Hyderabad’s lac bangles earned the Geographical Indication tag (GI Tag) from the central government in March. The bangles are made from natural lac and studded with colourful stones. They are prized for their craftsmanship.
These bangles are mostly sold near the historical Charminar, at Lad Bazaar (also known as Choodi Bazaar). The market has been around since the 18th century.
P Jogi Naidu from the department of archaeology and museum, Andhra Pradesh, says Hyderabad’s bangle-making tradition can be traced back to the Qutub Shahi era (1518-1687). The initial practitioners were hakims (people who were focused on healing), and they pursued the bangle business for secondary income.
Mohd Hussain, author of ‘Bangle Char Chaman’, has another take on the origin story. He says, “Persians, primarily hakims who were also skilled in bangle making, settled in Golconda due to friendly trade relations with Persia.”
This led to the establishment of bangle making in Hyderabad during the Qutub Shahi era.
The making
Lac is a resinous substance secreted by the lac insect, Kerria lacca. It is flexible and can easily incorporate colours and embellishments. Lac is affordable in comparison to metal. This is another reason for its widespread appeal.
Lac, resin crystals, and white colour soapstone (ghiya pathar) powder form the base of these bangles. Mohammed Hisamuddin, president of the Creasent Handicraft Artisans Welfare Association, Charminar, explains the making of these bangles. He has been in the bangle-making business for 35 years. His father and grandfather were in the same trade.
“Artisans melt resin crystals, or rozan as they call it, in an iron kadai over a coal flame. These crystals are typically available in yellow or black colours. Once liquefied, we add ghiya pathar powder and stir until the mixture thickens. While still hot, we transfer the mixture to the floor where we flatten it with a wooden piece and knead it using a pounding stone,” he says.
The aim is to achieve a consistency similar to a chapati dough. For that, the ghiya pathar powder is added while kneading. The dough-like mixture is then rolled into cylindrical long pieces by hand. At this stage, the base of the bangle typically appears golden yellow.
The chapadi is used to add colour to the bangle base, says Syed Akhter, a
seasoned bangle maker at Akhter Bangles & Jewellers. The chapadis are small circular discs of coloured lac. They typically come in dark brown and burgundy colours. They are melted and pounded, and colouring powders are worked into them to achieve the desired hue. At the end of this process, you get a cube of lac and its colour determines the final colour of the bangle.
The golden yellow lac pieces are heated above the coal burner until they form a semi-conical tip. Then, the cubical coloured lac is applied on the melted tip, colouring it. Now this coloured segment is beaten and flattened using a tool called hatta, forming the base of the bangle. The flattened segment is trimmed using cutters.
“We ensure uniform flatness across the lac surface. The flattened pieces are cut to the bangle size and wrapped around aluminium rings. The number of rings used varies. It depends on how thick the bangle you are making. The thickness can range from 5mm to 25mm. For a 5 mm bangle, 5 aluminium rings are used,” Akhter adds. The bangles at this stage are gently reheated to join the two ends of the flat lac. Later, the bangles are passed through wooden rollers to achieve a uniform circular shape.
Stone studding
If the process of making plain bangles is labour-intensive, the task of studding them with stones is time-consuming, says Mohammad Sharif, artisan and proprietor of Kareem Bangles. His family has been making and selling lac bangles for over 70 years. While bangle making is predominantly done by men, stone embellishment is entrusted to women, says Sharif.
Earlier, glass pieces were used to adorn lac bangles, but today, the artisans are preferring to use coloured stones and crystals. “Women at the workshops delicately position the stones using tweezers, adhering to predetermined designs or customisation requests. After that, the bangle is reheated mildly and then immersed in cold water,” adds Sharif.
Hisamuddin notes that 8, 10, and 12 PP are the common stone sizes used in Hyderabad lac bangles. PP, or Pearl Plate, was originally used to measure pearl size but it is now used to measure stone size as well. Usually, an 8 PP stone measures about 1.4-1.5mm. Sometimes 30 or 32PP stones are used to adorn thick bangles.
These stones are imported from Japan, Singapore, China, and Australia.
Naming them
Some traditional motifs common to Hyderabad lac bangles are saras (single-coloured stones studded in a single line), louze (single-coloured stones arranged in two lines), and kabutar ankh (stones in three lines with a single-coloured stone in the middle). Hisamuddin shares about two other popular designs: “Kanjar features five stones in alternating colours, forming an inverted ‘V’ pattern. In kulasathpuli, one coloured stone in the centre is surrounded by six white stones.”
Some bangle makers name their creations hit films or popular actresses to sell their products. “The ‘Rocky ki Rani’ name emerged because of the Bollywood movie ‘Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani’, and the ‘Srivalli’ style followed from Telugu film ‘Pushpa’,” he adds.
Trending now
Embellishment work on lac bangles used to be simpler initially, often featuring six small stones arranged in the shape of a hexagon. Simple glass work done in rhombus shape gained popularity later. However, today, Hyderabad lac bangles epitomise grandeur — the stones are studded not just in geometrical patterns with straight lines but also curvy patterns featuring flowers and leaves.
Mohammad Shehezad of Safa Bangles and Jewellers in Prince Market of Lad Bazar, says that a bridal set typically comprises nine to 14 bangles for each hand, covering up to 5-8 inches of the wrist. These sets incorporate two to three colours with gold being a common choice as it complements bridal outfits. “Dark green, red, pink, and lavender are popular as contrasting colours. But nowadays, brides place custom orders, specifying colour combinations to match their outfits. They even like to have their name and spouse’s name studded on the bangles,” he shares.
Wallet factor
The pricing of lac bangles depends on their size and the number of stone lines studded on them. For example, a set of four bangles of size 2/6 with four lines of stone studded on them costs Rs 50 at the Lad Bazaar. Bridal sets comprising 14 pieces start from Rs 1,500. Custom-ordered bridal sets with intricate designs can cost up to Rs 10,000 for a set of 24 bangles.