The Craft of Chikankari

Where it began

Chikankari is a delicate, white-thread embroidery style believed to have arrived in Lucknow during the Mughal era, with some accounts tracing its roots as far back as the court of Nur Jahan in the 17th century. Over generations it became inseparable from the identity of the city itself — so much so that Lucknow is often simply called the home of chikan.

How a single piece is made

Every garment starts as plain, unstitched fabric — cotton, georgette, chanderi or muslin. A design is block-printed onto the cloth in washable ink, and from there, a karigar (artisan) works entirely by hand, pulling a single thread through the fabric stitch by stitch. There is no machine shortcut for authentic chikan: a single kurta can take anywhere from a few days to several weeks depending on how dense the embroidery is.

Chikankari isn't one stitch but a family of over 30 traditional stitches, each with its own name and effect. A few you'll see across our collection:

• Bakhiya (shadow work): stitched on the reverse of sheer fabric so the thread shows through softly on the front, like a shadow.
• Phanda & Murri: tiny knot stitches used to create the raised, grain-like centres of flowers.
• Jaali: threads are teased apart, not cut, to create a net-like, see-through texture without ever losing fabric strength.
• Hool & Tepchi: fine outline and running stitches used to sketch the first lines of a floral motif.

Why it still matters

Behind every piece in our shop is a chain of artisans — often women working from home, passing the skill down through their families — whose craft has survived industrialisation precisely because it can't be replicated by machine. When you buy a hand-embroidered chikankari piece, you're supporting that continued livelihood directly.

Because every piece is hand-done, small irregularities in stitching are normal and not a flaw — they're the signature of a human hand, not a printer.