Cane work by Piyush Mani

DOCUMENTARY ON CANE SOFA MAKING B H A R TAP U R , B A R E L LY 1

Baeth ki karigari

Cane sofa making

Documented By- Piyush mani

roll no.1785796030

B.des. 3 rd semester ,UPID2

Contents slide no. • Craft Introduction and history

• Types of canes they use

6-10

• Tools

11-16

• Building process

17-22

• Reflection- challenges, opportunity

• Acknowledgement

• Conclusion

• Design intervention

• Bibliography

Cane work Craft introduction and history Cane work is a technique of discovering beauty of cane through forming cane into some type of product like sofa set. It is practiced mainly in North-eastern regions of India due to high availability of cane and it is practiced particularly in Assam . The craft of making cane products can be dated back to 2 nd century A.D. when Bhaskara Varman ruled the state of Assam. The geographical and climatic condition of this regions is very suitable for growth of high quality cane , and this region is known for its high quality of cane not only in India but all over the world. 5

• The craftsman are known for making different type of items such as sofas, Almira's ,different types of baskets, decors, chairs, stick for blind persons, even small house from cane. • In Bareilly, U.P this craft is practiced in Bhartapur. The Bhartapur is a small village which is about 16 km away from main city.

Image source –google map

Types of cane There are mainly four types of cane: • First is Haddii cane: • Second is Harna cane: • Third is Jaati cane: • Forth is Redank cane:

Types of cane & there classification Haddi cane

Harna cane

Jati cane

Redonk cane

softness

Hardest of all

Less hard then haddi

Harder then redank Softest of all but softer than harna

Cost

Least costly

In between jati and haddi

Less expensive

Expensive

Ease of work (on cane )

Hardest to work with

In-between haddi and jati

In-between harna and redank

Easiest to work with

List of Some tools used by the craftsman • “CHOTA FARNNA”(a dagger type tool) • ”BADA FARNNA”(a long knife like tool) • “THAPI”(bending tool) • Hammer • Nails • Burner • Scissors or Cutting blades • A rod for assisting in bending of cane • Cutting Plier • Sandpaper (optional) 9

Working & use of the tools Bada Farnna • This tool is about 17-18inches • This tools is mainly used for cutting and removing the outer leaves, • They are the best for doing heavy work like preparing the cane for initial stage of process, • And shaving of the unwanted outer covering of the cane .

Image source –self clicked

Hand Saw • Hand Saw is used to cut the cane in the required dimension

Image source –self clicked 11

Chota FARNNA • This tool is about 2-3inches long • This tool is used for removing small shavings from cane • This helps the crafts man to give more finishing to the cane • Mainly the chota FARNNA is used to shave the burned blackened part of the cane Image source –self clicked 12

Thapi • Thapi is a solid wooden tool • This tool is about 19-20inches long and 2-3inches thick • This tool is used for bending the cane to desired shape , • This tool got a semi-circular or rectangular notch in which the cane fits

Image source –self clicked 13

Burner • The burner is used to burn the cane in order to achieve the bending at the desired places • The flame temperature is about 1970 degree Celsius as it uses LPG • The shape of burner is just right that the burner shoots the flame in a particular selected area . Image source –self clicked 14

Cutting Plier • The plier is used to cut the cane and the thin rope type peeling which is also made up of cane itself

Image source –self clicked

Process of making the Cane sofa

Firstly the craftsman carefully choose the type of cane which suited the need and pocket of the client ,according to the chosen type of cane, the delivery time and cost of making cane sofa is decided ,also the type of work (or finishing to be precise) can be decided accordingly. A wide verity of cane mainly comes from north eastern-region of INDIA especially from Assam, also the craftsmen brings the particular type of cane on special order of the client

Image source –self clicked

Choosing/selection process

• Inspection of flaw or defect • Recover and repair using Chipping and peeling of unwanted bulk • The initial preparationuse of bada farna (a long knife like tool) is for removal of bulk or knots. • After shaving, the canes are shorted according to their thickness.

Image source –self clicked

Peeling process After the cane arrives it is inspected thoroughly for any type of flaw or defect , if found then these flaws are tried to recover and repair using different methods like chipping and peeling of the unwanted bulk from the cane . The initial preparation is done with the help of a long knife (more like sward) like tool that helps to remove the bulk. After the shaving process the cane are shorted according to there thickness .

Burning and bending process The framing process of cane starts by taking measurement of cane, then cane is bend by burning the area of cane where the craftsman wants it to bend ,the cane bend in the direction of burn . The burning process is carried out by a gas burner which shoots the flame in only one direction(like a flame torch). While burning the cane it is bend using a special tool called THAPI ,the Thapi has two notch in which the craftsman fixes the cane and bend it.

Image source –self clicked

Shaving process after formation of black layer due to burning The burning process leaves the burned side to have a black layer which doesn't seems pleasing, so that had to be shaved off using another tool called chota Farna .Chota Farna is used to give the final chipping and shaving to the cane and to improve any imperfection left behind .

Image source –self clicked Image source –self clicked

Joining process

After the canes are bend then its time for joining the bend canes together to form a full structure or frame ,nails are used to build the frame

Image source –self clicked Image source –self clicked

Also the thin strips of cane known as “Malaysiaii” cane strips are used to tie the frame ,these thin strips are to be wrapped around the frame to give strength and to improve the overall aesthetic value of sofa . Some craftsman also coat the fully build sofa with clear warnish to increase the self life of cane and to provide a bright shine to the frame ,some even prefer to change the natural colour with any other shade , Whether it’s the shade or the design of sofa these cane sofas will always provide you a great comfort with less weight and money.

Final product

Image source –self clicked 22

Reflection Challenges faced by crafts man in making of cane sofa are: • Small scale craftsmen need proper reach to outside world, they sometimes go unnoticed which is bad for them as well as there business • Availability of cane is major issue • The sofas that they make ,mostly differ from what they intended to make in terms of dimension • Hap hazardous arrangement of tools lead to injuries Opportunity: • If they could manage to deliver different patterns or design to there cane sofas then they could earn more than enough • If they start exploring what other products can be made out of cane other than cane sofas then there could be increase in earning • There is abundant opportunity in toy business for these craftsmen

Special thanks to :

ANSAR SIDHIQUE AND HIS FAMILY

FARUQ AND HIS FAMIILY

NADEEM AND HIS GROUP OF CRAFTSME N

Acknowledgement

Design intervention • We could develop a better jig to hold the cane and the burner in there places for better productivity and efficiency. • We could develop a machine that can assist in removing the knots already present in the cane which will increase the efficiency in making the sofa set. • We can help them provide a better grip for tools like the bada farna .

Bibliography • www.indianmirror.com • www.Britannica.com/Cane furniture • www.culturalindia.net/amp/Indian-crafts/cane.html

Thank you 27