Entrance gate of the Thathera market of Jandiala Guru

The Thathera (literally meaning 'the beater', also known as Thathrias) is a Hindu and Sikh artisan caste in India, whose traditional occupation is the making of brass and copper utensils. In 2014, the craft of the Thathera community of Jandiala Guru was included in the

UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists UNESCO established its Lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage with the aim of ensuring better protection of important intangible cultural heritages worldwide and the awareness of their significance.Compare: This list is published by the Intergove ...

History

The Thathera communities of Punjab played a prominent role in developing the Sikh School of metal relief artwork. Many of the surviving gilded brass and copper panels affixed to the edifices of the

Golden Temple The Golden Temple is a gurdwara located in Amritsar, Punjab, India. It is the pre-eminent spiritual site of Sikhism. It is one of the Holy place, holiest sites in Sikhism, alongside the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur in Kartarpur, Pakistan, ...

or Gurdwara Baba Atal Rai were crafted by Thathera craftsmen or guilds in the 19th and early 20th century. The most renowned Thatheras for creating metal panel art were located in Kucha Fakirkhana,

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

. Only three or four Thathera families in Amritsar have preserved the knowledge on how to execute this form of metalworking art at present.

Present circumstances

In Bihar

In Bihar, the Thatheras are classified as a Backward Caste.

UNESCO Listing and Government Programs

Although people of the Thathera community reside across the country, only those from Jandiala Guru in the state of

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

were included in the UNESCO's List of Intangible Cultural Heritage. After years of neglect and inaction on the part of the government and the civil society, the UNESCO listing prompted the

Deputy Commissioner A deputy commissioner is a police, income tax or administrative official in many countries. The rank is commonplace in police forces of Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, usually ranking below the Commissioner. Australia In all Aust ...

Amritsar Amritsar, also known as Ambarsar, is the second-List of cities in Punjab, India by population, largest city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, after Ludhiana. Located in the Majha region, it is a major cultural, transportatio ...

to collaborate with students of

Shri Ram College of Commerce Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) is an Indian higher education institution in the fields of commerce, economics and business management. A constituent college of the University of Delhi, it was founded in 1926 by seven leading businessmen na ...

to revive the dying craft form. Soon,

Navjot Singh Sidhu Navjot Singh Sidhu (born 20 October 1963) is an Indian former cricketer, television personality and politician from the Indian National Congress. He is the former President of Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee. Formerly, he was the Minister of ...

, the then Minister of Tourism of Punjab pledged Rs. 10 lakhs to this effort, under the umbrella of Project Virasat.

Gallery

Jandiala Guru

File:Thathera market of Jandiala Guru.jpg, Thathera market of Jandiala Guru File:Thathera (brass craftman) utencils' making equipments and workshop.jpg, Thathera (brass craftman) utencils' making equipments and workshop File:Worksop in Thathera market of Jandiala Guru. 07.jpg, Worksop in the Thathera market. File:A thathera selling utensils in Thathera market of Jandiala Guru.jpg, A thathera selling utensils in Thathera market File:A thathera selling utensils in Thathera market of Jandiala Guru. 02.jpg, A thathera selling utensils in Thathera market. File:An old Thathera craftsman in Thathera market of Jandiala Guru. 09.jpg, An old (retd.) Thathera craftsman in Thathera market .

References

{{reflist Social groups of Uttar Pradesh Indian castes Social groups of Rajasthan Social groups of Bihar Social groups of Haryana