgers.
Details –
- The fourth generation of the family now produces the ink every Deepavali.
- While the erstwhile royal family used the ink for its official transactions, the businessmen of the princely State used it to write their accounts.
- Even universities established after Independence awarded degrees written with this ink. The ink was believed to ward off evil and bring prosperity to its users.
Features –
- The ink was made of natural ingredients using a traditional procedure handed down from generations.
- The black ink is prepared on a no-moon night with the chanting of mantras.
- It is made of kaajal (homemade mascara), gondh (edible gum) and other locally sourced herbal ingredients.
- The ink has medicinal properties, as some of its ingredients were used in the traditional Ayurvedic system for the treatment and healing of wounds.
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