Location
Nirmal , the headquarters of Nirmal district is located 68km from Nizamabad and 221km from Hyderabad.
Description
Nirmal paintings are a traditional art form has a rich history and has been passed down through generations of artisans. Lady Ali Hydri played a significant role in popularizing the art form by bringing the artisans to Musheerabad in Hyderabad in 1951 due to higher demand for the paintings. Since then, the paintings have been made in both Nirmal and Hyderabad.
One of the unique features of Nirmal paintings is that they are made on teak wood instead of canvas or paper. The artisans use nitrocellulose colors and special gold powder for painting. To create a Nirmal painting, a sketch of the art is first traced and then filled with colors. The result is a beautiful and smooth finish that can last for over 50 years due to the use of teak wood as the base.
The uniqueness of Nirmal paintings lies in their painting process and the use of teak wood as the base which increases their longevity. The art form requires great skill on the part of the artisan to achieve the desired expression, as traditional imagination and reproduction play a significant role in the creative process. The skilled artisans of Nirmal have learned this art of painting from their forefathers and continue to practice it from generation to generation.
Nirmal paintings have become an important cultural symbol for the state of Telangana, and the art form has received a Geographical Indication (GI) tag under the name of “Nirmal Painting” with GI Application Number 106. The GI tag ensures that Nirmal paintings are recognized as distinctive and unique, and only those paintings made in the Nirmal and Hyderabad regions can be sold under this name.
Archive
References
- eBook on Geographical Indications of Telangana
Contributors
NIUM