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PATTAMADAI PAI
The silk-like mats of Pattamadai in Tirunelveli
Traditional mat-weaving is a practice prevalent across the state of Tamil Nadu. Pattamadai, a small village in the Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu, is known for its beautiful handwoven mats that are made of korai grass. The tradition of weaving mats is centuries old and is unique to the region. In this region, it all started when Syed Khalifa Meeran, a preacher who belonged to the Lebbai community, settled in Pattamadai. Lebbai is a Muslim trading community found in South Indian states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala. In order to provide a supplementary income, the families in this community started weaving mats. In due course, they mastered the craft and this tradition was handed down to subsequent generations. These mats are known as Pattamadai pai in Tamil, as they take the name of the region they originate from. There are various qualities and those mats of the highest quality that have a silk-like texture are known as pattu pai (silk mat) or korai pai (korai grass mat).
The Pattamadai pai in different sizes
The power loom used presently to weave the mats
The making of a Pattamadai pai involves processes like drying, soaking, splitting, and dyeing. The mats are made of korai grass (Cyperus corymbosus rottb.) that are found abundantly on the banks of the Thamirabarani river in Tirunelveli. They are harvested in September and October, and February and March. Karungadukorai is the most popular korai grass used for the mats. To begin with, the inner portion of the grass is removed, and strips of grass are dried in the sun until they turn yellowish-green in colour. They are then boiled in water and dried again. Finally, the strips are soaked in running water and dried again under the sun. In the last stage, the outer layer is removed after a final round of drying under the sun. This technique was introduced by Hassan Bawa Lebbai, a descendant of Syed Khalifa Meeran. It was by chance that he discovered it was possible to split the korai fibre into several thin strands after soaking them in water. This helped increase the number of strands and produced extremely soft mats of the finest quality.
The most common natural and chemical colours used are black, red, and green. Weaving is done on a floor loom and water is used to soften the grass during the process. It is then dried under the sun and polished with a stone for a smooth finish. It usually takes two weeks to a month to weave a mat. They may be coarsely or finely woven. The softest mat, usually with a high strand count, can be folded like a saree. Traditionally, these mats were gifted to the bride and groom on their wedding day, with their names and the date of their wedding inscribed on the mat. These mats cost anywhere between ₹1500 to ₹15,000. Nowadays, the weavers use the same technique to make other items with the korai grass, such as bags, placemats, hand fans, baskets, purses, and storage boxes. However, they are still most famous for the beautiful mats they weave.
Pattamadai pai exhibited at the Tirunelveli Government Museum
The Government of Madras (now Tamil Nadu) gifted the Pattamadai pai to Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, and this gracious gesture helped the pai reach the international market. In 2013, the Pattamadai pai was given the Geographical Indication (GI) tag.
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