The markets of Jaipur are filled with amusement. The very soul of Rajasthan lingers in the narrow alleys of the markets. Colourful artefacts, gorgeous odhanis, stunning jutis everything mimics the irresistible charm of Rajasthan in such a perfect manner.
Amidst the narrow lanes of one such market, that is, Tripolia Bazaar is Maniharo ka Rasta. The word ‘Manihar’ means ‘one who makes bangles’ and Maniharo ka Rasta is a market filled with manihars selling all kinds of bangles, especially the one made up of lac. We decided to explore this market of Lac Bangles and get a firsthand experience.
Stepping in Maniharo ka Rasta takes you to the realm of lac bangles. These exquisite bangles are the beating heart of the market. Bangles of every existing colour and numerous sizes are found at Maniharo ka Rasta. The allure of these bangles is so much that you just cannot resist buying a pair or two.
Strolling across the street in search of perfect bangles, we saw a woman working on lac bangles and decided to spend some time interacting about her profession. Sadia, as she told us, is a woman with a jolly personality and was happy to talk to us. “I am thirty years old and I have seen my family working with lac ever since my childhood. They have in fact been working with lac bangles much before that. The art is being passed on in my family for generations and we like what we do”, she said. On asking about the younger generation, she said, “Children at our home are very keen on learning but they are way too young to work with hot lac. They will only be taught once they are old enough and it is safe for them to work with melting lac.” While we talked to her about this, we also decided to capture what she was doing, and we must say it was fine and perfect 🙂
Moving a bit forward we stumbled upon another shop with a family working in a completely unique way with lac. We didn’t even left a moment and jumped into the shop to ask what were they doing. Meanwhile, the father was busy filling lac in a hollow gold bangle, his daughter thrilling told us that filling lac in a gold bangle makes it stronger and is also considered lucky in Rajasthan to wear such bangles. Did you know about this? Well, we didn’t 😉 That simply states that even if it is gold, lac is our gold in this priceless state.
After seeing this we think that Rajasthan’s true essence lies in these small allies and this authentic art of making exquisite bangles will definitely stay with us for long. We know even you might be wanting to buy some of these. And these handcrafted lac bangles are very pocket-friendly, say about 150 rupees for 8 plain lac bangles and approximately between 200 to 250 rupees for the beaded ones. Get some as in this season of leheriya and savan it’s a must have to match your daily style.
Content credit: Shanza Sarwana
Edited by team Jaipur Beat.
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