Toda Embroidery

The embroiderer works from the reverse of the fabric, counting warp and weft threads to place each stitch — no pattern is drawn or traced. The darning stitch used produces a raised, almost woven texture, and because the work is executed by counting, the design reads clearly on both faces of the cloth.

A full putukuli shawl carries bands of motifs and can take many weeks to complete. Motifs are drawn from Toda life and landscape: buffalo horns, the sun, rabbit ears, hut shapes and mountain forms.

The Toda are a small pastoral community indigenous to the Nilgiris, historically buffalo herders living in distinctive barrel-vaulted huts. Toda embroidery holds a Geographical Indication tag. Craft cooperatives have helped Toda women earn from the work while keeping the technique intact, and the shawl remains essential to Toda ceremonies.

Toda settlements near Ooty and Kotagiri, cooperative outlets in the Nilgiris and craft shops in Ooty sell genuine pieces. The Tribal Research Centre museum at Muthorai near Ooty displays Toda material culture, and some settlements welcome respectful visitors who arrange in advance.